Scripture Fruit Cake

A great cake for all Holidays!

The Bible often likens the Word of God to food. Job had an "appetite for God's Word more than for his necessary food" (Job 23:12). The Psalmist regarded the Word as "sweeter than honey from the honeycomb" (Psalm 19:10). In the Book of Revelation, John was instructed to take Gods Word and "eat the book" (Revelation 10:9).

This fun recipe is another way of eating Gods Word. It is my version of a similar recipe which appeared some time ago in the Jerusalem Post. I am sure that the children of the house will have a great time in helping make this cake. Have the older children look up the scriptures to find the ingredients. (Note: the fruit used in this recipe is dried rather than candied.)

1 cup golden raisins (I Samuel 25:18: ". . . a hundred clusters of raisins.")
1 cup figs, chopped (Isaiah 34:4: ". . . fig from the fig tree.")
1 cup almonds, finely chopped (Numbers 17:23: ". . . bore ripe almonds.")
1 cup dates, chopped (Exodus 15:27: ". . . there were seventy palms.")
1-1/2 cups flour (Leviticus 2:5: " . . . fine flour, unleavened.")
1 pinch salt (Leviticus 2:13: " . . . season with salt.")
1 tsp. cinnamon (Exodus 30:23: ". . . of sweet cinnamon.")
1 dash ginger and allspice (Song of Solomon 4:10: ". . . all manner of spices.")
1 tsp. baking powder (Amos 4:5: ". . . of that which is leavened.")
3 large eggs (Isaiah 10:14: ". . . one gathereth eggs.")
1 cup sugar (Jeremiah 6:20: ". . . and the sweet cane.")
1/2 cup vegetable oil (Numbers 11:8: ". . . cake baked with oil.")
1 tbsp. honey (Judges 14:18: ". . . what is sweeter than honey.")

Preheat oven to 325 degrees (F) or 165 degrees (C). In a medium bowl, combine raisins, dates, figs, and almonds. Set aside. In a large bowl beat eggs until light. Gradually add sugar and continue beating for 5 minutes. Add oil and honey slowly and continue beating another 5 minutes. Add flour, salt, baking powder, and spices, a little at a time. Stir until well-blended. Finally, fold in fruit and nuts. Pour into well-greased 5" x 9" loaf pan or two smaller loaf pans. Bake about 1-1/2 hours for large loaf or 45 minutes to 1 hour for smaller loaves. Let cool for a few hours. Slice with sharp knife. Keeps well in refrigerator.

[ Betsy Gerrish, "Whats Cookin' in Jerusalem" -- from Keith Todd ]