Bara Brith [Welsh Tea Bread]

Bara Birth on cutting board with three slices cut, brown teapot to side and matching cup to side, buttered slice of tea bread in background and a small flower imaged tea tray to side with slice of fruit bread.

Course: Breakfast, Snack, Supper

Cuisine: Welsh

Prep Time: 25

Cook Time: 1

Dried fruits soaking in tea: 6

Total Time: 7 25

Servings: slices

Calories: 192kcal

Author: Jacq

Our recipe for Vegan Bara Brith is super easy, fuss-free, and tasty. It's perfect for afternoon tea, tea time, break-time, and whenever you fancy a delicious snack.

Bara Birth is a traditional Welsh tea bread and is best enjoyed sliced and buttered with your favourite spread. Its bit like a cross between a fruit loaf cake, clootie dumpling, and malty bread!

No-added margarine or butter is required for our recipe, which is also yeast-free and egg-free. This Bara Birth recipe is great for vegan and plant-based diets as well as for those who enjoy traditional and delicious budget-bakes.

Print Recipe

US Customary - Metric

Equipment

2 Ib [900 grams] loaf pan
parchment paper or paper loaf pan insert
Mixing bowl
heat-proof bowl or jug
citrus zester

Ingredients

300 grams dried fruit mix [a ready-made mixture of raisins, currants, sultanas, candied fruit peel, or can use your own mix of dried fruits]
380 millilitres hot tea [use 2 tea bags or 3 if preferred]
85 grams light brown sugar [or dark brown sugar]
170 grams self-raising flour [see recipe notes for preparing your own]
170 grams self-raising wholemeal flour [see recipe notes for preparing your own]
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt [if using self-raising flour outwith the UK this ingredient can be omitted if your flour has added salt]
2 teaspoons mixed spice powder [can replace with ground cinnamon, ginger, allspice, pumpkin spice mix, apple pie spice mix, etc.
3 tablespoons apple sauce [home-made or shop-bought jarred apple sauce]
1 tablespoon lemon zest [zest of 1 small-medium lemon]

Instructions

Pre-soak the dried fruits in hot tea:

Add the dried fruit mix to a mixing bowl. Make the hot tea up in a heat-proof jug using 2 tea-bags and leave to steep for a few minutes.
300 grams dried fruit mix, 380 millilitres hot tea
Pour the hot tea into the dried fruits, reserving the tea-bags. Stir the dried fruits well and then pop the tea bags into the tea pushing them under the liquid.
Add a lid or dinner plate over the mixing bowl and leave to steep for at least 6 hours or over-night.

Prepare the Bara Brith:

Preheat the oven to 150 Fan, 170 C, 338 Fahrenheit, or Gas 3.
Grease the loaf pan with margarine and line with parchment paper or pop in a loaf pan paper baking insert.
Drain the tea from the dried fruits but keep the tea as you will need it for the fruit loaf. Squeeze all the tea out of the tea-bags before setting them aside.
Add the soaked dried fruits back in to the mixing bowl, along with the rest of the ingredients - self-raising flour, wholemeal self-raising flour, baking powder, mixed spice, lemon zest, sugar, salt, and apple sauce.
85 grams light brown sugar, 170 grams self-raising flour, 170 grams self-raising wholemeal flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons mixed spice powder, 3 tablespoons apple sauce, 1 tablespoon lemon zest
Stir everything together and then pour in 1 cup [240 milliliters] of the strained tea. If you have a little less tea than this amount don't worry as it will be fine. A teaspoon or two less tea won't make much difference but if you have a lot less then you can make it up with extra water or tea.
Stir the tea through until just combined.
Transfer the mixture into the loaf pan and level the surface a little.
Bake on the middle shelf for 55-60 minutes until the Bara Birth is firm, has risen, is golden, and a skewer popped in comes out clean.
Cool in the loaf pan for about 30 minutes before removing and cooling on a wire rack. Once cool wrap it up and if possible try leave it until the next day to enjoy!
Its traditional to enjoy a slice of Bara brith with a good buttering of butter - vegan butter of course is a good alternative!
Slices can also be toasted [broiled], pan fried in a fry pan or skillet with a little oil, or in an air fryer until all toasty, crisp, and with a nice golden colour. Pan fried Bara brith goes nicely with a vegan full Scottish or English cooked breakfast.
See our recipe notes above this recipe card for photos and easy methods!

Notes

Store this fruit bread in a dry, cool area, and wrapped in parchment or baking paper and a second layer of Aluminium foil and place into a cake tin or bread bin or food container, for up to 5 days potentially a few days longer. The fruit bread can also be stored, wrapped, within the refrigerator if your kitchen is quite warm.
Store wrapped in food wrap and a second layer of Aluminium foil and pop into a freezer bag or food container, for 2-3 months. Freeze either slices of fruit loaf [individual wrapped] or the entire loaf.
Traditionally, Bara brith, like many other fruit cakes and plain cakes, was enjoyed with slices of cheese as the cheese compliments the sweet and warm spices.
We used 2 Clipper organic English tea bags but any tea bags are fine including chai tea, green tea, herbal tea, fruit teas, etc.
We used Colemans apple sauce but any type of apple sauce can be used or go with apple puree either shop bought or home-made.
For this recipe we used Doves farm organic wholemeal self-raising flour. It can be sourced at Sainsbury's [UK] and some whole food shops. Asda, Tesco & Morrisons [UK] stock Allinson wholemeal self-raising flour.
Wholemeal flour is the same as whole wheat flour.
Self-raising wholemeal flour has a raising agent added.
if you can't source self-raising wholemeal flour then you can make your own by adding baking powder to wholemeal or whole wheat flour. For every heaped cup measurement [about 150 grams] of wholemeal or whole wheat flour, you can add 1 teaspoon of baking powder.
For this recipe we used a US standard measurement cup size which is a 240 millilitre cup.
If preferred omit the wholemeal flour and replace it with plain self-raising flour.
For more useful recipe notes and frequently answered questions do check out those sections above this recipe card. Information includes how to toast [broil] slices of Bara brith as well as using an air fryer or fry pan to prepare pan fried slices.

Nutrition