Malt Loaf and a Cup of Tea

Ahhhhh... one of my most favourite treats today!  And another recipe I can't believe I have never posted on here!  Malt loaf.  Moist, delicious, fruit loaf - perfect in the afternoon, sliced and buttered with a cup of tea.  Thanks Mum for your recipe!

Once again, I did a double batch!  It really was the best thing when I received two new loaf tins for my birthday :-D 

I'll get going on this malt loaf recipe now, and there are a bunch of savoury recipes coming soon to the blog.  I can't wait to share all of the dinners we have been creating using seasonal vegetables from our CSA Winter Box!  Watch this space for some non-baking blog posts soon!!

Ingredients (for just the one loaf!):

8oz self-raising flour
1/2 cup demerara sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup milk
4oz dried fruit (I used raisins and sultanas)
1 egg
1 tbsp golden syrup
1 tbsp black treacle

 

Method:

1.  Soak fruit with a cup of black tea overnight in a jug/bowl.  Enjoy a cup of tea seeing as the kettle is boiling!

 

2.  Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C and grease and line loaf tin (or tins if you are doing a double batch like me!)

 

3.  Mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl.

 

4.  Put the batter into the prepared loaf tin and place in centre of oven.

5.  Bake for 1 hour, until a cake tester/skewer comes out clean.

6.  Leave to cool, then slice and enjoy... With another cup of tea of course!!

That's all for today folks! 

 

Hopefully I'll be back next week with some vegetable inspired recipes for once :-)

Thanksgiving Apple Loaf with Maple Syrup Buttercream

A little late to the blog this week, but I haven't been able to write about the Apple Loaf I baked for Thanksgiving, mainly due to being busy with the thing I am most thankful for in the whole world... Our little girl arrived safely on Wednesday 1st October, and we are just the most happy little family and life couldn't be better. 

So now perhaps baking isn't the baby in my life anymore!  But I have successfully baked, and one-handed baking is now a thing I should probably get used to, but it couldn't be more fun :-)

I had a bunch of apples to use and Thanksgiving dinner at my cousin-in-laws so I wanted to find a relatively easy and quick loaf recipe to bake in between feeds and changes that would work for the post-dinner, post-dessert, coffee and cake course of Thanksgiving!

I found this Apple Loaf recipe and thought it looked like just what I was looking for... As usual a few tweaks and it was just perfect!  Very moist, which meant it also kept really well too.  Give it a try this Fall!

 

Ingredients:

175g unsalted butter, softened
175g sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
225g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
25ml milk
2 medium apples, peeled, cored and grated

 

Method:

1.  Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°F and grease and line a loaf tin with parchment paper.

2.  In a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.

3.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition and add the vanilla extract with the last egg.

4.  Sift in the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice and mix together until combined.

5.  Add the milk and stir in.

6.  Add the grated apples and fold through so that they are evenly distributed. 

 

7.  Transfer the batter to the prepared tin and place in the preheated oven for 1 hour - 1 hour 15 minutes, until a skewer or cake tested comes out clean. 

8.  Take out of the oven and leave the cake to cool in the tin for 15 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

 

For added deliciousness I took some plain buttercream I had leftover that was in the fridge, and added 2 tablespoons of maple syrup, mixing it together to make a maple buttercream that I didn't decorate the cake with, but put in a bowl ready to be spread on the loaf (kind of like bread and butter) for people to have as much or as little of a wee bit of sweetness with their slice of apple loaf!

 

 

It has been the best October so far, and I can't wait to post more baby related crafts, sewing projects and one handed bakes soon :-)

Loaf Cake Part 2 ~ Cherry Bakewell Loaf

So here it is... Part 2!

 

 

Today I am sharing with you the second fro my two-part loaf cake blog posts from the two loaf cakes I made for my choir's silent auction at the end of March.  I have had SUCH a hard time deciding which my favourite of the two are.  I mean, the lemon loaf that I wrote up last week is LEMON...  My absolute favourite!  But this Cherry Bakewell inspired almond loaf cake is way up there on my favourites list as well.  Hmm...

 

 

Well, I guess the lucky thing is I have this blog, and I usually post once per week, and seeing as it has been a crazy busy week at work, at home, at everywhere that it is actually nice to be able to finish up this short 2-part loaf cake series and I am able to share both with you all... maybe you can help me decide which you think the best one is!!  Keep reading for today's post, but click here to see last week's lemon loaf :-)

 

 

In addition to the lemon cake, I also wanted to make a loaf cake that was just a little bit different.  I toyed with the idea of a golden syrup cake, and then that inspired me to go with something British... but a little different.  The idea that sprung to mind then was one of my favourites, a Cherry Bakewell.  I mean you have seen me make these a good few times before, in traybake form.  But this time I switched it up a bit and went with an almond loaf cake, with the same white icing, cherry and sliced almond topping to decorate.  Without the shortcrust pastry you would find in the cherry bakewell tart or the jam layer between, it is a simple take on the classic English treat - in loaf form!  Nice and easy to make, with a delicious looking thick white icing spread on top with, quite literally a cherry (or a few!) on top!!

 

This recipe will make a standard loaf pan full, as well as 4 cupcakes.  I made extra cupcakes as I was giving the loaf acke away and wanted to be able to try it myself, and actually ended up doing some Easter decorating and created my Eggs in a Nest Cupcakes :-)  Check them out here!

 

So here goes...

 

Ingredients:

 

9oz unsalted butter, softened

9oz sugar

9oz self raising flour ~ minus 4 1/2 tbsp ~ you will replace this with the ground almonds

4 eggs

4 1/2 tbsp ground almonds

2 1/4 tsp almond extract

Method:

 

1.  Pre-heat your oven to 375°F and grease and line your loaf pan, and cupcake liners 

 

2.  Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

3.  Add the eggs, one at a time - beating well between each addition.

4.  Add the almond extract and mix well.

5.  Sift in the flour and ground almonds and mix until combined.

6.  Pour most of the batter into the loaf pan, and then just a small amount (filling just to half-way) in each cupcake case.

7.  Bake the cupcakes for 15-20 minutes, but the loaf cake for 35-45 minutes, until browned on top, and cooked through ~ you can test with a cake tester/ potato skewer.

8.  Leave to cool and then you can decorate!

 

 For the "icing on top"... I use powdered icing sugar, poured into a cup and then just a few drops of water as I didn't want it to be too runny.  I love the idea of a thick spread of the icing, and thing this is a pretty crucial part to the classic cherry bakewells, a crucial part I wanted to keep!  So keep it thick and spread it on generously! 

For added decoration and staying true to bakewell tarts, and cherry bakewells I added sliced almonds (toasted in the oven for just a couple of minutes to brown them slightly) and added them while they were still not completely cooled as this way they would set into the icing...

And then the cherries!  What would a cherry bakewell be without cherries!?  I lined them down the centre so that every slice, you would get a cherry!  ... Or maybe two if you cut yourself a BIG piece :-D

Funnily enough, it was my husband's Aunt who placed the winning bid on this silent auction loaf cake... and she told me the next morning that after the concert she was already digging into the cake on the way home!  She did share it for breakfast the next morning as well! 

 

SO many of Jonathan's family are almond fans, so I'm sure this cake will be making an appearance again!

 

 

Which would you have picked?  My lemon loaf from last week, or the almond cake this week?!  It is so hard to pick my favourite!

Loaf Cake Part 1 ~ Lemon Loaf

So as promised last week, today I will be sharing more details on the loaf cakes I made for my choir's Silent Auction.  For the occasion, I made 2 loaf cakes to donate and try and raise funds, and that they did - they both sold - yey!

 

Last week I shared my Eggs in a Nest Cupcakes which I made from the extra half batch of each loaf batter that I made for the choir so that of course I was able to taste the cake, and also have my own few extras to eat ... and to share I guess too!  I also wanted to use new cupcake cases I had been given, and of course jump on the April/Easter boat and get excited for Spring!!  Check them out here :-)

So this week I'll start of the Loaf Cake 2-part series with a Lemon Loaf, adapted from a recipe given to me by my university housemate of 4 year's Mum... I loved it when she would come back from a visit home and would bring her Mum's "Luscious Lemon Loaf", so much so I even got a special recipe notecard from her and have made it many many many times since.

But then the worst happened.  Saturday morning I went to get the notecard and it was GONE.  Not where I left it, or where it should have been so I had to improvise a little... Now don't worry, my amazing best housemate has already re-sent me the recipe so I will never be without again but on the day, there was no time to spare, I had to do lots of baking and sewing too all before our choir concert.

 

So here's a few pictures and the recipe (not the original "Luscious Lemon Loaf" but my own adaptation from last weekend!)...

I made a loaf cake and also 4 cupcakes from this recipe, but if you are just looking to make a loaf then just do 3/4 of the recipe instead.  But really, who could say no to a little taste-test!? ... Especially if you're giving the loaf away or sharing with family/friends!

Ingredients:

9oz margarine
9oz sugar
3 tbsp milk
9oz self-raising flour
3 eggs
Zest of 1 lemon

and for the glaze:
6 rounded tablespoons icing sugar
Juice of 1 lemon

Method:

1.  Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease and line a loaf tin, and prepare 4 cupcake cases. 
2.  Beat together the margarine and sugar.
3.  Add the milk and mix together.
4.  Sift flour and mix until combined.
5.  Add eggs and beat after each addition.
5.  Add lemon zest and mix together one last time!
6.  Fill the prepared loaf tin, and use the remaining batter for a few bonus cupcakes.
7.  Bake the cupcake for 15-20 minutes (until golden brown and a cake tester comes out clean) and bake the loaf cake for 40-50 minutes.

While the cake is baking, make the glaze so it can be spread over the warm cake as soon as it comes out of the oven...

8.  Mix together the icing sugar and lemon juice.
9.  When the cake is baked and out of the oven.  Leave in the tin to cool and immediately spread the glaze over the cake until it soaks in.

... And the final step is to just ENJOY!  This is lemon at it's best!  Lemon glaze on a lemon cake, in my eyes there is nothing better!

I packaged the loaves up in brown parchment paper, and tied up with string... ♫ These are a few of my favourite things ♫ ... of course!

 

And a little tag to go along with the silent auction bidding sheet... I wanted to make sure whoever won the cake knew what it was!

 

 

So there were indeed two loaf cakes I promised... today you'll have read about the Lemon Loaf Cake, and check back next weekend to hear how I turned a British favourite of mine ~ the Cherry Bakewell and turned it into a loaf cake :-)  Scroll down to the bottom of the page and fill out your email to always be the first to read a post and never miss a recipe!

 

 

 

 

This time last year I asked 'Spring are you Here'?!  Little did I know this past Winter would be even longer... even colder... even snowier than 2013!  So really, the same question still lies although I think, think Spring may have actually arrived now!

 

 

To get in the mood check out last year's Spring Cake!