I'm a bit of a melting pot. Half English, Half Welsh but with German influences from the 3 years I spent living there; so for all the Welsh people out there, an albeit belated, Dydd Gwyl Dewi Hapus...or Happy Saint David's Day for you non-Welsh speakers. To celebrate I made Bara Brith and lobscowse (a Welsh version of Scouse).
Bara Brith, translated literally, means speckled bread and is a traditional cake in Wales. There are essentially two types of Bara Brith. A version made with yeast, or a longer lasting version made with self-raising flour. I opted for the self-raising flour version as there is only 2 of us to eat it and wanted it to last.
After some searching around I came across an authentic sounding recipe. Few problems, it wasn't particularly well written and the recipe stated a 1lb loaf tin. No way was all the cake mix going to fit so used my baking experience and put it in a 2lb loaf tin instead. I'm glad I did as it filled a 2lb tin perfectly.
I only have feint memories of Bara Brith so wasn't totally sure what it was meant to taste like, but I think I certainly got close with this cake. It was a surprisingly delicious cake, with a pleasant marmalade taste throughout the slice. The texture was also just right, perfect for lunchboxes. Not bad considering I was winging it towards the end of the recipe! It looks similar to my banana bread that I made last week, but it tastes very much different.
Bara Brith
Makes a 2lb loaf
450g mixed fruit
300ml strong tea
450g self-raising flour
2 tbsp marmalade
1 egg
1 tsp mixed spice
6 tbsp muscovado sugar
honey, for glazing
1) Soak the fruit in the tea overnight. Don't drain!
2) Preheat oven to 170oc and line a 2lb loaf tin. In a large bowl mix together the tea soaked fruit, the remaining tea, flour, marmalade, egg, mixed spice and sugar. Pour into the tin and bake for 1.5 hours, or until a skewer comes out clean. If the top is browning too much, cover with foil.
3) Once cake is baked, allow to sit for 5 min before removing from the tin, then brush with the honey to get a shiny glaze. Allow to cook fully before slicing.
Tuesday, March 03, 2009
Bara Brith
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How strange! This is really similar to a Cumbrian tea-bread recipe that I make occasionally. There must be something about the west coast and soaking fruit in tea before baking with it...
ReplyDeleteP.S. It looks wonderful
mmmmmm, anything soaked in tea is fine by me :)
ReplyDeleteKatie xox
Oh Jules, I have Bara Brith on the top of my baking list next to do!! Now your Bara Brith looks very, very good - lol perhaps I should bake from your recipe :0)
ReplyDeletePlease pass by my blog and collect some awards ;o)
Rosie x
What an interesting recipe--thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteAnd there's nothing wrong with "winging it" once in a while when you're cooking... sometimes when you're working off a badly written recipe it's unavoidable.
Dan
Casual Kitchen
I love bara brith but never made it with marmelade before, will have to try it out soon!
ReplyDeletelove the history behind it!
ReplyDeleteThis is new to me. It sounds delicious! Thanks for the info.
ReplyDeleteThis looks lovely and delish to boot but...mixed spice? What does that mean? I'm American so maybe something's lost in translation; could it be something like a pumpkin pie or apple pie spice mix? Inquiring minds want to know! I'd love to make this: my step-dad is half Welsh and I think he's get a kick out of this...thanks for the post!
ReplyDeleteI thought this was banana bread when I saw the pic, but I was pleasantly surprised to learn about bara brith. Thanks for an engaging post.
ReplyDeleteSpringtime - oh I'd be interested in the Cumbrian tea-bread recipe :)
ReplyDeleteKatie - lol, I agree!
Rosie - If you do bake it, let me know how it goes. Thank you for the award :)
Daniel - glad there is nothing wrong with winging it!
Anne - I used a dark thick cut marmalade and you could really taste it. Yum!
J.Danger - :)
Lisa - Outside Wales it's not very well known.
Mrs. Katie Picciottoli - it is also called pudding spice and usually contains cinnamon, ginger, cloves and nutmeg (and sometimes some other spices).
Susan - thank you :)
Thank you Jules!
ReplyDeleteI love Bara Birth and yours looks perfect!
ReplyDeleteMaria
x
Hi Jules
ReplyDeleteJust made your Baileys cheesecake but did not have enough milk/dark chocolate so added belgian white so hope it comes out ok. Where in Derbyshire are you as we are house hunting in that direction from the South at present.
Think your blog is really good for recipes. Keep up the good work.
Karen
Katie - glad I could help!
ReplyDeleteMaria - thank you :)
Kaz - Hi, Kaz. I'm sorry on my blog I don't reveal where in Derbyshire I live, but if you would like any advice on parts of Derbyshire your interested in feel free to email me :)
But for the mixed spice and marmalade, this sounds very similar to a Be-Ro recipe for brack that I've made for many years. Very, very more-ish stuff! Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteThis sounds yummy. Here in New England we have Irish Soda Bread this time of year. As I live near Boston, where there is a large population of people with Irish heritage, however my family is of English Descent. We add raisens or currants to our soda bread on this side of the pond, which I think they do not it Ireland, but not certain. Nice blog.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I've ever soaked my fruit in tea, but will definitely try it - this bread looks gorgeous. p.s. love the description of yourself at the top of the page!
ReplyDeleteAforkful - I wouldn't be surprised if many of the tea loaves around originate from one recipe. Perfect with a cuppa!
ReplyDelete50sgal - I'll have to try adding fruit to soda bread.
Gastroanthropologist - Soaking the fruit in tea seems to intensify it's flavour, esp the peel.
Looks delicious - perfect with a cuppa, I'd imagine! I particularly like the shiny, glossy glaze...
ReplyDeleteThe Bara Brith I remember from childhood is the bread like version, which my Granma used to be able to get easily from bakery shops in Liverpool (no idea if you still can). Your recipe almost the same as something she called ‘Cup of tea cake’. She used to make this for me when I was away at college and send it through the post – it was great to receive a parcel like that part way through a term.
ReplyDeleteYour recipe has inspired me to do some cake baking in the next few weeks.
Really like your blog.
Alex - The glaze gives a nice sweetness to the bread.
ReplyDeleteGoodshoeday - My family live near Liverpool and as far as I'm aware you can no longer buy Bara Brith easily there. I love the name "cup of tea cake"! Glad to have inspired you.
This is very similar to the Bara Brith my nana taught me to make (she was also Welsh) although we omit the marmalade, if we have some in the cupboard I may try it that way next time :-)
ReplyDeletePen - it's worth trying it with the marmalade as it gives it a great marmalady kick.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteLove your blog and I'm an avid follower :-)
ReplyDeleteI have just popped my Bara Brith in the oven but the mix was initially very dry so I added a splosh of milk and a bit more tea. Did you notice any dryness in the mixture when you made it? The 300ml of tea was completely absorbed by the fruit so adding an egg didn't even begin to bring the mix together.
I hope it works out but I just can't fathom why it was so dry so any suggestions are very welcome.
Keep up the fab work!
Rachel - I made it again this weekend and the mixture was on the dry side too. It wasn't the first time. I haven't a clue why as I used exactly the same recipe. You did the right thing to add a bit more tea and some milk. This won't harm the cake at all. I hope it works well for you. My Welsh mum tasted some of it this weekend and said it is very like how she remembers Bara Brith.
ReplyDeleteI just thought I would report back on how it worked out after my wobble yesterday. Given that there is only 1/4 left is a pretty good indication of how fabulous it tastes!
ReplyDeleteIt was slightly denser than others I have made but my husband compared it to a lovely light malt-loaf in terms of texture so it was definately a hit.
Thanks again for sharing these lovely recipes
Rachel - I think it's the fact that the cake essentially has no fat in it that makes it heavier than normal cakes. My mum has given me a Bara Brith recipe that contains yeast that I'm hoping to try in a few weeks then compare. Glad you enjoy my blog :)
ReplyDelete