Soft and Light Fruit Cake

Prepare the fruit cake by starting to pour the flour into the bowl of a stand mixer 1, then add the sugar 2 and the dry yeast 3,

pour the orange juice 4 and start mixing with the hook, then add the herbal liqueur 5. Start kneading for a few seconds still with the hook and then pour in 3 eggs, one at a time 6.

When the eggs are absorbed, stop the mixer, then add the condensed milk 7, then still with the hook, mix and add the last of the 4 eggs 8. On a cutting board, chop the dried fruit into coarse cubes 9

and add it to the dough 10, continue kneading until it starts sticking to the hook 11; then add the softened butter, one tablespoon at a time 12

and continue working until you get a smooth and well-kneaded dough 13. Take the dough from the mixer and work it a little on the board, just to give it a round shape 14. Place it in a lightly buttered bowl 15 and let it rise for 2-3 hours covered with plastic wrap in an off oven with the light on.

After the necessary time, the dough will have tripled in volume 16; turn it out onto the board 17 and work it with your fingertips until you get a rectangle of 6x12 inches 18.

Then with a dough scraper, cut the dough lengthwise 19, thus obtaining 3 strips 20, then join them at one end 21

so that you have the part to start braiding the three strips alternately 22, until you get a braid 23. Then place the dough in a lightly buttered 10-inch diameter cake mold 24

and let it rise for 1-2 hours 25, covered with plastic wrap away from drafts. After the necessary time, bake in a preheated static oven at 340°F for 50-60 minutes (if using a convection oven, 300°F for 40-50 minutes), always doing the toothpick test before removing the cake from the oven. Once baked, remove it from the oven and lightly brush with egg white 26 then sprinkle with sugar crystals 27 and let it cool completely before serving the fruit cake.