Black bun — Scottish fruitcake in thin shortcrust pastry

From the measured 300 g cake flour, set aside 100 g for the filling. Mix the remaining 200 g with the salt, add the cold cubed butter and rub it in with your fingertips to make fine crumbs. Pour in 45 g cold water and bring together briefly into a smooth dough without prolonged kneading. Keep the remaining 5 g water for sealing the edges. Do not add flour for dusting.

Flatten the dough, wrap it and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Prepare a loaf pan with internal dimensions of about 20 × 10 × 7 cm. Line the base and sides with parchment paper, leaving strips overhanging to lift the loaf out later. Do not grease the pan. Keep the dough cold until rolling.

In a large bowl, mix the reserved 100 g flour with the baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and pepper. Add the dark sugar, ground almonds, raisins, currants and candied orange peel. Separate any clumps of fruit thoroughly so the flour and spices coat them evenly. Currants are dried grapes.

Beat the 50 g whole egg to combine. Set aside 10 g in a small covered container and refrigerate while you continue preparing the loaf. Combine the remaining 40 g egg with the 80 g milk, pour into the fruit and mix thoroughly. The mixture should be thick and sticky, with a small amount of batter binding the fruit. Use all the measured milk and the egg allocated to the filling.

Preheat the oven to 160°C with top and bottom heat. Divide the chilled dough into about 270 g for the base and sides and 77 g for the lid. Roll the larger piece between sheets of parchment into a rectangle about 32 × 22 cm and about 3 mm thick. Use it to line the prepared pan to a height of about 6 cm. Join the folds and use every offcut to patch thinner areas, keeping the smaller portion refrigerated.

Add the filling to the lined pan in portions, pressing it against the base and corners with the back of a spoon. Scrape all the mixture from the bowl. Level the top and check that no large gaps remain. The fruit should form a compact layer about 5–6 cm high; leave an edge of pastry for sealing firmly to the lid.

Roll the remaining 77 g dough between sheets of parchment into a rectangle about 20 × 10 cm. Moisten the edges of the pastry shell with the reserved 5 g water, put the lid in place and press the join firmly with a fork. Press any scraps into thinner areas without discarding anything. Make a small slit in the center to release steam and brush the entire top with the reserved 10 g egg.

Place the pan on a rack below the center of the oven and bake for about 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours at 160°C. The pastry should be golden brown and the center firm. A skewer inserted into the filling may be sticky with fruit, but should not have raw flour batter on it. If the top browns too quickly, cover loosely with foil and finish baking.

Cool the loaf in its pan on a wire rack for about an hour, then carefully lift it out by the parchment and cool on the rack for about 3 more hours, until completely cold. Divide into 14 thin pieces; resting until the next day gives the most even slices. Once cool, wrap tightly and refrigerate for up to 4 days. Individual portions can be frozen.