Apple and Sultana Tea Bread

Preparation

• 1
  1. Pour 50g of the apple juice into a small bowl then add the sultanas and stir. Leave the sultanas to soak in the juice.
• 2
  2. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees, or 160 degrees fan oven. Lightly grease and line a loaf tin with baking parchment.
• 3
  3. Sift the flour into a large bowl and add the butter, cut into small pieces, then rub the butter into the flour. Add 90g of the sugar, sprinkle in the salt, allspice and cinnamon and stir together.
• 4
  4. Tip the soaked sultanas in apple juice into the bowl and mix well.
• 5
  5. Peel and core the apples then cut them into slices and chop them finely
• 6
  I found that 2 apples produced about 130g of chopped apple. Stir the apple pieces in with the other ingredients.
• 7
  6. Break the eggs into a small bowl, beat them and stir them into the cake mixture. I added just a splash of milk as well to loosen the mixture a little.
• 8
  7. Carefully spoon the cake mixture into the prepared tin and level the top. Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until the cake is cooked in the middle and the top has begun to turn golden brown. Leave to cool in the tin for a few minutes after taking it out of the oven, then lift it onto a wire rack.
• 9
  8. Pour the remaining apple juice into a small saucepan with the final 45g of brown sugar and bring to the boil. Simmer gently for a few minutes, stirring, until the sugar has completely dissolved. Use it to glaze the loaf by brushing it on while the loaf is still warm.