Gina's Brandied Fruit Bars

You need to start the fruit and brandy at least a week before you want to make these!

1.5 lbs dried fruits (about 3 cups firmly packed)
1/2 cup brandy (don't go crazy and buy the best -- but avoid the gut-rot)
7 oz (2 cups) pecan halves (toasted)
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
unflavored dried bread crumbs

For the fruit -- I like pineapple/dried cherry/currants and apricot/raisins/cranberries
whatever you like -- but choose flavors that go well together and have different colors to make them pretty

pack the fruit into a mason jar -- and add the brandy -- seal it up and let it soak - -turn the jar over every other day -- and let the brandy get into the fruit and the fruit get into the brandy -- I've done this weeks and weeks in advance --

preheat the oven and put the rack in the middle -- 350 degrees

line the inside of a 9 x 13 pan with alum. foil and butter the inside -- dust with unflavored bread crumbs and set pan aside.

sift together the flour, baking powder and salt

in a mixer, beat eggs just to mix -- add sugar and beat to mix -- add dry ingredients and beat just until mixed in (not too long!). Fold in the fruit -- all the brandy in the jars and the nuts and turn the batter into the prepared pan - bake for 45 minutes.

Cool -- turn out and remove foil -- cut in small squares with a serrated bread knife(sometimes I freeze the whole thing unsliced and then cut them when I'm ready to do the cookie exchange

these taste like what fruit cake is supposed to taste like -- yummy and pretty.