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Cheese & Bacon Loaf

An easy, quick bread made with self-raising flour and eggs rather than yeast so there's no kneading or proving.

Delicious spread with butter, an accompaniment to soups, salads, meats and cheeses or a treat for lunch boxes and picnics, it's soft and fluffy inside with a crisp exterior.

At its fluffiest on the day of baking, but then tastes great toasted.

Course Side Dish, Snack, Bread
Cuisine World
Keyword no knead bread, easy, quick bread
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings 1 small loaf
Author Moorlands Eater

Ingredients

  • 175 g smoked bacon weight before rinds removed
  • 2 tsp olive oil if using streaky bacon you may not need any oil
  • 225 g self raising flour or plain flour + 2 level tsp baking powder
  • 1 large pinch salt
  • ΒΌ tsp black pepper
  • 75 g soft butter plus extra for greasing
  • 140 g mature Cheddar cheese, grated divided into 120 g and 20 g
  • 2 eggs beaten
  • 100 ml milk approximately

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 180C / 160 Fan / Gas 4 with a shelf positioned just below the middle.

    Butter a small, non-stick loaf tin (approx. 19 x 9 x 6 cm, capacity 450ml or 1 lb).

  2. Discard any rinds, then cut the bacon into small pieces.

    If your bacon is lean (e.g. back bacon): put the oil in a frying pan over medium heat. When the oil is hot add the bacon.

    If you have fattier bacon (e.g. streaky): omit the oil and put the bacon into a cold frying pan then switch on the heat to medium.

    Cook the bacon, stirring often, until it is cooked through and starting to only just turn a little crispy.

    Take off the heat and set aside.

  3. Sift the flour, salt and black pepper into a mixing bowl.

    Rub in the butter with your fingertips.

    Stir in 120 grams of the grated cheese plus the bacon and a teaspoon of the cooking juices from the frying pan.

    Pour in the eggs and enough milk to form a thick but not dry batter: because different flours absorb different amounts of liquid you may not need all the milk or might need a splash more. See blog post for image of how the batter should look.

  4. Transfer the mixture to the prepared tin, pressing down lightly and smoothing the top. Sprinkle over the reserved 20 grams of grated cheese.

    Put into the preheated oven and bake until risen, brown and firm: a skewer or cocktail stick inserted should come out clean when done. (50-55 min).

    Recommended: check at 35 minutes that the top isn't browning too quickly. If it is already quite dark, cover loosely with a piece of foil.

  5. When the loaf is done, remove it from the tin and place on a wire rack until completely cold.

    Served sliced, spread with butter if liked, alongside soup, salad, with meats and cheeses etc.

    The loaf is best eaten with 2 - 3 days, but is fluffiest inside on the day of baking. After the first day, heating slices for a few seconds in the microwave will make the interior fluffy again. It's also very good toasted and buttered.

    Can be frozen as a whole loaf or in slices.