Spiced fruit loaf

Spiced fruit loaf

A treat when freshly baked and spread with butter, then try it toasted for breakfast the next day

Difficulty and servings

Moderately easy

Makes 2 x 2lb loaves, each cuts into 8 slices

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 30 mins

Cook time

Cook 20 mins

plus soaking, rising and proving
Freezable

Low-fat

Method

  1. Soak the dried fruits in the orange juice for about 30 mins, then sieve, reserving the juice.
  2. Put the flour, yeast, caster sugar and 1 tsp salt into a large mixing bowl with the spices and soaked fruit and mix well. Make a well in the centre and pour in the warm milk, reserved orange juice, the beaten egg and the melted butter. Mix everything together to form a dough - start with a wooden spoon and finish with your hands. If the dough is too dry, add a little more warm water; if it's too wet, add more flour.
  3. Knead in the bowl or on a floured surface until the dough becomes smooth and springy. Transfer to a clean, lightly greased bowl and cover loosely with a clean, damp tea towel. Leave in a warm place to rise until roughly doubled in size - this will take about 1 hr depending on how warm the room is.
  4. Knock the dough back by kneading for a few secs. Dust 2 x 2lb loaf tins with flour. Halve the dough. Use a little flour to help you shape each half into a smooth oval, then pop them into the tins. Cover both loosely with a clean, damp tea towel and leave to prove in a warm place for about 20 mins. Meanwhile, heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4.
  5. Bake for 20 mins, then cool in the tins before turning out and slicing.
Try

More Easter baking

Use the same basic dough to make Chelsea buns and Hot cross buns - see 'Goes well with' recipes.

Don't have two loaf tins?

Just shape the fruit loaf dough into 2 round or oval loaves and sit them on a flour-dusted baking sheet before proving and baking.

PER SLICE

190 kcalories, protein 5g, carbohydrate 36g, fat 4 g, saturated fat 2g, fibre 2g, sugar 14g, salt 0.35 g

Recipe from Good Food magazine, April 2010.

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Latest comments and suggestions

  • Binder photo Shamus O'Hooligan

    06 December 2010

    Shamus O'Hooligan rated and commented on this recipe

    4 stars

    Excellent and so easy to make!

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  • Binder photo lovage

    22 March 2011

    lovage commented on this recipe

    This turned out to be a lovely light fruity loaf, the orange juice kept it nice and moist the next day. I used mixed fruit rather than mix myslef and used the dough setting on the breadmaker to mix and prove. All the family loved it. Will definitely use again.

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  • Binder photo Rose

    12 July 2011

    Rose commented on this recipe

    does this work well made/baked in a breadmaker?

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  • Binder photo Ann Patey

    16 September 2011

    Ann Patey rated and commented on this recipe

    4 stars

    Made this today using a Magimix for the dough and thought I'd knead in the fruit by hand. Bad idea, maybe 'cos the fruit is wet. So I put dough and fruit back in the mixer and carried on as per the recipe. The fruit didn't get broken down in the mixer as I feared it would and it tastes delicious.

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  • Binder photo Mb

    04 November 2011

    Mb commented on this recipe

    I prefer more of a hot-cross-bun taste so I now make this dough with 2tsp cinnamon, 2tsp mixed spice and 150g dried mixed fruit (not soaking in orange juice though I may try this some time!) - absolutely delicious.

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  • Binder photo MsCupCake

    06 April 2012

    MsCupCake commented on this recipe

    The picture looks good and seems more bread than fruit yet the recipe calls for 250 g fruit, which seems like a lot to me - half the weight of flour in fact. Does it seem very fruity? Will it be too boring if I reduce the amount of fruit, as I am tempted to do? Want to give this a go this w/e and with lots of other rich foods a slightly plainer fruit bread would be preferrable.

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  • Binder photo MsCupCake

    09 April 2012

    MsCupCake rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Very nice. I need a bit of practice with my breadmaker lol but the half I cooked in the oven was very successful. No figs used but otherwise to the letter. Will make again - nice and simple so a good choice for over Easter.

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  • Binder photo Mikey

    20 April 2012

    Mikey commented on this recipe

    I followed this exactly, not too sure which of my tins is the 2 pound one, but I put it in the one that fit! It has taken all day to prove though! I'm sure that I put the yeast in at the start, but it didn't raise all night, even after the first hour in a 40 degree oven that i usually use for raising loaves. I hydrated another 2 tsps of yeast this morning and kneadd it in. It's been 8 hours since then and it's only just made it to the top of the tin. Is it the juice slowing things down? most of the rest of these ingredients have been in my bread at some point.

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  • Binder photo Laura B

    06 July 2012

    Laura B rated and commented on this recipe

    3 stars

    Took double the stated time...is the temperature right?! Tasty but frustrating trying to cook it properly!

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  • Binder photo Chris

    23 October 2012

    Chris commented on this recipe

    This was easy to prepare, the dough rose (twice) and I took it out of the oven after the 20 minutes indicated. However, when I cut into the loaf it was uncooked in the middle, and by then it was too late to do anything other than throw it into the bin. I have a fan oven and used an independent thermometer so I know the oven temperature was spot on; I divided the loaf equally and both were uncooked in the middle. I am so disappointed and annoyed at the waste.

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  • Binder photo Chris

    23 October 2012

    Chris rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Having grumbled above about the bread not being cooked through, I have now discovered the problem was that well-known mistake: Nosy Husband. I can't find a way to delete or edit my comment. Nosy Husband has admitted opening and closing the oven door "a couple of times" (yeah), having a good prod and taking the loaves out of the oven. If it were not for Nosy Husband, I am sure the recipe would have been cooked through. As it is, I've told him his bread is in the bin.

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  • Binder photo JimT

    27 November 2012

    JimT rated and commented on this recipe

    4 stars

    Good recipe, absolutely delicious and freezes well. But the timings are all wrong. I have made it three times now. It takes a couple of hours to rise. Apparently a slow rise is quite normal for high sugar recipes. Just give yourself plenty of time. More annoying though, it takes 40 minutes to bake, not 20. If in doubt check with a meat thermometer that the centre is above 90 degrees C Bearing this in mind it is worth a go. Also, it is fine if you just chuck all the ingredients into a Kitchen Aid with a dough hook and mix on slow speed for 5 mins

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  • Binder photo kingtwig

    10 January 2013

    kingtwig rated and commented on this recipe

    3 stars

    My dough didn't rise, and I used the breadmaker! Very odd! Also, shouldn't this make 2x1lb loaves, not 2x2lbs??

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  • Binder photo JimT

    16 January 2013

    JimT commented on this recipe

    My family love this fruit loaf. I have made it many times. It is difficult to get the yeast started, I now make a starter with the warmed milk and half the sugar, add the yeast and wait for 30 mins until it froths. It makes 2x2lb loaf tins but not quite as big as a normal loaf. Takes 35-40 mins to bake NOT 20mins as stated

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  • Binder photo mwebber

    03 February 2013

    mwebber rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Just made this for the first time. Had 2lb & 1lb tins so tried half in each. Came out better in smaller tin. Baked for 30 mins in fan oven. Tastes delicious. Will use same recipe to make tea cakes.

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Difficulty and servings

Moderately easy

Makes 2 x 2lb loaves, each cuts into 8 slices

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 30 mins

Cook time

Cook 20 mins

plus soaking, rising and proving
Freezable

Low-fat

Ingredients

FOR THE DOUGH

  • 450g strong white flour , plus extra for dusting
  • 2 x 7g sachets easy-blend yeast
  • 50g caster sugar
  • 150ml warm milk
  • 1 egg , beaten
  • 50g unsalted butter , melted, plus extra for greasing
  • oil , for greasing

FOR THE SPICES

  • 1½ tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground ginger

FOR THE DRIED FRUIT

  • 50g dried apricots , chopped
  • 50g dried figs , chopped
  • 50g pitted dates , chopped
  • 50g sultanas
  • 50g glacé cherries , chopped
  • juice 1 orange
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PER SLICE

190 kcalories, protein 5g, carbohydrate 36g, fat 4 g, saturated fat 2g, fibre 2g, sugar 14g, salt 0.35 g

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