How to make Noor Murad’s really soft date loaf with cardamom, fennel and nigella seeds

“This date loaf is inspired by a multitude of things,” says chef Noor Murad. “The idea landed while eating a Welsh bara brith, similar to an English tea loaf, where dried fruit is soaked in tea to create a bread loaf that’s then sliced and slathered in butter. I knew then that this would be the perfect template for a cardamom date cake, which I had wanted to include in [cookbook] Lugma somehow.

“Then there’s the topping, which sets this loaf apart in a very lovely way. The combination of fennel, sesame and nigella seeds is often sprinkled onto khobez hamar, a type of date-based flatbread made in Bahrain but perfected in Al-Ahsa in eastern Saudi Arabia. This really is a special loaf, so easy to make and one that improves with time, so make it a day before you want to serve it if you can. I like to have it drizzled with tahini and date molasses, which is quite rich, so feel free to just spread it with lashings of salted butter.”

Really soft date loaf with cardamom, fennel and nigella seeds

Ingredients:
(Serves 8)

320g pitted Medjool dates, finely chopped
400ml boiling-hot strong brewed tea
1tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
110g olive oil (by weight not volume), plus extra for greasing
140g dark soft brown sugar
2 eggs
2tbsp date molasses
275g plain (all-purpose) flour, sifted
1tsp baking powder
Seeds from 25 cardamom pods, finely crushed using a pestle and mortar
1⁄4tsp fine sea salt

For the topping:
1tbsp sesame seeds
1tsp fennel seeds, roughly crushed using a pestle and mortar
1tsp nigella seeds

To serve:
Tahini or salted softened butter
Date molasses

Method:

1. Put the dates in a medium heatproof bowl and add the tea and bicarbonate of soda. Mix to combine and set aside to soften for 20 minutes.

2. Preheat the oven to 170°C fan/190°C/375°F/Gas mark 5. Grease and line the base and sides of a standard one litre loaf tin (about 23 x 13 x 6 centimetres) with a piece of baking paper.

3. In a large bowl, vigorously whisk together the oil, sugar, eggs and molasses until smooth, aerated and without lumps, about two minutes.

4. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cardamom and salt.

5. Use a fork (or your hands) to roughly mash the dates into the tea, then whisk this into the sugar mixture until combined. Switch to a spatula and gently fold in the flour mixture, just until evenly combined (do not overmix). Transfer the mixture to the prepared tin and place it on a baking tray. Sprinkle the top with the sesame, fennel and nigella seeds, then bake on the middle rack of your oven for 65-70 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Check your loaf at the 35-minute mark; if it looks too dark on top, cover loosely with foil. When ready, lift the loaf out the tin using the baking paper to help you and leave to cool completely on a wire rack.

6 Serve sliced with a drizzle of tahini or a generous amount of softened butter, followed by some date molasses.

Lugma by Noor Murad is published by Quadrille, priced £28. Photography by Matt Russell. Available now.