Cloning - Of The Fruit Cocktail Cake

I had company this weekend and when the dust settled this morning, this is what was left of the original 9x13” Fruit Cocktail Cake. I could put it out for the birds/squirrels, save it for later, throw it away. . .no. . .Never mind that it's 81° with 58% humidity in my house – and I hate heat this weather – I wasn't really ready to be done with this cake. So, I rework all this and baked another one – which works nicely since I have another wave of company coming tomorrow. :o) I tried this a while ago with cornbread and if I remember right, liked it both ways.

Cube remaining original cake and set aside – this yielded 1-1½c.

In a little pan, combine the following:

2/3c brown sugar

½t cardamom

1-2c fresh fruit – finely chopped
¼c water

Bring to a boil then simmer 5 minutes. This should have the consistency of chunky applesauce. Cool to room temperature. Transfer to a plastic mixing bowl and add:

1 lg egg

1t real vanilla

Stir together fruit and egg mixtures until well blended. Stir together the next 3 dry ingredients then add to the fruit mixture, along with the cubed cake pieces, a little at a time, stirring well after each addition:

1c flour

½t baking soda

a pinch of salt

When blended, pour into a buttered-floured 8” or 9” square glass baking pan and let stand while preheating oven to 325°. Top with chopped pecans and some coarse raw sugar. Bake for ±20 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. It's great! Sometimes the redux is better than the original.
Happy cloning! . . . Lin