Barmbrack – Irish tea loaf with raisins

Make strong black tea, steeping it for about 5 minutes according to the package instructions. Remove the leaves or tea bags, then weigh 300 g of the brewed tea into a bowl. Do not add milk, sugar, or lemon. Leave it for about 30 minutes until completely cool; this time is included in the recipe's preparation time.

Add all the raisins to the cooled tea and stir thoroughly. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 8 hours, preferably overnight. The raisins should become plump and soft. Keep the entire contents of the bowl, including any tea the fruit has not absorbed; do not drain the raisins before making the batter.

The next day, preheat the oven to 170°C using conventional heat. Line a loaf pan for an approximately 900 g loaf, about 23 × 13 × 7 cm, with parchment paper, including the sides. There is no need to grease it or dust it with flour. In another bowl, thoroughly mix all the flour with the baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

Beat the egg with a fork and add all of it to the raisins along with all the weighed sugar. Stir, keeping all the tea in the bowl. Add the prepared flour mixture and combine with a spoon or spatula just until no dry flour remains. The batter will be thick, sticky, and full of fruit; do not knead it like yeast dough or add any extra tea or water.

Transfer all the batter to the prepared pan. Scrape the batter and raisins thoroughly from the sides of the bowl with a spatula so you use every ingredient. Spread the batter evenly into the corners and gently smooth the top. Do not sprinkle it with extra sugar or flour.

Place the pan on the middle oven rack and bake for about 60–75 minutes. The loaf should rise, become well browned, and feel springy on top. A skewer inserted into the center should come out without raw batter; a moist mark from a raisin is normal. If the top darkens too quickly, cover it loosely with parchment paper and continue baking. If needed, bake for a few extra minutes until the center is baked through.

After removing the loaf from the oven, leave it in the pan for about 20 minutes. Then carefully lift it out using the overhanging parchment, pull the paper away from the sides, and place the loaf on a wire rack. Cool for about another 100 minutes until completely cold, including the center. Allow about 2 hours of cooling in total; do not slice the hot, moist loaf.

Remove the parchment from the completely cooled loaf. Use a sharp serrated knife to cut it into ten servings, moving the knife gently so you do not pull the soaked fruit out of the crumb. Serve without any additional ingredients. Wrap any remaining loaf tightly only once it has cooled completely, to help keep it moist.