• 1 1/2 cups sweetened applesauce
• 1/2 cup Crisco
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 - 8 oz pkg dried pitted dates, sliced
• 2 cups chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup red glace cherries, chopped
• 2 cups seedless raisins
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp allspice

1. Grease two 8 x 4 inch loaf pans or one 9-inch tube pan. Line with waxed paper or brown paper bag. Grease again. Set aside.
2. Combine applesauce, shortening, and sugar in saucepan. Bring to a boil, then cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cool. Mix fruits and nuts in large bowl. Sift together flour, soda, salt, and spices. Gradually stir into fruit mixture. Stir in the cooled applesauce mixture.
3. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake in 275 degree oven for 1 hour 45 minutes for loaves or 2 hours for tube cake or until cakes test done. Cool cakes in pan or on rack for about 30 minutes, then remove and cool completely. Wrap and store in tightly covered container. Will keep for weeks.
4. If you like yours "doctored up," you will need to wrap the cake in cheesecloth and put it into a covered metal tin or even a plastic container. I use the tin. You may want to sit it on waxed paper and have waxed paper on the sides to keep the metal from pitting. After you wrap the cake in the cheesecloth, spoon rum (I like the spiced rum) over the cheesecloth until good and damp but not drenching wet. Check it every few days. If the cheesecloth begins to dry out, spoon more over the cheesecloth. Do this for about 2-4 weeks. The alcohol will dissipate leaving the rum flavor in the cake.

If you don't like all of the "yucky" stuff in fruit cake, you just may like this one! I have changed it around over the years. Sometimes I add more fruit. There is no need to increase the other ingredients when you do this. I have added candied pineapple, fresh pineapple, used half dark raisins and half white raisins, half red and half green glace cherries, added peaches, pineapple, etc. Just be creative! Leave out what you don't like and add extra of what you do like.