Every Christmas I make a designated holiday cake, it is made for every Christmas party we go to and also for our Christmas brunch and given to "older" neighbors who are home-bound. I try to mix it up, but it seems like every year I don't make this, they ask where it is... ha, I still don't feel good about duplicating every year so they have to wait 2 years before they get it again.

Cake:
1C chpped pecans
1 18 1/2ox pkg yellow cake mix (if using one with pudding, omit pudding)
1 3 3/4 pkg Vanilla pudding
4 eggs
1/2cold water
1/2C oil
1/2C Dark (80proof) rum

preheat 325
grease and flour Bundt pan, sprinkle nuts on the bottom of pan, mix all cake ingredients, pour over nuts. Bake 1 hours, cool

Glaze
1/4 lb Butter
1/4 C water
1C granulated sugar
1/2 C Dark rum (80proof)

Melt butter in sauce pan, stir in water and sugar. Boil 5 mins stirring constantly. Remove from heat, stir in rum

Now this is the tricky part. Invert cake onto plate, pour glaze into Bundt pan and then carefully place cake back into Bundt. It will absorb all the glaze. Most recipes ask for you to brush glaze on, but most runs off. Once glaze is mostly absorbed into cake, invert onto cake plate.

Frosted fruit... For this: Grapes (red and green), blue berries, raspberries and kumquats.

Take an egg white and place in bowl. Take what fruit your want to frost and roll in egg. Make sure you rub whites to cover entire fruit, wiping off egg globs.

Then on a plate of granulated sugar, place fruit and sprinkle sugar over fruit until all wet areas are covered with sugar. Once you place sugar on fruit, place it in your hand and shake your hand a little to let excess fall off and in between your fingers. The fruit should not be lightly dusted with sugar. When is dries it looks frosted. Place on top and around cake.