Bara Brith

Bara Brith:
"A traditional rich cake that is the centrepiece of many a Welsh tea table."

* 1lb(450g) mixed dried fruit (approx 2 cups)
* pint tea
* 2 tbsp marmalade
* 1 egg, beaten
* 6 tbsp soft brown sugar
* 1 tsp mixed spice (I used cinnamon, nutmeg, and ground ginger)
* 1lb (450g) self raising flour (2 cups)
* honey to glaze

1. Soak the fruit overnight in the tea.

2. Next day, mix in the marmalade, egg, sugar, spice and flour. Spoon mixture into a greased loaf tin and bake in a warm oven @ 325°F for 1 hour or until the centre is cooked through. Check from time to time to see that the top does not brown too much, and cover with a sheet of foil or move down a shelf in the oven if necessary.

3. Once cooked, leave the Bara Brith to stand for 5 minutes then turn out of the tin on to a cooling tray. Using a pastry brush, glaze the top with honey.

4. Served sliced with salted butter and some tasty farmhouse cheddar.

I tried this first, straight from the pan... and it was not my favorite. It's not bad, its just really sweet, and so much fruit. If there was a little more bread to it... I think it would be better.

I did decide to try it again, this time toasted in the toaster oven, with some butter and cheddar cheese (the way they say to enjoy it).

I have to admit, they weren't wrong! It was so much better this way... the saltiness from the cheddar and butter cut the sweet just enough. And while the toaster oven didn't really "toast" it the way I intended, it did warm it nicely. Much better!

I still couldn't eat a lot of this, but would make it again to share among enough people that we all just had a small slice.