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Apple & spice tealoaf

By Jane Hornby

Perfect with a fresh pot of tea, this looks and tastes just as good as a farmers’ market buy

Prep:10 mins
Cook:1 hrs 30 mins

Serves 10
Easy

Nutrition per serving

kcal 416
fat 22g
saturates 10g
carbs 50g
sugars 36g
fibre 2g
protein 7g
salt 0.54g

Ingredients

175g butter, plus extra for greasing
175g light muscovado sugar, plus 1 tsp
3 large eggs, beaten
1 eating apple
1 tsp vanilla extract
200g dried mixed vine fruits
85g ground almonds
1 tsp baking powder
175g plain flour
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp ground nutmeg
splash lemon or orange juice
1 tbsp marmalade or apricot jam

Tip

For best results
Cake tin liners give your bakes that special finish and save you cutting out baking paper and buttering the tin. They help a cake stay fresher for longer, too, as they can be wrapped around it before storing in foil or a tin. Try Lakeland’s 40 cake liners (015394 88100, lakeland.co.uk)

Method

Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Butter a 900g/2lb loaf tin and line with a strip of baking paper, or use a loaf tin liner (see tip, below). Beat together the butter and sugar until pale and creamy, then beat in the eggs one by one. Grate half the apple and mix it into the batter with the vanilla, dried fruit and ground almonds. Mix the baking powder, flour and spices together with a pinch of salt, then fold into the mix until even. Spoon into the tin and level the top.
Thinly slice the remaining apple half, toss with the lemon or orange juice, poke the slices a little way into the batter, then sprinkle with 1 tsp more sugar. Bake for 45 mins, then turn the oven down to 140C/fan 120C/gas 1. Cover the cake with foil, then bake for another 45 mins until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Cool in the tin.
To finish the cake, melt the marmalade or jam in a small pan, sieve to remove any lumps, then brush it over the cake to glaze the top. Serve cut into thick slices, and spread with a little butter, if you like. Will freeze for up to 1 month.