Bran & Fruit Breakfast Bread

 

Oh my goodness everyone.  Are you a fan of Bran Muffins?  I am. I adore Bran Muffins. I think of all my favourite muffins in the world, Bran top the list!  You can't beat a bran muffin for breakfast, at least that is what I thought until now  . . . . 

 

Are you ready for a healthy bran loaf recipe?  I sure hope so!

 

Meet Bran & Fruit Breakfast Bread.  Bran Muffin's unsophisticated cousin.   

 

When it comes to beauty, she is nothing spectacular to look at . . .

 

She looks rather plain and dumpy, maybe even a bit lumpy . . . 

Bran can be that way. Plain, dumpy and lumpy. Some of the best things in life are plain. Dumpy and lumpy. Kind of like the best people.

 

She weigh's a ton . . .  seriously . . .  a ton. (Kind of like me.)  Its like holding a brick in your hand.  You could build a house with a bazillion of these.  

 

Then you would live in a Bran & Fruit Breakfast Bread house as opposed I guess to a Gingerbread House.

  

Dense and heavy, and stogged full of dried fruit  . . .  chopped dried apricots and raisins.  

 

You can switch these out to your favourite dried fruits if you wish. I think Apricot and Prune would be delightful!

 

Plain and sliced, nothing remarkable.  

 

But . . .  pop those slices into a toaster and toast them until the edges are all crispy and golden brown  . . .

 

Cut thin slices of ice cold butter from the refrigerator and lay them across the top of those crisp and golden slices . . .

 

And then just wait and watch as they melt slowly  . . .  slowly  . . .  your tastebuds start to tingle. No kidding . . .

 

and WOWZA shebang!  This Bran & Fruit Breakfast Bread is A-Maze-Ing! 

 

Totally and utterly. AMAZING!!

 

Containing very little sugar and NO FAT  NO EGGS . . .

 

Filled with plenty of fibre with the bran and the whole wheat flour  . . . 

 

Not to mention that dried fruit . . .  you won't feel guilty at all slathering hot slices of this with butter . . . because this loaf is fat free, totally . . .

 

And they're only thin slices of cold butter after all  . . . mere slivers  . . .

  

This is truly love at first bite.  Truly . . .

Bran & Fruit Breakfast Bread

Yield: 6 - 8

Author: Marie Rayner

prep time: cook time: total time:

This is a simple, fat free loaf which is stogged full of dried fruit.  If you are not fond of apricots and raisins, use another kind of fruit.  It's absolutely delicious sliced, toasted and then spread with butter for eating!

Ingredients:

• 150g dried apricots, chopped (3/4 cup)
• 160g raisins (1 cup)
• 70g processed bran cereal (1 cup, I used All Bran)
• 95g soft light brown sugar (1/2 cup packed)
• 375ml warm milk (1 1/2 cups)
• 140g self raising flour (1 cup)
• 70 g whole wheat self raising flour (1/2 cup)
• 1 tsp mixed spice (see note below)

Instructions:

1. Measure the dried fruits, bran cereal and brown sugar into a bowl. Add the warm milk and stir. Leave to set for half an hour. Most of the liquid will have been absorbed.
2. Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Butter a medium deep loaf tin and line with paper. Set aside.
3. Whisk together the flours and mixed spice to aerate somewhat. Stir into the wet mixture to combine. You will have a wet, stiff mixture. Spread into the prepared pan, leveling off the top.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. If you think it is browning too quickly, cover lightly with some foil.
5. Leave iin the tin for 10 minutes to cool, then tip out onto a wire rack to finish cooling.
6. Cut into thick slices to serve with a nice hot cuppa. It's ever so lovely toasted and buttered.
7. Store in an airtight container.

notes:

Make Your Own Mixed Spice:
You can easily make your own mixed spice: Combine 1 TBS ground cinnamon, 1 tsp each of ground coriander and nutmeg, 1/2 tsp of ground ginger, 1/4 tsp each of ground cloves and all spice. Mix well and store in an airtight container out of the light for up to 6 months.

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To make your own self raising flour, both white and whole wheat, measure it out cup by cup and add 1 1/2 tsp baking powder per cup full and 1/4 tsp of salt. It is that easy.  Trust me. 

This breakfast bread also keeps really well. I have never frozen it.  I have never needed to.  I really hope you will give it a go! Recipe adapted from one found in a little chunky book, Sweet Food, by Murdoch Books. 

This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com Thanks so much for visiting. Do come again!

 

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