Fruit Loaf

I mentioned the other day on Facebook that I was making some Fruit Loaves. A fellow Facebooker asked for the recipe I used, and so here goes.

I normally double the recipe, because the loaves freeze so well. It's also one of the Builder's favourites in his 'piece box' - good ol' Scottish term, that! - and the more I can make together, the handier my joyous piece-box-filling life is.

The original recipe, which I'll give, makes two 2lb loaves. I've found that the mix slightly overfills the tins, giving the bottom of my oven a lovely sprinkling of burnt cake mix. I do try and avoid incidences that force me to clean the oven whenever I can, and not being of that efficient breed of women who remember to line the bottom of the oven with a lining to pick up the cake debris, I have been forced to find a way of stopping the overflow.

After all, who on earth wants to be doing oven cleaning?

And so, by making double, I find I have the ideal amount for three 2lb tins and two 1lb tins.

Did y'all get that? (3 x 2) + (2 x 1)

That make it simpler?

Here is the recipe as found in the Free Church cookbook. 

Ingredients:

2 cups raisins                            6 oz (175g) butter/marg
2 cups sultanas                          1 lb (450g) plain flour
2 cups water                              2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 cups sugar                              1 tsp ginger
2 eggs, well beaten                    1 tsp cinnamon
                                                  1 tsp mixed spice

Method:

1. Put raisins, sultanas, sugar and water in a pan. Bring to the boil, simmer for 2-3 mins and allow to cool.
2. Add beaten eggs to cooled mixture and stir well.
3. Rub butter into flour and add dry ingredients.
4. Add 'moist' ingredients to 'dry' mixture and mix well.
5. Spoon mixture into 2 greased and base-lined 2 lb loaf tins.
6. Bake in a pre-heated oven 180°C/350°F* for 1 – 1¼ hours.

* Everyone gets to know their own oven, but I have found 160°C works best for me.

The butter has been rubbed into the flour. Here is the recipe doubled - two bowls, two pans.

And, as I was saying, this amount of cake mix makes 3 of the 2 lb loaves, and 2 of the 1 lb ones.

Spread liberally with copious amounts of butter.