Trinidad Sweet Bread

Plate with a loaf of Trinidadian Sweet Bread baked with mixed fruit with a single sliced cut.

4.86 from 7 votes

This Trinidad sweet bread is studded with candied cherries, mixed peel, raisins and currants. This recipe makes 2 loaves.

Prep Time20 mins

Cook Time1 hr 10 mins

Total Time1 hr 30 mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Caribbean, Trinidadian

Servings: slices

Calories: 347kcal

Author: Shareba

Equipment

Two 9.25 x 5.25 Loaf Pans
Wooden spoon
Flour Sifter
Large Bowl
Medium Bowl

Ingredients

4 cups all-purpose flour
4 tsps baking powder
¾ tsp ground allspice
½ tsp salt
2 cups light brown sugar plus 3 tbsp extra for glaze
3 ½ cups shredded frozen coconut defrosted
1 cup candied cherries roughly chopped
2 tbsp candied mixed peel
½ cup raisins
¼ cup dried currants
⅔ cup salted butter melted
¾ cup evaporated milk
1 tsp almond extract
2 large eggs beaten
¾ tsp fresh ginger grated

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F.
Grease both loaf tins with butter, margarine or cooking spray. Flour pans and set aside.
In a large bowl, mix and sift flour, baking powder, allspice and salt. Add the two cups of sugar, coconut, candied fruit, raisins and currants. Stir to combine.
In a medium bowl, add melted butter, evaporated milk, almond extract, beaten eggs and grated ginger. Stir well.
Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients, stir to combine. Do not over-mix or attempt to knead the dough. It should feel stiff and sticky.
Divide dough into the prepared loaf pans. Don't press down on the dough. Bake until golden brown, and a skewer comes out clean when inserted. Approximately 60-70 minutes.
Meanwhile, mix the reserved 3 tbsp of sugar with 1 tbsp of water to create a glaze.
Once loaves are done cooking, remove from oven and brush on glaze while the bread is still warm. Return loaves to oven for 5-6 minutes to create a crunchy crust.
Remove the loaves from the pans, and cool completely on a wire rack before cutting.
Serve warm or at room temperature. Store cooled loaves in airtight container (or wrapped tightly in plastic wrap) for up to 3 days, or freeze for later.

Notes

Substitutions:

Shredded Coconut makes up a large portion of the dough in this recipe. Classic recipes call for freshly grated coconut, but using frozen shredded coconut saves time. You can find this at most supermarkets in the international section of the freezer aisles. This recipe may not work with desiccated coconut.
Candied Cherries add sweetness and a pop of colour to the bread. You want the sugary candied (glazed) cherries sold in those little plastic tubs, not Maraschino cherries sold in liquid that you buy in jars.
Candied Mixed Peel are citrus peels that have been candied with sugar. These also adds colour and a slight bitterness to the bread. If you don't like citrus peel, you can leave substitute more cherries, raisins or currants.
Currants are my mom's personal touch in this recipe. You can just use raisins if you want to, or omit both and just used candied fruit.
Evaporated Milk is a shelf-stable milk that can be found in cans, usually in the baking aisle of your grocery store. Do not substitute regular milk. Coconut milk may work as a substitute, but I have not tested it.
Almond Extract is not the same as almond essence (an artificial flavouring), but you should be able to substitute one for the other at a 1:1 ratio. You could also use vanilla extract or coconut extract, or a combination of extracts.
Fresh Ginger adds a brighter flavour than powdered ginger but if you don’t have any, substitute a little less than ¼ tsp of powdered to the mix.
Light Brown Sugar adds a slight caramel flavour to the sweet bread that you can't get from white sugar. Yet it's not as intensely flavoured as dark brown sugar. You can use any sugar you have on hand though.
Allspice is a unique spice that tastes like a combination of clove, cinnamon and nutmeg. We love using allspice to replicate these flavours with less ingredients to measure. You can just use cinnamon and nutmeg, or use the mixture below. Allspice Substitute: Combine ½ teaspoon of cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon of ground cloves and ¼ teaspoon of ground nutmeg. This will give you 1 tsp of spice blend, and you can measure the ¾ tsp for this recipe from there. Put the rest into an airtight container and save it for later.

Recipe loosely adapted from Sylvia Hunt's Cooking Coconut and Fruit Bread recipe.

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