Apricot & Orange Loaf Cake

Apricot & Orange Loaf Cake
Prep time: 20 mins | Baking time: 50-60mins | Yield


Ingredients:

• 225 grams (8 oz) all purpose flour (I used 200 grams of all purpose flour + 25 grams oats)
• 175 (6 oz) grams soft brown sugar
• 175 (6 oz) grams butter, softened at room temperature
• 3 eggs, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 100 grams (3-1/2 oz) dried apricots, finely chopped
• 100 grams (3-1/2 oz) mixed peel (tutti frutti) (I used candied papaya and glace cherries), finely chopped
• juice and zest of 1 large orange (approx 1/2 cup of orange juice – fresh or from the box)
• 50 grams (2 oz) walnuts, roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons orange marmalade
• 1 tablespoon honey

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 175 degrees C. Grease and line a 2 lb loaf pan with baking parchment (this is important as the cake will burn on the outside)
2. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt and keep aside. Roll the walnuts, chopped apricots and mixed peel in a little flour to prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the cake.
3. In a bowl, beat the butter and sugar till the butter is fluffy. Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating between each addition.
4. Sift in the flour in parts, a little at a time and fold into the batter using a spatula. Add in the orange zest and chopped nuts, fruits and fold.
5. Stir in the marmalade, honey and just enough juice to achieve a soft batter – you may not require to use all the juice. To check the consistency of the batter, scoop some with your spatula and drop it back into the bowl. If it falls easily without having to shake your hand then it is just right. Too stiff and it won’t fall until you vigorously shake your hand – so loosen it up with more juice or milk if you run out of juice.
6. Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake for 50-55 mins – the baking time may vary depending on your oven so keep an eye out after 40 mins. Do the poke test by inserting a skewer into the center of the cake and it if comes out clean, the cake is done.
7. Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool – let the cake cool in the tin for about 10 mins then invert it onto the cooling rack and let it cool completely.
8. Slice and serve! The cake lasts for 2-3 days if stored in an airtight container. If you live in humid weather you can refrigerate it.

Notes:
1. Do add a little oats to the flour as mentioned above as it really improves the texture of the cake.
2. This cake is very moist and cumbly. Do make sure that the fruits have been chopped fine or else they may come off as crumbs when you cut the cake.
3. By mixed peel I mean tutti frutti as we call it in India. You can use any dried fruit like dried papaya, kiwi, mango etc. Don’t use figs or dates or prunes for this recipe