Boozy Fruitcake

This recipe for Christmas Cheer piqued my interest.
So I made it...and it was not for the faint of heart, but it will cure what ails ya.   >Hiccup!...<

Not one to waste anything, I wanted to do something with the cured fruits and nuts that had infused the liquor with the distinct flavors of Christmastide.
Fruitcake was the answer.

American fruitcake is cakier than British fruitcake; but, in the UK, fruitcake is used for everything:

It's traditionally the top tier of one's wedding cake which then serves as the Christening cake for your firstborn.
It's quite often a birthday cake.
Some people start making their Christmas Cakes and Christmas Puddings (both variations on fruitcake) in September, but "Stir Up Sunday" (five weeks prior to Christmas) is traditionally the day set aside to make Christmas pudding.

That last one had me thinking.
The English women I knew would make their fruitcake, keep it on their kitchen counter in a tin, and pour brandy or sherry over the top of it about once a week.  This kept it moist and mold free and made it rich and dense as all get out.
So if they could make the cake boozy from the outside in, I thought I would start by making one boozy from the inside out.

Boozy Fruitcake

Boozy Fruit:

2c. Mixture of Dried Fruit and Nuts
1/2c. Brandy, Sherry, Bourbon, or White Wine

Soak the fruit and/or nuts in the alcohol and leave in the fridge, covered, overnight.
Alternatively, you could use fruit or nuts previously used in making alcohol infusions.
As an alternative to the alternative, you could soak the fruit and nuts in hot tea instead of alcohol.

Fruitcake:

2 c. Flour
1 1/4c. Sugar
3/4c. Almond Meal
1 Tbs. Baking Powder
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/2c. Buttermilk
1 Softened Stick of Butter
2 Eggs
2 tsp. Freshly Grated Ginger
2c. Boozy Fruit, finely chopped

Grease a 9" springform pan and pre-heat oven to 350F.
Mix all of the dry ingredients together.
Add butter, buttermilk, eggs, and ginger.
Mix for 1 minute then scrape down the sides.
Mix for another minute.
By hand, mix in the fruit and nuts.
Pour batter into pan and let rest for 10 minutes.
Bake for 35 minutes and check doneness with a toothpick.  Cake should be golden and toothpick should come out clean.
Once out of the oven, leave to cool 10 minutes in the pan.  Take off sides and bottom, cool completely on cooling rack.

Serve warm with butter, brandy butter, brandy sauce, or flaming brandy (yes, that's a thing).
Serve cold with whipped or clotted cream or hard sauce.
Make a glaze with lemon juice and powdered sugar to be poured over the top if you's like it sweeter.
Or leave on the countertop in a cake tin for later consumption, just remember to quench its thirst and pour a little sherry or brandy over the top.

This is a part of FPT.