Welsh Fruit Bread (Bara Brith)
This Welsh fruit loaf gets its moisture and depth from dried fruit soaked in black tea for several hours. Bara brith is often made with yeast, but this version relies on baking powder and bicarbonate of soda, so there is no proving and no kneading. Brown sugar and wholemeal flour give it a darker, more rustic crumb. The tea you strain off is used again to loosen the batter, so nothing goes to waste.
Instructions
Soak the dried fruit in brewed black tea for several hours. Strain it, keeping both the fruit and the tea.
Mix the flour, brown sugar, mixed spice, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda in a large bowl. Add the soaked fruit and begin to stir it through.
Add the egg and keep mixing. Then pour in the reserved tea a little at a time, stirring after each addition.
Stop adding tea when the batter is thick but still runny, so it clings to the spoon and any excess drops off easily. If the tea runs out before you reach that point, a splash of milk will do the same job.
Fold in the chopped glacé cherries, if using, which add extra moisture to the batter.
Pour the batter into a greased baking tin and bake at 190°C for about 90 minutes. Cover the top loosely with foil for the first hour so it does not burn.
Turn the loaf out of the tin once baked and let it cool. Serve in slices with butter and a cup of tea.
Make it personal.
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