Snack Recipe
Kefir Brambrack
A fruity, gently spiced Irish barmbrack made with tea-soaked raisins, sultanas and Kerry Kefir for a deliciously moist loaf.
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A Kerry Kefir twist on a traditional Irish favourite, swapping buttermilk for our traditional kefir.
This fruit-packed loaf combines juicy tea-soaked raisins and sultanas with warming spices and creamy kefir for a moist, gently spiced brack that’s particularly good sliced and spread with Irish butter.
Serves: 10–12
Prep: 15 minutes + soaking
Cooking time: 50-60 minutes
Ingredients
- 300g mixed dried fruit, such as raisins and sultanas
- 200ml strong black tea, cooled
- 250g plain flour
- 75g soft brown sugar
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp mixed spice
- Pinch of sea salt
- 1 egg
- 150ml Kerry Kefir
- 30g Irish butter, melted
- Finely grated zest of 1 orange, optional
- A little butter for finishing
Method
-
- Soak the fruit. Place the raisins and sultanas in a bowl and pour over the strong tea. Cover and leave for at least 2–3 hours, or preferably overnight. This gives you the plump, juicy fruit you’d expect from a good brack.
- Prepare the oven. Preheat to 180°C / 160°C fan / Gas Mark 4. Grease and line a 2lb loaf tin.
- Mix the dry ingredients. Add the flour, brown sugar, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon, mixed spice and salt to a large bowl and stir together.
- Add the wet ingredients. Whisk the egg, Kerry Kefir and melted butter together. Add to the dry ingredients along with the soaked fruit, its remaining soaking liquid and the orange zest, if using.
- Mix gently. Fold everything together until just combined. Avoid overmixing – you want the finished brack to remain soft and moist.
- Bake. Spoon into the prepared loaf tin and smooth the top. Bake for approximately 50–60 minutes, until deep golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. If it’s browning too quickly, loosely cover with foil for the final 15 minutes.
- Finish. Leave in the tin for around 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Brush the warm top with a little butter and allow to cool before slicing.
Serve it the Irish way: Thickly sliced with plenty of butter and a cup of tea.
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