Bairín Breac - a traditional Irish Halloween recipe

Bairín Breac is the epitome of a traditional Halloween dish. For centuries Irish people have been making the loaf, also known as Barmbrack, on the Eve of Samhain (31 October) as a way to tell your future.

The name can be translated to English as loaf for Bairín, and speckled for breac, referring to the dried fruits found in the loaf.

Surprises found inside

The traditional Bairín Breac is studded with surprises for those who eat a slice. A collection of objects are typically baked into the bread, each of which were seen as signs of what your future may hold, depending on the item your slice may contain. In the Barmbrack, you might find:

• A pea, meaning the person who found it would not marry that year;

• A stick, meaning they would have an unhappy marriage or continually be in disputes;

• A cloth or rag, meaning they would have bad luck or be poor;

• A coin, meaning they would enjoy good fortune or be rich;

• A ring, meaning they would be wed within the year;

• and a bean, meaning they would have a future without money.

As well as acting as a fortune-telling game you can play at Halloween, the Bairín Breac is also a delicious Irish recipe. Today, most Halloween breacs contain either a ring or a coin, but feel free to seal your guests fates with any of the above when you bake it yourself, the traditional way.

Ingredients:

• 225g plain flour
• 2 tsp of baking powder
• 375g of fruit mix
• 250 ml cold tea
• 50ml of whiskey
• 125g light brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• ½ tsp of mixed spice
• Pea
• Stick
• Ring
• Rag
• Coin
• Bean

Method:

1. Firstly you must soak your fruit mix in a bowl with your whiskey and cold tea.
2. Next preheat the oven to 170C/Gas Mark 3, and grease and line a 900g loaf tin.
3. Mix your flour, baking powder, sugar and mixed spice in a mixing bowl.
4. In your dry mixture make a well and break in the egg.
5. Using a wooden spoon mix the egg with the dry ingredients. Add a little bit of the liquid the fruit mix is sitting in and mix it through.
6. Then stir through the fruit mix until everything is combined.
7. Add in your choice of the traditional symbols: a pea, a piece of cloth, a stick, a ring, a bean and a coin – and stir through.
8. Spoon the dough into the loaf tin and place in the oven on the middle shelf and bake for one hour.
9. After removing from the oven allow to cool slightly before removing from the loaf tin and placing on a cooling rack.
10. Serve in slices and enjoy your traditional Halloween dessert!