Irish Barmbrack Tea Bread
Irish Barmbrack Tea Cake is an utterly delicious, speckled tea bread, much like Irish Freckle Bread, that's moist, tender, and perfect for teatime, snacks, or breakfast. It is an irresistible loaf that's quicker and lighter than Christmas bread and is often served in October.
Servings: 16 servings
Calories: 126kcal
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups dried fruit (raisins, golden raisins, sultanas, pitted prunes, dates, etc)
- 1 cup brewed Irish Tea (hot)
- 1 zest of orange
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (or mixed spice)
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- coarse vanilla sugar for sprinkling optional
- 1 large egg
Instructions
- Pour hot tea over the dried fruit in a medium sized bowl. Cover and set aside to soak for at least 1 hour (or until beginning to plump).
- Preheat the oven to 325℉ and lightly grease an 8 x 4 inch loaf pan (or 1lb loaf pan).
- In a large bowl, mix the brown sugar, flour, baking powder, salt, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon. Add the dried fruit and any remaining liquid. Stir until completely combined; the batter will be very thick and stiff.
- Add the egg and mix until thoroughly combined.
- Spread the batter into the prepared loaf pan, hide the trinkit if using, and sprinkle optionally with a coarse sanding sugar (I'm using Vanilla Sparkling Sugar).
- Bake for 60 to 70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out moist without large crumbs sticking.
- Remove from the oven and turn it out onto a rack to cool.
Nutrition
Calories: 126kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 0.2g | Saturated Fat: 0.04g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.03g | Sodium: 144mg | Potassium: 80mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 16g | Vitamin A: 5IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 63mg | Iron: 1mg