Since I first wrote about the McDonnell's Good Food Cookbooks I have had several emails asking for recipes that people remember from their childhood or enjoyed years ago but have since lost. The latest request, from Renee who wants to make the cake for a family occasion, is for the Tea Brack recipe from the first cookbook. This is one of our family favourites, a much used recipe, but – as I well remember from frustrated occasions searching for it – annoyingly filed under the name Irish Tea Brack in the Irish Tea Time Favourites chapter, just across the page from Gingerbread.
It is a very simple cake to make. Just soak your fruit the night before you want to bake it – you could always replace some of the tea with whiskey for added interest – and it multiplies up very well. I well remember soaking vast bowls of dried fruit to make four or six loaves at a time as it keeps very well in the old biscuit tin that was always filled with some kind of fruitcake for the after school cup of tea. It is particularly good, cut into thin slices and spread with lots of salty butter. Back in the days when I didn't like fruitcake, I did love this and Boiled Fruit Cake from the same book as the liquid used in both recipes ensured that the dried fruit was properly re-hydrated, the slices crammed full of plump and luscious sultanas, raisins and currants, with maybe the occasional cherry thrown in for good measure.
Along with substituting butter for the marg used in the original recipe, I will give both the imperial and metric measurements as they appear in the cookbook. I haven't cooked this in a fan oven so would be interested to know what kind of temperature/cooking times other people use.
Mix the black tea, dried fruit and brown sugar in a large bowl, cover with a tea towel and leave to soak overnight.
The next day, preheat the oven to 350˚F/180˚C. Butter and line a 2lb/800g loaf tin.
Stir the egg and melted butter into the soaked fruit mixture. Sieve the plain flour and bread soda together and fold in to the rest of the ingredients. Scrape the cake mixture into the prepared tin and bake for approximately 90 minutes.
Cool in tin for 10 minutes before turning out. Cool on a wire rack.
That son of yours is getting very organised for the future!I think that there's another version of this recipe in one of the Avoca books so it's still around. Writing this up has made me want to make it again – it's been ages!
That was a bit of a search! I was completely convinced that the Irish Tea Brack was what you were looking for – that being one of my own favourites – but couldn't find anything like you were describing in the first McDonnell's Cookbook. But, when I went looking in the second one I hit the jackpot (hopefully, at least!). There is a recipe for Fruit Teabread in the And Now for Some Teatime Specials chapter which fits your description. I'll type it out below.Fruit TeabreadMargarine/butter – 4oz/125gTea – ½ pint/275mlsMixed dried fruit – 6oz/175gCastor sugar – 4oz/125gSelf-raising flour – 9oz/250gBread soda – 1 level teaspoonSalt – ½ level teaspoonMixed spice – ½ level teaspoonPreheat the oven to 350˚F/180˚C. Butter and line a 2lb/900g loaf tin.Place the margarine or butter, tea, dried fruit and sugar in a saucepan over a low heat and, stirring continuously, bring to the boil and simmer for 4 minutes. Pour into a big bowl and allow to cool.Sieve the self-raising flour, bread soda, salt and mixed spice together. Mix into the cooled fruit mixture. Put into the prepared tin and bake in the preheated oven for 1 to 1¼ hours. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes before turning out, removing the paper lining and cooling on a wire tray.Makes 1 x 2lb/900g loaf.I do hope this is the right recipe this time! Let me know how you get on and what changes you make to the recipe.
Apologises for delay in getting back to tell you about fruit teabread. Our computer was acting up a bit. Everything is ok now. Touch wood!Because everyone had brought so much food I didn't produce the fruit teabread. I ended up giving people food to bring home with them.The fruit teabread was lovely. I didn't put salt in it. Maybe I should have. I had made a few and they should have kept better. I used unsalted butter which tasted nicer than one I made using margarine. I didn't put enough liquid or didn't boil the fruit for long enough in the saucepan for another of the teabreads or something. It tasted a bit bready. I like a flavour which tastes like fruit cake.We have a fan oven. I tried 160 Degrees Centigrade which was fine. Ever oven is different.I will make another fruit teabread and this time I will use some salt so it should keep for longer.Thanks again and best wishes.