New Zealand Almond and Fig Bread Roundup

Nancy of Bread & Cake & More's New Zealand Almond Fig Bread

A picture says a thousand words, at least that’s what they say. Indeed, the image  of the New Zealand Almond Fig Bread  in the Bread Bible  is so attractive and delicious looking, it just seemed like an obvious choice for this month. Nancy's loaf looks as beautiful as Rose's picture, with her dried black figs, almond nuggets and beautifully browned almond slices. Very nice!

All of the Alpha Bakers were enthusiastic about making this attractive loaf. As well, everyone seemed to agree that they preferred a loaf that was a little less dense. Still, the Almond and Fig Bread turned out well across the board and was successful.

For Nancy, this is her second time making this bread, and having learned, she made a few key changes. First, she didn't like the apricot jam coating, so she brushed the almonds with egg white instead, which made the bread brown faster. (Her trusty foil cape saved it from charring.) Still, even after the second time, she admits that the flavour isn’t stellar, but the loaf is still very pretty and the figs give a nice effect.

For Svetlana, living in Israel, where figs are fresh and delicious, black figs are not commonly dried as often and are harder to find than the light brown variety. She had to make a special trip to a health food store to find the dark figs for this bread. It was well worth her efforts because she felt the figs paired perfectly with the almonds, and the apricot glaze added a lovely shine and touch of sweetness. She enjoyed the loaf as is, but also thought soft white and blue cheeses complimented it as well.

Marie B’s Fig and Almond Loaf cut beautifully and yielded a terrific looking crumb. For her though, she too preferred the lighter texture of the Harvest Bread to the denseness of this loaf. Still she was glad to have tried it. 

Next month are the Sacaduros on page 315. The tiny cube of butter and flour de sel inside the dinner roll sounds charming. It's time we tried out hands at a quick and easy recipe. Right?