The Ultimate Guide to Prepping Dried Fruits for a Jamaican Fruit Cake (the steam method)

Ingredients

• 2 cups dried raisins
• 2 cups candied mixed peels
• 2 cups candied (glace) cherries
• 4 cups port wine (Red Label Wine or Fairbanks Port) You can also use cherry brandy, Manischewitz Concord Grape, or grape juice if you're teetotal (alcohol-free option).
• 1 cup Wray and Nephew White Rum or dark spiced rum.

Instructions

1. 1

   In a medium-large pan, add all the dried fruits and wine.

2. 2

   Gently heat the wine and fruits over medium-low heat to warm them up. Bring to a simmer. (Do Not Boil)

3. 3

   Once the mixture starts to produce steam - turn off the stove.

4. 4

   Stir and remove the pot from the heat source.

5. 5

   Cover the pot and let the mixture sit overnight (12 hours). This will infuse and rehydrate the fruits.

6. 6

   --- How To Blend The Fruits ---

7. 7

   Pour all the contents from the pot into a high-speed blender or food processor.

8. 8

   Add the rum.

9. 9

   Blend the fruits and wine mixture on high for about 30 seconds into a smooth paste (or to your desired consistency. (Reduce blending time if you prefer your fruits on the chunkier side.)

10. 10

    Pour mixture into a dry clean, airtight glass container and cover.

11. 11

    Store in a cool dark area (away from the sun) until ready to use.

12. 12

    This recipe yields approximately 56 ounces. You can easily scale up the ingredients if you need to increase it. Most Jamaican fruit cake recipes call for 2-3 cups of fruit paste. You'll have more than enough for 2 cakes.