This is a cake my father loved that his mom would make. She even shipped it to him, in the wars he was in…he said it would arrive crumbled to pieces, but he gobbled it up and loved it. She also made a Date Nut pie he loved and I made both for him, one Christmas, not long before he died. Where she got this recipe, I have NO idea – she was from a tiny town in West Texas – farming community. LOL

                               Japanese Fruit Cake

Mix: 2 cups sugar

        4 eggs

        1/2 tsp. salt

        3 and 1/3 c. flour

        1 cup milk

        3/4 cup Crisco

        4 tsp. Baking Powder

        1 teaspoon vanilla

  Mix in order. Makes 3 (9 inch) layers. Put 1/2 cup raisens in 1/3 of batter. Put 1 cup pecans in 2/3 batter (one layer has raisens, 2 have pecans). Bake at 350 degrees until done. (?? I guess the time of normal cake layers).

                                  Filling:

Mix 3 Tablespoons flour or cornstarch and 2 cups sugar. Gradually add 1 cup boiling water.

Add 1 fresh grated coconut. 3 lemons, grate 1 and use juice of 2. Mix thoroughly and cook until thickened. Cool. Spread between layers (not sides). Freezes well. Put layer with raisens between the 2 pecan layers.