Anna Mose Christmas Cake (Grace Herr)

A Story
This was a favorite of my Aunt Alice Yoder. She shared this story.
Anna was an older woman who liked to go barefooted, and often did when she went down the familiar path to clean the Mennonite Church in Denbigh, Virginia. We would see her going on this weekly errand. She earned money this way to send her son, who was training to be a doctor, to medical school. There were two Annas in our community, so our quaint way of distinguishing them was to add the husband’s name onto their names to identify them. Thus she became Anna Mose.
Source: Grace Herr from her Aunt Alice

Recipe
Ingredients
3 c  flour
½ tsp salt
2 tsp nutmeg
2 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp cloves
1 ½ dark brown sugar, packed
½ c vegetable oil
2 c thick applesauce
¼ c warm water
2 tsp baking soda
2 c raisins
1 ½ - 2 c coarsely chopped nuts
1 c candied cherries, halved

Directions
Sift the first five ingredients; set aside.
In a large bowl, mix together sugar, oil, and applesauce.
Dissolve the baking soda in warm water and add to the wet mixture along with the dry ingredients.
Mix a little flour with the fruit and nuts so they don’t stick together, then add to the batter.
Pour into large greased and floured tube pan and bake at 325 ° for one hour and 20 minutes. (Line the bottom of the pan with parchment. Important.)
This does not need icing, but a bit of powdered sugar/butter icing studded with cherries and nuts is pretty.


Notes
Made with The Recipe Box. http://www.therecipeboxapp.com/