Ingredients

(Usually made as gluten free)

• 500g bread (crusts removed and used for breadcrumbs - I use a gluten free loaf with the crusts removed)
• 600g mixed fruit with peel
• 2 tablespoons ground mixed spice
• 1 tablespoon black treacle – warm this slightly to allow it to mix better
• 600ml milk
• 2 large eggs beaten
• 130g light brown sugar – save a few spoonfuls for after baking
• 100g butter (melted)

Method

1. Line a 20cm pan with a greaseproof bottom and grease the sides lightly
2. Rip the bread into pieces and add to a large mixing bowl
3. Add the milk, beaten eggs, mixed fruit, spice, sugar, and treacle to the large mixing bowl and mix well. I find the mix is best done with clean hands
4. Make sure this is all well mixed and then set aside to soak for at least 30 minutes
5. Pre heat the oven to 180c/Fan 160c/ Gas 4
6. Melt the butter (you can use a pan or microwave to do this) and add to the mixture, taking time to mix well
7. Put the mixture into your greased pan and level out
8. Bake for approximately 1 to 1.5 hours until it’s a nice brown colour. Cover with foil if it browns too quickly and finish baking
9. Remove from the oven and sprinkle the remainder of the sugar over the top. I do this straight away to give a nice crispy sugar coating
10. Once cooled, remove carefully from the tin (to avoid losing the sugar) and cut into squares