Orange-scented madeira loaves

Perfect for morning tea or in a lunch box. Ice and decorate with slices of candied orange peel for high tea.

Ingredients

1 ½ cups	Self raising flour
1 ¼ cups	Ground almonds
1 tsp	Baking powder
1 cup	Caster sugar
175 g	Butter, well softened, but not melted
3	Eggs, lightly beaten
1	Orange, zest and juice (Main)
1 sprinkle	Icing sugar, to decorate

Directions

1. Heat the oven to 170C.
2. Place the ground almonds in a shallow baking tray and toast for 5 minutes until they just begin to colour. Remove from the oven and spread on a plate to cool a little.
3. Lightly grease 8 mini loaf tins (¾ cup capacity) and line with a strip of baking paper. This will help when you come to turn loaves out.
4. Sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl. Add the sugar, butter, eggs, orange zest, juice and toasted ground almonds. Using a large spoon or spatula fold the ingredients together until just combined. Spoon the mixture evenly into the prepared tins. They should be about ¾ full, no more.
5. Place in the pre-heated oven and cook for 20 minutes. Insert a skewer in the centre of a loaf and if it comes out clean then the loaves are cooked. Leave for 5 minutes before turning out.
6. Serve sprinkled with icing sugar, if you wish.

Tips

• You can use whole blanched almonds rather than already ground almonds; heat a dry frying pan over a medium heat, add the almonds and toast for 3 minutes, they will just begin to take on a little colour. Cool, then place in a food processor and process until ground.
• Loaves can be iced with a thin drizzle of icing if you wish; mix 2 cups icing sugar with the zest and a little juice of 1 orange.