Fruity Tea Loaf Food

MOIST AND FRUITY TEA LOAF

Steps:

• Place the sultanas and raisins in a bowl and pour over the hot tea. Cover and allow to soak up the liquid overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°F. Line a 2lb loaf tin with baking parchment or a loaf tin liner.
• Combine the flour, baking powder, sugar and mixed spice in a mixing bowl and stir together.
• Mix in the melted butter and eggs - using a wooden spoon or spatula.
• Add in the raisins, sultanas and any liquid left in the bowl.
• Stir together until everything is thoroughly combined. It will be a very wet mixture.
• Spoon the mixture into the lined loaf tin, place in the oven and bake for 1 hour - to 1 hour 15 minutes. You'll know it's done when an inserted skewer comes out clean. If you find that the top of the tea bread is starting to look too dark whilst it's in the oven, you can cover it will foil.
• Once cooked, remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes. Then remove from the tin and allow to cool completely on a wire rack before slicing and serving.

EASY FRUIT LOAF

Steps:

• Make 250ml (1 cup) of tea, using tea bags or loose leaf tea. Leave the tea to steep for five minutes - you need a strong brew!
• Pour the hot tea over the dried fruit and leave to soak for 2-3 hours or even overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 170C (325F) or 150C (300F) Fan Setting. Line a 900g (2lb) loaf tin with baking paper or use a cake liner.
• Add the eggs and brown sugar to the soaked fruit (no need to drain any liquid, should any remain in the bowl) and stir to combine.
• Sift in the flour and add cinnamon, tea leaves and orange zest. Mix everything together, making sure no dry pockets of flour remain.
• Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin and level. Bake for about 1 hour or until the cake is risen and a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.
• Lift the cake out of the tin using the baking paper and cool on a wire rack. Top with the orange zest, if using and slice to serve.

FRUITY TEA LOAF

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 9x5" loaf pan (can also fit into three 5x3" mini pans).
• Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and then set aside.
• Stir together sugar, yogurt, oil, eggs, vanilla and zest.
• Add flour mixture to wet ingredients and stir gently until well mixed (don't over mix or the loaf will be dry). Stir in dried fruit and nuts gently.
• Pour batter into pan and bake for 45-50 minutes until pick comes out clean (if using mini pans bake 25-30 minutes).
• Cool on wire rack 10 minutes before turning out.
• Stir together the ingredients for the glaze - watching the amount of orange juice to make it a nice pourable glaze and not too runny.
• Drizzle over cooled loaf.

TEA LOAF

Steps:

• Mix the sultanas, raisins and orange zest in a large mixing bowl. Pour over the tea and cover the bowl. Leave to sit for a minimum of 6 hours or ideally overnight to allow the dried fruit to soak up all the liquid.
• Heat the oven to 180C/160 fan/gas 4. Grease and line a 900g loaf tin. Add the eggs, flour and sugar to the soaked fruit, ensuring everything is well combined. Spoon the mixture into the tin and place in the centre of the oven for 1 hour 30 mins or until firm to the touch. Leave to cool in the tin for 15 mins before transferring to a wire rack.
• Cut into thick slices and serve with butter. To store, wrap tightly and keep in an airtight container for up to five days. The loaf will taste even better after a few days.

SUPER-EASY TEA LOAF

Steps:

• Put the dried fruit and tea in a bowl and leave to soak for a few hours. I usually do this the night before or in the morning before work.
• Pre-heat the oven to 150°C, or 180°C if your are not using a fan assisted oven.
• Add the sugar and flour to the tea and fruit mix, and the ground ginger if you choose to include it. Stir well until thoroughly combined.
• Scoop the mixture into a greased 2lb loaf tin and bake for 45 minutes to an hour.
• If you prick the cake with a cocktail stick and it comes out clean, it is ready. Leave the loaf to cool in the tin for at least 20 minutes. After that, run a knife along the outer edge of the loaf to loosen it and tip it onto a cooling rack.

ALMOST FAT-FREE BRITISH TEA LOAF

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Oil a loaf pan.
• Combine raisins and tea in a bowl. Steep for about 30 minutes.
• Mix flour, sugar, and allspice together in a second bowl. Add the raisin-tea mixture and egg. Gently combine using a rubber spatula; do not overmix. Scoop mixture into the prepared loaf pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour.