Lardy Cake is an English tea bread made with a soft, enriched dough and filled with sugar, spices and dried fruit. It is also referred to as lardy bread, lardy Johns, and fourses cake, depending on the region. Lardy cake, according to a number of sources, originated from Wiltshire, in the south west region of the UK. Fourses cake and Lardy Johns are from Sussex.
Lien (Notitie van Lien’s) chose Lardy Cake as the December bread for the Bread Baking Babes (BBBs) and Buddies. This tea bread is traditionally made with lard, but Lien found a more modern version made with butter.
The instructions were a bit perplexing so I did some research to make sure I understood how to fold and shape the dough. Lien’s description of caramelized sugar oozing out of the dough appealed to me, but I couldn’t quite get the picture of the folding. The perfectionist got the better of me so I went in search of more information.
As I was searching for the origins and instructions on how to make this bread, I happened upon Paul Hollywoods’s Lardy Cakes on the BBC. One version is made the traditional way using lard. I really liked his instructions for incorporating the filling and folding the dough. I almost made that lardy cake (with butter not lard) until I saw his other version. This version is twisted to form a crown. The crown shape did it for me.
This Lardy Cake Crown is just lovely and would make a wonderful presentation for any table. It tastes especially good with coffee or tea for breakfast or afternoon, or both.
Modern Lardy Cake Crown
Adapted from: (“Warm Bread and Honey Cake” by Gaitri Pagrach-Chandra) & Lardy Cake Crown by Paul Hollywood
Makes: One Loaf
Dough
- 375 g bread flour
- 1 1/4 tsp. instant yeast
- 1 T raw sugar
- 3/4 tsp. sea salt
- 35 g (2 1/2 T) butter, melted and cooled
- ± 200 ml almond milk, warmed
Filling
- 85 g (6 T) butter, softened
- 75 g soft dark brown sugar
- ½ tsp. ground cinnamon (or a pinch more)
- ¼ tsp. freshly grated nutmeg (or a pinch more)
- 75 g currants or raisins (or a mix of dried fruit)
Equipment: I used a tube pan to bake this bread. You can also use an 8-inch round springform pan. I recommend placing a baking sheet underneath the pan or lining it with parchment paper, otherwise the caramelized sugar oozes out the bottom. Ask me how I know.
Method:
I made this dough by hand, but you can use a stand mixer if you prefer.
1. Whisk together the dry dough ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Add the melted butter and warm milk and mix with a Danish dough whisk or a large wooden spoon until the ingredients are thoroughly incorporated.
2. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until it is smooth and supple. Shape the dough into a ball and place it in a clean bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic and let it rise in a warm place until doubled in size. This could take anywhere from 2 – 4 hours depending on the temperature in your kitchen.
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3. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and press it out flat with your fingers, then using a rolling pin, roll it out to a rectangle, about 20x8in.
4. Brush the softened butter over two thirds of the dough. Sprinkle the sugar over the butter, then cover the sugar with the raisins or dried fruit. Fold the uncovered section over to the center of the dough, then fold the other third on top.
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5. Roll the dough out into a large rectangle. Then roll the dough into a long log, starting at the long edge furthest away from you. Cut down the entire length of the log to form two long strips and reveal the fruit inside.
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7. Coil the twisted dough together into a circle and press the ends firmly together. Place the crown into the prepared pan. Let it proof until it reaches the top of the pan. This will take approximately 1½ hours. The dough will reach the top of the pan if you use an 8in springform pan. I used a large tube pan so it didn’t reach the top of the pan, but it was doubled in size. 8. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. and grease a tube pan or an 8in springform pan with butter. Place the tube pan or the springform pan on top of a rimmed baking sheet to keep all of the yummy caramelized sugar from leaking on the oven floor. Trust me on this one. 9. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden-brown. 10. Remove loaf to a wire rack to cool. Many thanks to Lien for choosing Lardy Cake for the BBBs and Buddies to bake this month. It’s a delightful bread and not really hard to make once you understand the instructions. I went shopping while it was proofing so the timing worked out great. This loaf has also been Yeastspotted. Happy Baking! Cathy February is the month for love and lovers. Did you know that in many parts of Europe, there is an ancient tradition of giving Lover's Bread? These gingerbreads were heart-shaped and extravagantly decorated with colored spun-sugar flowers. As the tradition goes, once the gingerbreads were given, the heart was bespoken and the young man who ate them with the woman who represented his heart's desire was committed for life. This sort of gift disappeared from France around the time of the First World War but in other European countries, the tradition still exists. Source: The History of Bread by Bernard Dupaigne For Valentine’s Day, I decided to recreate this old tradition and give the gift of bread to my Sweetie. Rather than trying to make an elaborate gingerbread heart, I chose this beautiful Lacy Valentine Bread Heart. It’s made with enriched dough, filled with chopped cherries and slivered almonds and glazed with a delicious almond glaze. Source: Recipe Courtesy © 2010 ACH Foods. All Rights Reserved. Makes: 2 coffee cakes Almond Glaze: In small bowl, combine 1-1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted; 1/2 teaspoon almond extract; and 2 to 3 tablespoons milk. Stir until smooth. Place warm water in large warm bowl. Sprinkle in yeast; stir until dissolved. Add warm milk, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/4 cup butter, eggs, salt, and 1-1/2 cups flour; blend well. Stir in enough remaining flour to make soft dough. Knead on lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic, about 4 to 6 minutes. Place in greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover; let rise in warm, draft-free place until doubled in size, about 1 hour. Sprinkle half of cherry mixture over dough. Beginning at long end, roll up tightly as for jelly roll. Pinch seam to seal; gently roll back and forth to stretch to 26-inch rope. Place, seam side down, on greased baking sheet. Form into ring; pinch ends together to seal. Shape into heart. Let rise in warm, draft-free place until doubled in size, about 1 hour. Frost with Almond Glaze. Instead of making two heart coffee cakes, I used the rest of the dough to make sweet rolls (buns actually) for my other two sweeties (aka my sons). The buns were really good, but I didn’t get a photo. This bread has been YeastSpotted. Please visit Wild Yeast to view all of the lovely breads in the roundup. Thanks for joining me today in the bread-baking blog. I hope you enjoyed your bread experience. Happy Baking!
Monday, 15 February 2010
Valentine Bread with Cherries and Almonds
Lacy Valentine Coffee Cake
Ingredients:
Directions
Pat maraschino cherries between paper towels to remove excess moisture. In medium bowl, combine maraschino cherries, almonds, and 1/4 cup sugar; set aside.
Punch dough down. Remove dough to lightly floured surface; divide in half. Roll 1 half to 24 x 7-inch oval. Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter; brush half over dough to within 1/2 inch of edges. 
With sharp knife (I did this with scissors), cut slits, starting at outside edge of heart, two-thirds of the way through dough at 3/4-inch intervals. Turn each section on its side to show filling. Cover with plastic wrap.
Bake at 350oF for 20 to 25 minutes or until done, switching positions of sheets halfway through baking time for even browning. Remove from sheets; let cool on wire racks. 
Then decorate and give the bread to your Sweetheart and watch him or her smile. I added some candied hearts because I like them. :o)
Cathy
