Malt loaf - dark, sticky, and chewy!

For anyone who hasn't heard of it before, malt loaf is a British tea-time fruit cake cum bread that is characteristically dense, sweet, squidgy and chewy and is usually eaten cut into slices and spread with lashings of butter but is equally delicious toasted, fried in butter or served with cheese. 

As a child I used to love malt loaf and would eat quite a lot of it because my dad worked in a bakery and would regularly bring dark, brick-like lumps of the stuff home with him. As I remember, when he did it would disappear very quickly! 

Like many of our classic fruit cakes, malt loaf doesn't seem to be as popular as it once was -  I think Soreen are the only UK brand that still produce it on a commercial basis - but it's delicious to have with a cup of tea and so easy to make at home that it's worth giving it a go. 

Malt loaf gets its chewy texture and malty flavour from malt extract, of which it contains quite a bit. Malt extract is made from grains and is a product of the brewing process. I don't really know too much about brewing but the grains are seemingly treated by 'malting' and 'mashing' them until the syrupy, sweet substance that is malt extract is created. 

Malt extract is packed full of natural sugars and vitamins and can be found in larger supermarkets or health food shops. In early 20th century Britain it was given to children as a medicine as it was thought that a spoonful of malt extract every day would fortify children and ward off illness. These days it's most likely to be used in the home for home brewing or baking but I do still like to think that a slice of sticky malt loaf is doing me good in some way. 

Malt Loaf

Notes: 
Some malt loaf recipes contain yeast - this one doesn't as I think it gives a better, more dense texture. 

Malt loaf improves with time so, if you can resist it, once it's baked and cooled, wrap the loaf tightly in foil and leave it for 2-5 days to mature - it will become more sticky and squidgy over time. Or even better make two - one to eat straightaway and the other to eat after it's matured.

Makes two 450g (1lb) loaves.

Ingredients:

150ml hot tea

150g malt extract

50g caster sugar

30g black treacle

250g dried mixed fruit

2 large eggs, beaten

250g plain flour

1tsp baking powder

½tsp bicarbonate of soda

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 150°C/130°F/Gas Mark 2 and grease two 450g (1lb) loaf tins with butter.

2. Put the tea, malt extract, sugar, treacle and mixed fruit into a mixing bowl and mix together.

3. Stir the beaten eggs into the mixture.

4. Add the flour and mix well until well blended then stir in the baking powder and bicarbonate of soda.

5. Pour or spoon the mixture into the loaf tins and bake for 45-50 minutes until the loaves are risen and golden. 

6. Remove from the tins and allow to cool on a wire rack before slicing and serving, or wrapping and storing as outlined above.

Inspired by BBC Good Food.

Chilli Chocolate Muffins

 One of my all-time favourite books is called Chocolat written by Joanne Harris. It's a half-amusing, half-sad tale centred around a mysterious woman who descends on a small village in rural France and causes a commotion when she opens a chocolaterie (chocolate shop / cafe) opposite the local church at the beginning of Lent. Joanne Harris gives the whole business of chocolate making an exotic and magical feel and her descriptions of the chocolate concoctions the woman creates in her shop always make my mouth water even though I've read the book about ten times! 

It was in this book that I was first introduced to the concept of chocolate and chilli - the rich, dark, hot chocolate with a pinch of chilli pepper that was served in the cafe sounded delicious! Chocolate and chilli are two ingredients that I'd never thought to put together before but it seems to have become really popular of late and I have to say that it works!

This recipe uses a combination of dark and milk chocolate as well as cocoa to create a really chocolately muffin that has a nice hint of chilli, which gives the muffins a bit of a kick. 

Sifted ingredients - flour, baking powder, cocoa and
cayenne pepper

Chilli Chocolate Muffins

Notes: Makes 12 large muffins. I use a combination of dark and milk chocolate in my recipe but if you like it really rich use all dark. Fresh chilli could also be added - replace the cayenne pepper and dried chilli flakes with 1 tbsp of chopped fresh chillli.

Ingredients:

70g plain chocolate (min 70% cocoa solids)

70g milk chocolate

375g self-raising flour

1tbsp baking powder

50g cocoa powder
1tsp cayenne pepper

85g caster sugar

1tsp dried chilli flakes

2 eggs

375ml milk
6tbsp sunflower oil

2tsp vanilla extract

100g chocolate chips 

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/ 400°F/ Gas Mark 6. Line a muffin tin with 12 paper cases.

2. Place a bowl over a pan of simmering water (don't allow the bowl to touch the water though) and add the chocolate. Melt the chocolate, stirring continuously until smooth. Don't overheat the chocolate - remove as soon as it's melted. Put it to one side to cool slightly.

3. Sift together in a large bowl the flour, baking powder, cocoa and cayenne pepper the stir in the sugar and chilli flakes.

4. In a separate bowl, beat together the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Add the melted chocolate and stir well - if it separates don't worry just keep stirring.

5. Pour the liquid into the dry ingredients and fold them together adding 50g of the chocolate chips - be careful not to beat or overwork the mixture.

6. Place the mixture in the muffin cases and sprinkle with the remaining chocolate chips. Place in the oven for 20 - 25 minutes until well risen. 

7. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

Mixing the milk with the eggs, oil and vanilla

Chilli chocolate muffins - ready to pop in the oven

The book that inspired me!

Traditional Sticky Hot Cross Buns

I can't believe that it's almost Easter! It doesn't seem two minutes since we were putting up the Christmas decorations and here we are nearly at the middle of April - how time flies!

My daughter arrived home from Uni at the weekend for her Easter break and the house is already looking a bit more lived in than usual with her shoes left lying in the middle of the floor where she stepped out of them and just in the right place for me to trip over them and break my neck! Not to mention all the make up and hair products strewn around the bathroom. 

It will be lovely to have some mother/daughter time again though and we're already planning a few baking sessions! Hot cross buns are a favourite Easter treat of mine and, even though there's all kinds of varieties available now, I like to keep them traditional with a good helping of fruit, a hint of spice and a nice sticky sweet top.

These hot cross buns can be made using a bread machine (as I do) or by hand and I've explained the method for both below:

Traditional Sticky Hot Cross Buns

Notes: This recipe makes 12 buns. 1½ tsp of mixed spice can be used in place of the 4 different spices specified in the recipe and is just as nice. I used mixed fruit with raisins, currants and peel but any dried fruit can be added. The glaze described in the recipe makes the buns really sticky - for less stickiness only use 1tbsp sugar.

Ingredients:

500g strong white bread flour

50g butter

50g caster sugar

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ground cinnamon

¼ tsp ground allspice

¼ tsp ground nutmeg

¼ tsp ground ginger

1½ tsp fast action dried yeast

1 egg, beaten

275ml milk

125g dried mixed fruit

For the crosses and the glaze:

50g strong white or plain flour

3 tbsp water

2 tbsp milk

2 tbsp sugar

Method:

If using a bread machine:

1. Add the milk, egg, sugar, salt and butter to the tin of the bread machine.

2. Spoon in the flour and spices and sprinkle the yeast on top. 

3. If the machine has a compartment for extras (e.g. fruit, nuts or seeds) put the fruit in the compartment.

4. Set the machine to the 'dough' programme and start the machine - remembering to set the programme to include extras so the fruit gets added at the right time. If the machine doesn't automatically add the fruit from a separate compartment, it should beep to tell you to add the fruit when it needs to go in.

5. When the dough is ready, continue from stage 3 below.

If making the dough by hand:

1. Put the flour and the butter into a bowl and rub the butter into the flour so it looks like breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar, salt, spices and yeast. Add the egg and milk - mix it all together until it forms a soft dough.

2. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead well for 5 minutes - the dough should be smooth and stretchy. Add the raisins and continue to knead until they are worked into the dough. Put the dough back into the bowl, cover with a tea towel or oiled cling film and leave in a warm place for approx 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in size. 

3. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead until smooth. Cut the dough into 12 equal size pieces, roll them into a ball and place them on an oiled baking tray - make sure they are kept well apart to allow room for rising. Cover with a sheet of oiled cling film (loosely) and leave in a warm place to rise for approx 45 minutes. The buns should be well risen and rounded - leave for a bit longer if needed.

4. Mix the flour and the water for the crosses to form a paste. Spoon the paste into a plastic freezer bag and snip one corner. Pipe crosses across the buns using the freezer bag as a piping bag.

5. Pop the tray of buns into a preheated oven at 200°C/ 400°F/ Gas Mark 6 for 15 minutes until the buns are well risen and golden.

6. Just before the buns come out of the oven, heat the milk and sugar for the glaze in a small saucepan. Allow the mixture to boil for 2 minutes until it forms a syrup. When the buns come out of the oven immediately brush them with the syrup and transfer (carefully because they'll still be hot) to a wire rack to cool.