Bara Brith (Welsh Fruit Cake)

Bara brith (‘speckled bread’) is a traditional Welsh tea-time fruit bread, although it is more like a cake than a bread.

Ingredients

450 g (16 oz) mixed dried fruit
450 g (16 oz) self-raising flour OR 450 g (16 oz) plain flour + 4 tsp baking powder + ½ tsp salt
2 teabags (any flavour)
100 g (3½ oz) brown sugar
1 egg
2 tbsp orange marmalade
1 tsp mixed spice
Milk (or water)

Method

1	Soak the teabags in 300 ml (10 fl oz) of boiling water for 5 minutes. Remove the teabags and add the fruit. Cover and leave to soak overnight.
2	In a separate bowl beat together the sugar, egg and marmalade and add to the fruit. Sieve in the flour and spice, and mix well.
3	Add in the soaked fruit plus any liquid and mix with a spoon. If necessary, add small amounts of milk (or water) to adjust the consistency of the batter to that of a thick cake mix.
4	Pour the mixture into a greased 2lb (900 g) loaf tin and bake at 160°C for about 1½ hours. You may need to cover the loaf with some foil about halfway through baking to prevent the top from burning.
5	Check that the loaf is cooked by inserting a skewer. Leave to cool in the tin for about an hour before turning it out, then baste with warm honey.

Titli’s Tips

The flavour of the bara brith can be altered slightly by using different ingredients. For example, use Earl Grey tea or a spicy masala tea; replace two tablespoons of fruit with chopped stem ginger; add a tablespoon or two of honey.

Slice thickly and spread with butter, then serve with a nice cup of tea.