Barmbrek
Description
The recipe won't take much time. Be sure to bake this wonderful cake, which contains minimal sugar and absolutely no fat. Its sweetness comes solely from dried fruits. Barmbrack literally fills the kitchen with the aromas of orange, cinnamon, and vanilla. If desired, you can add rum, whiskey, or almond essence. It is considered that barmbrack is a yeasted bread. But the Irish more often prepare a simplified version of the cake with baking powder. This is the recipe I propose as well. Serve it cooled or slightly warm.
Instructions
- 1
Step 1
Prepare the ingredients for making barmbrake.
- 2
Step 2
Rinse the raisins and dates and place them in a bowl.
- 3
Step 3
Add the zest of one orange to the dried fruits.
- 4
Step 4
Pour a teaspoon of black tea over 250 ml of boiling water and let it steep for 10 minutes. Then, pour this infusion over the dried fruits and orange zest. Let it sit for 8–10 hours, but if you don’t have time, you can do less.
- 5
Step 5
In a bowl, add flour and sugar. If you don’t have brown sugar, regular will do.
- 6
Step 6
Add ground cinnamon, vanilla sugar, nutmeg, baking soda, and baking powder.
- 7
Step 7
Add the egg.
- 8
Step 8
Pour in the tea in which the dried fruits were soaked.
- 9
Step 9
Add the juice of one orange and place the soaked raisins with dates and zest.
- 10
Step 10
Mix all the pie dough ingredients together. It should turn out thick.
- 11
Step 11
Line the cake pan with baking paper and pour in the batter.
- 12
Step 12
Bake the barmbrek in a preheated oven at 170‑175 °C for 40‑45 minutes. Check doneness with a dry wooden stick. If you pierce the cake and the stick comes out dry, it is ready.
- 13
Step 13
Remove the finished barbrek from the mold and you can serve it immediately. It is delicious both warm and cold.