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Bajan sweet bread
Barbados' Christmas coconut loaf studded with raisins, mixed peel and red cherries, with a sugar-glazed top
Sweet bread is what Barbadian families bake in December, wrapped in foil and handed over at Christmas visits around the island, and it's sold year round in bakeries from Bridgetown to Speightstown. It isn't a yeast bread but a dense, moist loaf packed with freshly grated coconut, sweet with brown sugar and scented with almond essence, with raisins, mixed peel and bright red glacé cherries in every slice. The top gets brushed with sugar syrup for a sticky shine. Chef's tip: use fresh or frozen grated coconut if you can; desiccated coconut makes a drier loaf unless you soak it first in the milk for 20 minutes.
- Total time
- 80 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
For the loaf
For the glaze
Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Heat the oven to 350°F (325°F fan). Grease two 450 g (1 lb) loaf tins, or one 900 g tin, and line with baking paper.
Step 2: In a large bowl, mix 13 oz plain flour, 1 tbsp baking powder, ¼ tsp salt and ½ tsp ground nutmeg. Stir in 9 oz freshly grated coconut, 5 ½ oz dark brown sugar, 2 ⅞ oz raisins, 1 ¾ oz mixed peel and 2 ⅛ oz glacé cherries, breaking up any clumps of coconut with your fingers.
3 minStep 3: Whisk 4 oz butter, 1 egg, ¾ cup evaporated milk, 1 tsp almond essence and 1 tsp vanilla extract in a jug. Pour into the dry ingredients and fold until just combined into a stiff, sticky dough. A common mistake is beating it hard: that makes a tough, rubbery loaf. Stop as soon as there's no dry flour.
3 minStep 4: Spoon into the tins and smooth the tops. Bake for 50–60 minutes (60–70 for one large loaf), until risen, deep golden-brown and a skewer pushed into the centre comes out clean.
60 minStep 5: Dissolve 2 tbsp sugar in 2 tbsp hot water and brush it over the loaves as soon as they come out of the oven, so the top sets shiny and slightly crisp.
1 minStep 6: Cool in the tin for 15 minutes, then on a rack. It slices best the next day, wrapped in foil, and keeps for 5 days.
15 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 5 g
- Carbs
- 43 g
- Fat
- 16 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does bajan sweet bread take?
- About 80 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 60 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 12 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
- What can I use instead of baking powder?
- ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda + ½ tsp cream of tartar per 1 tsp.
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