Mystery Fruitcake -- a vintage recipe find

 

 I thought I would share one vintage recipe with you, but as it turns out I have two!  This Betty Crocker's Mystery Fruitcake, found on the inside back covers of two old magazines,  sounds so intriguing.  Almost too intriguing not to try it.

Apparently the Dark Mystery Fruitcake came first, so I will start with that one.  It uses a spice cake (pre-baked from a mix) along with candied fruit, raisins, dates, and pecan halves -- and a package of fluffy white frosting mix.  I was curious about that last ingredient.  I remember using fluffy white frosting mix in the past -- was it possible this product is still being made?  As it turns out, yes, it is.  Look here: Betty Crocker Fluffy White Frosting Mix.  

One crumbles the baked, cooled cake into a very large bowl and mixes it with the fruit and nuts.  Then, one prepares the frosting mix and mixes it thoroughly with the cake crumbs and nuts.  This mixture is packed tightly into two loaf pans or one tube pan (foil lined in either case), covered with foil, then chilled in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours.  It should be kept refrigerated and sliced with a sharp knife when ready to serve.

(This recipe notes that one could also make the cake using a chocolate cake mix rather than spice.  And that might be good to try.  I've made a chocolate fruitcake in the past that was quite good.)

The hype for this recipe seems possibly too good to be true, but who knows?  Here's what Betty Crocker wrote, likely in the late 1950s:

"With our new never-fail method, every bit of fruit stays holiday-bright and beautiful.  Every bite of cake tastes rich, moist ... grandmother-good!  

"No chance for your fruitcake to burn or scorch.  No risk of a costly failure.  And it's ready to cut just 24 hours later -- no long "mellowing" time!

"You can make a spectacular 6 1/2-lb. fruitcake in an angel food tube pan.  Or make it in loaf pans -- two from each package of cake mix -- for gracious holiday entertaining and the nicest kind of holiday giving!"

I don't care for candied fruit much, so I would modify that requirement a bit, probably candying my own pineapple and cherries and possibly orange peel to come up with the four cups of candied fruit.  And although I'm not using mixes much these days, I'm thinking I just might give this recipe, or the one that follows, a try.  

What do you think?  Would you try this recipe?