For the dough: ½ c. vegetable shortening ½ c. butter 1 c. granulated sugar 1 t. vanilla 2 eggs, beaten 5 c. all-purpose flour 1 t. salt 2 T. baking powder ½ c. milk 1 egg yolk, beaten

Cream the shortening, butter and sugar in the bowl of electric mixer. Add vanilla and eggs. Sift the dry ingredients together. Add to the wet ingredients in three parts. Stir in milk. When the mixture reaches a dough-like consistency, gather up and knead lightly on a floured board. Gather the dough in a ball, press down to make a disc, wrap in waxed paper and place in the refrigerator.

For the filling: 1 box pitted prunes, chopped 1 box dried apricots, chopped 1 box raisins, chopped ½ c. to ¾ c. granulated sugar 1 jar maraschino cherries, chopped ½ c. walnuts or pecans, chopped (optional) Juice of one lemon 2 t. lemon zest In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, cook the prunes, apricots and raisins until soft. Add sugar to taste, followed by the cherries, nuts, lemon juice and lemon zest. Cool before spreading on dough.

For the glaze: ½ c. 10-X sugar 1 t. vanilla or lemon juice Cold water In a small bowl, sift the sugar to get out the lumps. Add vanilla or lemon juice, then enough cold water to make a glaze.

Assembly: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease two cookie sheets or line with parchment paper. Divide dough into three or four equal pieces (a kitchen scale comes in handy here). On a floured board, roll out dough to ¼-inch thickness. Spread a portion of the filling down the middle of the dough, leaving a border on four sides. Moisten the edges with water or the beaten egg yolk. Fold the short edges over the dough, then longer edges to make a flat log. Be careful not to overfill the dough. If you do, the log cracks and the filling runs out. Repeat with the other pieces of dough. You may have filling left over. Transfer to cookie sheets, brush with egg wash and bake for 15 minutes until golden brown. Cool completely, then drizzle or brush with glaze. Decorate with holiday sprinkles, if desired. When the glaze is completely dry, wrap in plastic wrap or transfer to holiday-decorated bakery bags. Note: The Fruit Rolls freeze well, however, you must skip the glazing step. When the rolls have cooled completely, wrap them in plastic wrap, then in foil and place in plastic freezer bags. Glaze the logs after they’ve defrosted.

This recipe is from Laura Raposa, 2007.