This Date and Orange Loaf is a delightful combination of flavours. Once again I’ve used my two favourite smaller loaf tins for this recipe. They are just the perfect size and I find I get a more consistent texture through each of the loaves. I bought them from Daiso and use them a lot when I bake. They measure 18 cm long x 8.5 cm wide x 6 cm deep. You could bake this as a single loaf in a larger tin but you would need to adjust the cooking times and bake these for a little longer to cook them all the way through … maybe an extra 10 – 15 minutes. Once cooked, allow the loaves to cool completely, slice and then bag individually in zip lock bags. Pop them in the freezer and they’ll be ready to add to lunchboxes … enjoy!
- 1 ½ cups chopped fresh dates (approximately 250 g)
- 1 cup water
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 cups self-raising flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ cup castor sugar
- 1 egg, whisked
- 2 teaspoons vanilla essence
- 3 tablespoons orange zest
- Preheat oven to 180C. Grease 2 small loaf tins (measuring 18 cm long x 8.5 cm wide x 6 cm deep) and then line the base and two sides with baking paper.
- Combine chopped dates, water and butter in a small saucepan. Bring to the boil and simmer for 2 – 3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine self-raising flour, baking power and castor sugar and stir to combine.
- Add egg, vanilla essence and orange zest to cooled date mixture and stir to combine.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well to combine.
- Spoon the mixture evenly into the two prepared loaf tins. Bake for approximately 35 minutes until nicely browned on the top. To test the loaves are cooked, insert a skewer into the centre of the loaf which should come out cleanly. Allow the loaves to stand in the tins for approximately 5 minutes before placing on a wire rack to cool completely.
- Once cooled, the loaves can be sliced and frozen in individual serves.
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It’s perfect weather for staying home and baking a loaf! I think my mother used to make something very similar to this. I do remember dried dates being very popular in recipes back then xx