I’m sometimes asked for exactly this – no fat, no sugar and no dairy, and it’s still delicious, as it is packed with dried fruit and has a wonderful moist texture. Do not line the loaf tin with paper as the cake will stick to it, just grease with butter.
CUTS into 6 – 8 slices
butter for the tin
100 g (4 oz) dried stoned prunes, roughly chopped
150ml (¼ pint) boiling water
75g (3 oz) self-raising flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
25g (1 oz) ground almonds
250g (9 oz) mixed dried fruit, such as apricots, plums, pears, peaches, apple, chopped into large pieces
3 tablespoons orange juice (from a carton)
3 tablespoons Demerara sugar
Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas 4 and generously butter a 500g (1 lb) loaf tin.
Measure the prunes into a heatproof bowl, pour over the boiling water and set aside to cool and plump up.
Measure the remaining ingredients except the Demerara sugar into a mixing bowl, stir until smooth and fold in prunes and their soaking water.
Spoon the thick paste into the tin, level the top and sprinkle with the Demerara sugar.
Bake in the preheated oven for about 50 – 60 minutes, until golden-brown and when tested with a skewer, the skewer comes out clean.
This can be made and kept wrapped in foil in fridge for up to a week. It also freezes well.
AGA COOKING Slide on to the grid shelf on the floor of the roasting oven, with the cold shelf on the second set of runners, for about 30 – 35 minutes until golden brown.