Bara Brith Tea Cake | Welsh Speckled Bread | No Alcohol Fruit Cake
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Author: Rimli
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: Welsh
Serves: 12 servings
Ingredients
- For Soaking:
- Earl Grey tea: 2 tea bags or 2 tsp, any other strong black tea will work
- Boiling water: 300ml
- Raisin: 100g
- Sultana: 100g
- Current: 100g
- Tutti-frutti: 100g
- Ground Spices:
- Cinnamon: 1 tsp
- Ginger: 1 tsp
- Nutmeg: ½ tsp
- Orange zest: ⅛ cup or zest of one large orange
- For Baking:
- Flour: 400g, 3 cups
- Baking powder: 1 tsp
- Butter: 115g
- Brown Sugar, dark: 175g, 1 cup
- Egg: 2
- Orange juice: ¼ cup
- Milk: 2 tbsp
Instructions
- Dip tea bags in boiling water and soak for 5 mins; discard bags and bring tea to room temperature. If using tea leaves brew tea in boiling water for 5 mins and follow the same as mentioned before.
- Soak all dried-fruits in room temperature tea for 6 hours to overnight. Cover the pot with a kitchen towel.
- Preheat the oven at 160C and line in 8” round baking pan with baking paper.
- Sieve flour and baking powder in a separate bowl, twice and set aside until needed.
- Whisk butter and sugar together in a bowl with a whisk or spatula. Add egg one at a time and whisk. It’s really doesn’t need to be fluffy or well whisked. Just mix them, that’s it.
- Now add the mixture to the soaked fruits and mix lightly with a spatula.
- Gradually add flour mix, spices and orange juice and mix until everything is incorporated. Don’t over mix.
- Add dash of milk at a time if mixture is too sticky or dry. Mixture should pour in dollops.
- Transfer the mixture into the prepared baking pan, cover the pan with foil and bake for 75 mins. Insert a skewer in the middle of the cake. If it comes out clean cake is done, otherwise bake for another 10-15 mins.
Notes
1. If you are fan of stronger tea use 3 tea bags and/or 3 tsp of tea leaves. But do not soak tea for more than 5 mins. it will ruin the flavour of Earl Grey.
2. If you are looking for alcoholic Bara Brith mix whiskey in tea liquor at 1:2 ratio when tea is at room temperature.
3. Soak fruits when the tea is at room temperature, otherwise fruits will be mushy.
4. If you are in hurry combine all dry ingredients and wet ingredients in two separate bowls and then pour dry-mix in wet-mix slowly and mix with a spatula. It will cut down the prep time.
5. This cake can be cut down in smaller portions and freeze up to 3 months.
2. If you are looking for alcoholic Bara Brith mix whiskey in tea liquor at 1:2 ratio when tea is at room temperature.
3. Soak fruits when the tea is at room temperature, otherwise fruits will be mushy.
4. If you are in hurry combine all dry ingredients and wet ingredients in two separate bowls and then pour dry-mix in wet-mix slowly and mix with a spatula. It will cut down the prep time.
5. This cake can be cut down in smaller portions and freeze up to 3 months.
Recipe by Scratching Canvas at http://www.scratchingcanvas.com/bara-brith-no-alcohol-christmas-cake/