Speckled Bread

Mary and I spent a rather sleepless night on the couch last night.
No, it wasn't a result of the obligatory Christmas Row ,
I was full of a cough and a heavy cold and Mary has an ear infection and so in order to allow The Prof some sort of rest from the coughing and itching before his work today, I banished both of us to the couch.
At 5.00 am, after the log burner had died down, Winnie tried to join us in an effort to keep warm.
I feel like a the new parent of a colicky baby this afternoon. Tired and headachy.


I have left the house only once to walk the dogs ( with Albert in tow) and so missed animal helper Pat when she called around with a Christmas gift of homemade bara brith.
I wasn't out long as I went in the mood Albert's insistence in walking with us even on the main road,
That cat will get himself killed one day
I found the loaf tied to the back door handle ( Aunty Glad style) when we got home.



Now for those that down know Bara Brith is a Welsh fruit bread usually made without yeast. It is often flavoured with tea and is eaten thinly sliced and Covered in butter.
It is delicious and incredibly moreish

In Welsh bara means bread and brith means speckled.
The "Speckled" title refers to dense amounts of fruit in the recipe.

Stock photo bara brith



I'll leave you with some nativity scenes, I'm off for a lemsip





64 comments:

  1. Tough being sick this time of year and hope you are back on the mends soon. I really dig the nativity scenes!! Thank For Cracking Me Up.

    Cheers

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    1. They amused me too padre merry chrimbo

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  2. Awww., feel better soon. Not a fruit cake fan but that sounds wonderful.

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    1. Linda it's less cake more bread happy christmas

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  3. Ha-Ha! I loved the nativity scenes but what is that red helmet-shaped thing in the foreground of the last picture? Keep it zipped up you filthy beast!

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  4. Did you juxtapose the 'i' and the 'r' in Bara Brith? At first I thought she'd left you something like 'afterb....'.

    Now get well quickly. There's not much time, you know!

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    1. Don't I know it....happy Christmas raymondo x

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    2. Absolutely to you too, J.G., with all the tinsel, lametta, coloured balls and fairy lights on! And, of course, not forgetting hubby and the entire lovely little 'gang'.

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  5. I like the doggy nativity scene. Bara Brith? I used to make it years ago, I must dig out the recipe again. Hope you get over your cold before Christmas.

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  6. Love those nativity scenes, especially the last one! Feel better soon!

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  7. I hope you soon feel better. I like the Nativity things. The one is good with the cat. Why didn't you sleep in the spare bed?

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    1. PS I used to have that cake down here and it was called loaf cake and spread with butter. I always found it rather dry.

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    2. That's why you soak it in tea..... the couch is easier to get on the spare bed is covered in Prof papers

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  8. Anonymous3:15 pm

    You can buy a cat harness and lead. Doubt Albert would like this with him being A Happy Wanderer all these years.

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    1. He's not a physical cat so that's a no no
      happy ChristmasX

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  9. Looks like our fruitcake. Hope you and Mary get well soon.

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    1. I've dosed myself up with aspirin and Mary has had her eardrops

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  10. I would love that bread and the nativity scenes. I had one very similar to the batman and dinosaur one. get well soon.

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  11. Gifts to eat are wonderful, even better if homemade!
    I wish you are well enough to sleep in your bed again tonight :)
    Greetings Maria x

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  12. "And when they were come into the house, they
    saw the young child with Mary his mother, and
    fell down, and worshipped him and when
    they had opened their treasures, they presented
    unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense and myrrh."

    Oh, and, judging by that last picture, Friskies, too.

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  13. Love the photos. Reminds me of my favorite kids' version of Silent Night: "Round John Virgin, mother and child..."

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    1. These three kings of orient are
      Selling knickers a pound a pair
      How fantastic
      No elastic
      Selling them a pound a pair

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  14. So long as Albert follows in your footsteps and the doggie gang I would imagine any car driver or other driver would give you a wide berth. Hope you are better soon.

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  15. Tuck in to your bara brith and lemsip and feel better soon. x

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  16. Hope the lemsip helps! I first heard of Bara Brith on the GBBO. That dark haired Welsh woman made one. Can't remember which season...
    Love the nativity scenes!

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  17. Lemsip?!?

    I think you need something stronger than that. Hot rum. Grog. Or even, dare one say it, Welsh whisky. Send the Prof out for a bottle and drink it with hot water.

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    1. I nearly forgot. He can pop in the Indian and you a Madras while he's at it. You've got to sweat these bugs out you know.

      And drink lots and lots of water.

      This last you know but perhaps neglect.

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    2. I dragged myself to Doctor O'Hara with a stinking cold and he pulled a bottle of whisky out his drawer and poured two generous measures. We chewed the fat for 15 minutes. I was back at work next day.

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    3. We had Thai for tea...I still feel like shit
      happy Christmas

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  18. Now I have to go look up lemsip.
    You get better and may the fur person get better too.

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  19. Don't say that about Albert!
    Any sort of fruit cake/bread is grand, especially a tiny bit toasted, with butter.

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  20. Bara Brith sounds similar to the Northern Irish Barm Brack, which is also known as Bairín Breac (speckled bread). The dough is sweeter than sandwich bread, but not as rich as cake, and sultanas and raisins add flavour and texture. It's often served toasted with butter.

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    1. Bara brith is too full of fruit to be toasted ! Btw your comment nick and that of several others were archived wrongly into my spam folder..I have no idea why

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  21. That Bara brith looks delicious.
    Typical cat in the last picture!

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  22. My Auntie Glenys made the best Bara Brith imaginable! I have her recipe, and although mine's very good, it's not a patch on hers! I do make a mean boiled fruit cake though!

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    1. Mine is award winning

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    2. Ooooh, now that sounds like a challenge for next year's flower show! X

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  23. I hope you get better quickly.
    Smiling at the nativity scenes.

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  24. Maturities made me chuckle. Philadelphia has a wandering cow from a live nativity.

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  25. Is your Bara Brith even better being baked in your new kitchen John ? It looks delicious and even more so with a pound of butter slavered over it !!
    A very merry Christmas to you and the Prof ... wishing you both a magical time. XXXX

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  26. Hoping you and Mary feel better soon. My cold therapy is always Bourbon, lemon and honey. It doesn't really work but you'll sleep like a log. The hot dog and bacon nativity cracked me up. Wishing you, the Prof and family a wonderful Christmas. X

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  27. Totally besides the point I realise, but what the heck, can I just say I LOVE your storage jars!! Especially the one for Peel!

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  28. bara brith looks dee-lish!

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  29. Wishing you and mary better soon. Hot tea with lemon and honey have always helped when I'm under the weather. Take care..hugs to you and yours

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  30. Love the nativity scenes. I once bought a little kit to make a "S'mores" nativity (s'mores being the Yank fireside treat of toasted marshmallows between 2 graham crackers (rather like digestive biscuits) with a square of not-very-good Hershey's chocolate melting on the marshmallow.) I've never much liked s'mores, but the scene of the holy family in plastic marshmallows, sitting on cushions of plastic chocolate, on a plastic biscuit delighted me--so sweet. As for a nostrum--I'm with Camille, although I prefer Scotch to Bourbon, made with boiling water, lemon and a little honey (good for sore throats). And thank you for giving us all a post encouraging thinking about nativity scenes, and alcoholic cold remedies. Take good care, and best wishes for the holidays.

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  31. I hope you both feel better soon...my schnauzer cost me £147 yesterday because of an ear infection. He had to be sedated so that they could clear his very hairy ears of hair and put more meds in that might actually work this time!! ( he had his teeth scaled as well.)

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  32. I like that last picture best ... you'd have to love cat that thinks he's Jesus 😆

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  33. Anonymous10:02 am

    My Mum was in the Land Army in Wales and she would often mention Bara Brith. I made it once for her. Brought many happy memories back for her. She loved her time in caersws and round about there . Sue R

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  34. That Bara Brith would ME feel better in a heartbeat ... or an entire loaf.

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  35. I'm getting the feeling that what I call freckle bread is Bara Brith - a mix of whole wheat and regular flour, strong tea, and a bunch of different dried fruits. I love it for breakfast; just perfect with a hot drink and lots of butter. My manger scene has velociraptors. As a friend pointed out, if it weren't for that troublesome extinction thing, they'd have been there. They look quite jolly on the roof with the angels - and by conceding to have them in the scene, I can keep the woolly mammoth out.

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  36. I'm back tracking and your probably feeling a lot better now, love all the photos especially the dogs,I really enjoy the comments of all your fans wishing them all a merry christmas from Canada.

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