Recipe: Jam and Coconut Loaf

Last weekend I was abandoned for the last day of the football season and bored in the house. I haven't baked in months and stared at my Kitchenmaid looking all sorry for itself. I wanted something quick and simple to bake. After scouring my many cookbooks, I came across Nadia Sawalha's Fabulous Family Food and saw this simple recipe. It came out brilliantly!

Ingredients:

For the cake:

175g self raising flour, sifted

175g baking spread

175g caster sugar

3 free-range eggs, whisked

50g desiccated coconut

1 tbsp lemon flavouring

1 tbsp vanilla flavouring

1 tsp baking powder

For the topping:

4-6 tbsp strawberry jam

2 tbsp desiccated coconut

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees/gas mark 4.

2. Line a 900g loaf tin with baking parchment and grease with some butter.

3. Put all the cake ingredients in a mixing bowl, whisk until you have a smooth mixture. Pour it into the loaf tin.

4. Bake for 45-50 minutes. I popped some tin foil on it after 10 minutes to stop it from burning. The woes of having a fan oven!

5. Leave to stand in the tin to cool for ten minutes. Pop on a wire rack to let it fully cool down.

6. Once cooled, spread the strawberry jam on the top and sprinkle with the coconut.

Let me know on twitter if you manage to make it - I'd love to see a picture!