Stout & apple wheaten bread

• butter↗60g g

  cut into small cubes, plus more for the tins

• large apple↗1

  (or 2 small ones), peeled, cored and diced

• plain flour↗175g g
• wholemeal flour↗450g g
• medium oatmeal↗90g g
• bicarbonate of soda↗2 ½ tsp tsp
• muscovado sugar↗4 tbsp tbsp
• good-quality stout↗175ml ml
• treacle↗5 tbsp tbsp
• buttermilk↗400ml ml
• oat↗

  flakes, pinhead oatmeal or sesame seeds (or a mixture of all three) to sprinkle over the top

Step-by-step instructions

1. 1

   Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Butter three 1lb loaf tins. Toss the apple with 2 tbsp of the plain flour. Mix the flours and oatmeal with 1 tsp salt and the bicarbonate of soda. Add the butter and rub it in with your fingertips. Stir in the sugar.

2. 2

   Make a well in the middle of the mixture and gradually pour in the stout, followed by the treacle, then the buttermilk. Mix the liquids in with a butter knife as they are added, also working in the floured apple – work quickly and be careful not to overmix.

3. 3

   Divide the mixture between the loaf tins, sprinkle over the oats or seeds. and bake for 35-40 mins. To test whether the loaves are ready, remove one from the tin and tap the bottom. If it sounds hollow, it’s ready; if not, return to the oven for a little longer. Turn the loaves out of the tins and leave to cool on a wire rack.