PLUM BREAD

I have just returned from a trip, that included a visit to Lincoln, the home of my paternal great grandfather. His youngest son, my grandfather, met a Cornish lady and then settled in Stithians. I wanted to walk in his and his family’s footsteps. Lincolnshire Plum Bread is the most popular regional sweet dish from that area and as soon as I had time I wanted to try it!  This recipe is taken from a local book I purchased while in the lovely old city. A Taste of Lincolnshire.

The plums in the recipe are in their dried form - prunes!

This makes 2 small loaves: [easily halved for 1 loaf in a 1lb loaf tin]

1lb Strong Plain flour

pinch of salt

½ oz easy blend dried yeast 

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground allspice

4 tablespoons caster sugar

2 beaten eggs

4 oz melted butter

4 oz warm milk

8 oz prunes cut into smaller pieces

2 oz sultanas

2 oz currants

Mix together the milk, eggs, melted butter, yeast, sugar, salt and spices. Add the flour and work the mix until it forms a soft dough. Knead until it is smooth and pliable.

Place in a bowl, cover with clingfilm and put to rise until double in size. [ish] Knock back and knead again, adding all the fruit until it is evenly distributed. Place in a lightly greased loaf tin and put to rise once more, until double in size.

Note: the rises are slower than for bread. 

Place in preheated oven 190C Mark 5  [175C for your/my fan oven]  for about 35-40 mins, taking the loaf out of the tin and putting it back in the oven for a further 5 mins. [I turned my oven down to 160C for this] Serve in slices, spread with butter. 

Just delicious - quite different from our Saffron Cake!! The spice combination coloured the dough and blended perfectly with the fruit for a different taste! I really enjoyed it! Not Cornish, of course!!!