Spring Mulberry Loaf - The Shady Baker
It's that time of year for us - the mulberries are ripe and the kids hands are purple!
They're not as tasty as the mulberries I use to pick from the ancient mulberry trees as a kid at my grandparents' farm in the Barossa but the kids are just as excited to pick them as I was all those years ago!
One of the treats of visiting Gran and Brookie as a young kid was knowing that their freezer was full of frozen mulberries and every night for desert we would get a generous bowl served with ice-cream!
This reminded me of the beautiful image Jane, otherwise known as The Shady Baker, shared with me when she contributed a range of lovely food images when I launched my website last year.
When I asked Jane, she was more than happy to share the recipe with me!
And don't worry if you don't have a mulberry tree you can of course substitute the mulberries with any berries!
Thanks Jane, Bridget x
SPRING MULBERRY LOAF
Makes one large loaf.
½ cup (125g) neutral tasting oil, such as grapeseed oil
1 cup (220g) caster sugar
1 cup fresh mulberries, stems removed
2 eggs, lightly whisked
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 2/3 cup (250g) plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
Preheat oven to 180°
Line one 27 x 15cm loaf tin with baking paper. Set aside.
In a mixing bowl, combine oil, sugar, mulberries, eggs and vanilla.
Sift in the flour and baking powder. Stir gently to combine.
Pour mixture into loaf tin. Smooth the top of the mixture. Push any spare mulberries into the top of the loaf.
Bake for 40-45 minutes or until cooked through when tested with a skewer.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack. Slice to serve.
*Substitute mulberries with any other berries.
Jane Smith