Annual Fair Warning of FROOTCAKE
Thu 2010-12-09 12:34:13 (in context)
It's only fair to warn everybody: It's that time of year again.
Tuesday I went to the grocery and picked up half a pound of slivered almonds; varying amounts of golden raisins, currants, dried strawberries, diced dried pineapple, diced dried papaya, and candied ginger; and a buddha hand citron.
That night I did my best to julienne the strawberries. They, the raisins, and the currants went into a mixing bowl with 1/2 cup Stranahan's Colorado Whiskey, an additional shot of which went into me.
Last night I sliced the citron into inch-long thin strips (in between turns of Dominion: Prosperity -- that second one's a YouTube link, btw) and candied the heck outta them. While they were cooking, I sliced up the candied ginger and set the results aside. Then I turned off the heat when the ice-water method said "Stop already! You wanted the thread stage? Dude, I don't care that your thermometer isn't showing higher than 220 degrees, your thermometer knows nothing, we're rapidly approaching the soft-ball stage! You want citron pralines? I didn't think so!" Strain and dry.
This morning the citron is well and truly turned into candy, and the reserved syrup is doing very yummy things to my morning cuppa tea. I'm contemplating heading back to the grocery for sugar, as I've run out. And then maybe heading over to The Container Store, if that still exists, to pick up new containers to store beans in, since that's what's in my big, round, can-handle-a-tube-cake Rubbermaid container.
And then mixing and baking the fruitcake.
Seeing as how I'm a couple weeks late making with the baking, I'll need to use extra whiskey to get it drunk between now and Solstice.
So! Warning duly emitted, it is now time to get on with the business of the day. About that, one hopes, more later.