Author Notes
Going through my grandmother's recipes, I came across this cryptically-named recipe with sparse instructions. The ingredients were even more puzzling; would a recipe with 3 eggs but only 5 Tablespoons of flour even work?
What emerged from my oven was a golden loaf, rich with dates and nuts, a cousin to fruitcake and perfect with an afternoon cup of tea. Anyu knew what she was doing! —Windischgirl
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Prep time
25 minutes
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Cook time
45 minutes
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Makes
1loaf
Ingredients
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3
Eggs
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1/2 cup
Granulated sugar
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5 tablespoons
All-purpose flour
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1 teaspoon
Baking powder
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1 teaspoon
Vanilla extract
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1 cup
Walnuts, chopped
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1 pound
Dates, chopped
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2 tablespoons
All-purpose flour, plus additional for dusting
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Cooking spray
Directions
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Heat the oven to 350F. Prepare a 9x5 loaf pan by spraying with cooking spray and dusting it with flour.
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In the bowl of a stand mixer using the beater blade, beat the 3 eggs, the sugar, and the vanilla extract at high speed until pale colored and fluffy, about 5 minutes. In a separate bowl, combine the 5 Tbs. flour and the baking powder.
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Place the chopped dates in a bowl and toss with the 2 Tbs flour until evenly coated. Combine with the chopped walnuts.
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When the eggs are well-beaten, remove the bowl from the mixer and scrape off the beater blade. Sift the flour and baking powder over the egg mixture, and using a scraper spatula, gently fold the flour into the eggs until just combined. Gently fold in half the dates and nuts until coated, then fold in the remainder.
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Spoon the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 30-45 minutes, until a skewer inserted in the center comes out moist but clean. If the loaf is browning too quickly, cover it with foil.
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Let the loaf rest in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes, then gently loosen the sides with an offset spatula and turn out onto a rack to cool completely.
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Note: can add zest of 1 lemon to the batter along with the flour.
I’ve also made this with gluten-free flour with good results.
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