Black Jamaican christmas cake

Ingredients :

1½ cups flour
1 cup (2 sticks) margarine or butter
1 cup sugar
4 eggs
1 cup raisins
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup cherries
1 cup prunes, chopped
1 cup wine (or substitute water)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 lemon or lime rind, finely grated
2 Tablespoons browning (see below)

Directions :

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. and grease a 9-inch round cake pan.

2. To make browning: in a saucepan, add ½ Tablespoon water to brown sugar and heat over medium to high heat until the sugar is burnt. Let cool.

3. With a beater, beat butter, sugar and browning until soft and fluffy.

4. Add eggs, one at a time, to butter mixture. Add wine or water and mix well. Add fruits.

5. Add dry ingredients, stirring just to comine. Do not over-beat when mixing. Pour batter into a greased 9-inch round cake pan.

6. Bake for 1½ hours, checking after one hour. Cake is done when it begins to pull away from the sides of the pan.