• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Sneaky Veg

  • HOME
  • ABOUT
    • WORK WITH ME
    • Contact
  • Recipes
    • Baked goodies
    • Breakfasts
    • Main meals
    • Puddings
    • Sauces and dips
    • Snacks
  • SUBSCRIBE
  • Reviews
menu icon
go to homepage
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • RECIPES
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT
  • SUBSCRIBE
×
Home » Recipes » Baked goodies

Earl grey tea and rhubarb loaf cake

April 29, 2015 by Mandy Mazliah 30 Comments

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Email
  • WhatsApp
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
rhubarb loaf cake
two images of rhubarb tea loaf
rhubarb tea loaf on slate plate

A delicious rhubarb loaf cake made with earl grey tea. Perfect for afternoon tea, the tart rhubarb goes perfectly with the sweet tea loaf.

iced rhubarb tea loaf

Baking with rhubarb

I've been experimenting with rhubarb bakes over the last few weeks. I made the Five o'clock apron rhubarb bread and butter pudding which Mr R and me devoured in minutes. However, Little Miss R ate the bread and left the rhubarb.

Then I had grand plans for a rhubarb, custard and crumble cake which totally collapsed the second I took it out of the tin.

Tasted absolutely amazing but sadly not bloggable, although my husband did suggest that "splat cakes" could become a new baking trend.

rhubarb loaf cake

My rhubarb tea loaf was a huge hit

I finally got it right with this delicious rhubarb earl grey tea loaf.

In my opinion you can't beat a tea loaf. This is:

  • almost fat free (apart from the egg - which can be easily replaced with a flax egg to make this vegan)
  • dairy free
  • full of juicy tea-soaked sultanas
  • contains a portion of veg (yes, rhubarb is a vegetable), and
  • is absolutely delicious 

It's a great way to sneak in an unusual vegetable into your child's diet if they're not keen on it normally.

Rhubarb is actually a vegetable

Although it's often mistaken for a fruit and usually appears in puddings, rhubarb is actually a vegetable.

rhubarb and earl grey tea loaf cake

What ingredients do you need to make this rhubarb loaf cake?

You will need the following ingredients to make this rhubarb tea loaf:

  • 300g sultanas (other dried fruit can be used too)
  • 200g roasted or stewed rhubarb
  • 300ml strong hot tea - I used earl grey but English Breakfast will also work fine
  • 100g dark brown sugar
  • 275g self raising flour (or plain flour plus 1 teaspoon baking powder)
  • 1 egg or vegan equivalent eg flax or chia egg

Other vegetarian rhubarb recipes

  • strawberry and rhubarb oven-baked risotto
  • spiced rhubarb chutney
  • healthy rhubarb bars
  • rhubarb and strawberry crumble
  • vegan rhubarb muffins
  • refined sugar free rhubarb compote

Pin earl grey tea and rhubarb loaf cake for later

EARL GREY RHUBARB TEA LOAF CAKE by sneaky veg

How to make earl grey tea and rhubarb loaf cake

If you have made this recipe I would love it if you’d leave a comment and rating below. Thank you!

rhubarb tea loaf on slate plate

Earl grey tea and rhubarb loaf cake

Mandy Mazliah
A delicious rhubarb loaf cake made with earl grey tea. Perfect for afternoon tea, the tart rhubarb goes perfectly with the sweet tea loaf.
4.75 from 20 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes mins
Cook Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins
Soaking time 12 hours hrs
Total Time 1 hour hr 40 minutes mins
Course Cake
Cuisine British
Servings 12
Calories 214 kcal

Ingredients
 
 

  • 300 g sultanas
  • 200 g roasted or stewed rhubarb see note below
  • 300 ml strong earl grey tea or tea of choice
  • 100 g dark brown sugar
  • 275 g self-raising flour or 275 g plain flour and 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 flax egg* or 1 beaten egg if not vegan

To ice (optional)

  • 50 g icing sugar confectioners' sugar
  • 1-2 tablespoons cold water

Instructions
 

  • Start this recipe the night before you plan to make it.
  • Mix 300g sultanas, 200g roasted or stewed rhubarb and 100g brown sugar together in a large bowl. Cover with 300ml strong hot tea and leave to soak overnight.
  • Pre-heat the oven to 150°C(fan)/170°C/gas mark 3. If using a flax egg mix 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds with 2.5 tablespoon water and set aside to thicken.
  • Grease and line a 2lb/900g loaf tin with baking paper. Stir 275g self raising flour and the flax egg (or beaten egg) into the fruit mixture. Pour into the prepared tin.
  • Bake in the oven for 1 ½ to 1 ¾ hours* or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Cover the top with foil if it's getting too brown.
  • Allow to cool in the tin for five minutes then carefully turn out onto a cooling rack.

To ice your rhubarb tea loaf (optional)

  • If you're icing the cake let it cool completely before doing so.
  • Sift the icing sugar into a bowl and gradually stir through the cold water, a little at a time, until you have a thick, smooth icing.
  • Drizzle over the cake and allow to set for a few minutes before serving.

Notes

  1. To make a flax egg mix 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds (linseeds) with 2.5 tablespoons water and set aside)
  2. To roast the rhubarb chop into 2cm pieces, toss with 20g caster sugar (or more if you prefer it to be sweeter - I don't think it needs more sugar in this recipe), cover and roast for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally, in an oven preheated to 200°C.
  3. Ovens vary so leave it in for longer if the skewer doesn't come out clean.
  4. Nutritional information is approximate and is intended as a guide.

Nutrition

Calories: 214kcalCarbohydrates: 50gProtein: 4gFat: 1gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 8mgPotassium: 285mgFiber: 2gSugar: 27gVitamin A: 17IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 40mgIron: 1mg
Keyword rhubarb loaf cake
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

HAVE YOU TRIED THIS RECIPE?

If you loved this recipe why not let me know by leaving a rating and comment below? Alternatively you can let me know on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook. 

KEEP IN TOUCH

Subscribe to get recipes and news straight to your inbox. Read more about Sneaky Veg

« One bowl healthy carrot and banana muffins
Easy potato curry with cumin (aloo jeera) | vegan »
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Email
  • WhatsApp

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Lorraine

    January 21, 2023 at 3:27 pm

    5 stars
    Hi, can you cook this recipe in a slow cooker?

    Reply
    • Mandy Mazliah

      January 27, 2023 at 2:35 pm

      Hi Lorraine - I don't have a slow cooker so I don't know for sure but if you usually bake cakes in your slow cooker it should be fine

      Reply
    • Julie

      April 22, 2023 at 4:03 pm

      Used rhubarb tea to increase flavour and ginger syrup mixed with icing on the top! Yum!

      Reply
      • Mandy Mazliah

        April 23, 2023 at 3:19 pm

        That sounds delicious Julie - yum!

        Reply
  2. Margaret mackenzie

    October 09, 2021 at 8:11 pm

    Recipe sounds great. Love rhubarb. Would I need to strain stewed rhubarb before adding to mixture?

    Reply
    • Mandy Mazliah

      October 10, 2021 at 12:23 pm

      Hi Margaret, I don't strain the rhubarb before making this recipe. If you feel that there is excess liquid you can do so but it should be fine without it.

      Reply
  3. Susan

    November 21, 2020 at 10:40 am

    5 stars
    Absolutely delicious! I was struggling to use up the rhubarb from my dad’s garden, so I’m so glad to have found this recipe. It has a lovely rich, deep flavour and the tartness of the rhubarb is perfect. I love it with a little butter and didn’t bother with the icing. One I’ll be making every year now.

    Reply
    • Mandy Mazliah

      November 23, 2020 at 11:11 am

      So glad you enjoyed it Susan - we love this cake as well

      Reply
  4. Yvonne P.

    July 10, 2020 at 1:42 pm

    Would you be so kind as to convert these measurements for me to standard
    cups and teaspoons. This old lady gets confused trying to do it.
    Earl Grey is my favorite tea and I've always love rhubarb (my cousin has a
    rhubarb farm, so we get all we want). Thanks!

    Reply
    • Mandy Mazliah

      July 12, 2020 at 8:12 am

      Hi Yvonne - if you go back to the recipe there is the option next to the title "Ingredients" to convert the recipe to US customary which will give the measurements in cups. Hope you enjoy the recipe.

      Reply
  5. Chocsmarty

    June 20, 2020 at 1:37 am

    5 stars
    This cake was absolutely fabulous. I was eager to make it but forgot to do the prep the night before so had to wait another day. Boy was I mad about that. However it was worth the wait. On the day I actually made it I had only to add the egg and flour and so it took no time at all to put it all together. What a great result. Needless to say I’ve made it more than once!

    Reply
    • Mandy Mazliah

      June 21, 2020 at 2:22 pm

      I'm so happy to hear that you loved the rhubarb loaf so much! It's one of my favourites.

      Reply
  6. Jacqui Bellefontaine

    May 20, 2019 at 4:44 pm

    5 stars
    I love teabreads. Great idea to add rhubarb.

    Reply
    • Mandy Mazliah

      May 21, 2019 at 10:21 am

      Thanks Jacqui - this one is really delicious

      Reply
  7. Janice

    March 17, 2019 at 6:32 pm

    5 stars
    I'm really very excited about your recipe. I love rhubarb and I love teaabreads but have never thought about combining them. Thanks for this great recipe.

    Reply
    • Mandy Sneaky veg

      March 17, 2019 at 9:11 pm

      Thanks so much Janice - it's a great combination!

      Reply
  8. Suzie

    June 25, 2018 at 6:33 pm

    5 stars
    Was looking for something to bake other than rhubarb crumble. This cake turned out great and was so easy to make. The sweetness from the sultanas and the tang from the rhubarb are just petefect together.

    Reply
    • Mandy Mazliah

      June 26, 2018 at 1:46 pm

      Thanks so much Suzie - I'm so glad that you enjoyed it x

      Reply
  9. Linda Hearne

    April 29, 2018 at 2:11 pm

    4 stars
    My rhubarb has gone mad again this year. Nice to find something other than rhubarb crumble to use it in. I adapted the recipe slightly - used less sugar and added a tablespoon of marmalade. Turned out very moist but I didn't want to overcook it. I've no room in my freezer so I am going to have to share with work colleagues!

    Reply
    • Mandy Mazliah

      April 30, 2018 at 7:09 am

      Marmalade is a great idea, glad you enjoyed it and hope your colleagues do too!

      Reply
  10. Fuss Free Helen

    June 02, 2015 at 7:09 pm

    I love a good tea loaf and this one has a lovely twist. Thank you for linking up with #ExtraVeg, I always forget rhubarb is a veggie.

    Reply
    • Mandy Mazliah

      June 02, 2015 at 8:06 pm

      Thanks Helen, yes it's a funny old vegetable but I really can't get enough of it this year. Thanks for commenting.

      Reply
  11. Kate Veggie Desserts

    May 12, 2015 at 3:03 pm

    This sounds gorgeous. I love baking with tea! And that 'splat cake' sounds good - shame it went splat! Thanks for linking up with #ExtraVeg!

    Reply
    • Mandy Mazliah

      May 12, 2015 at 8:03 pm

      Thanks Kate! Yes, the splat cake tasted amazing. Needs further experimentation I think...

      Reply
  12. Honest mum

    May 09, 2015 at 12:16 pm

    Wow this looks simply incredible. Stunning photography too. Thanks for linking up to #tastytuesdays x

    Reply
    • Mandy Mazliah

      May 09, 2015 at 7:45 pm

      Thanks so much, it was really tasty. Working hard on improving my photography, still got a way to go but I think they're getting better. x

      Reply
  13. Julie's Family Kitchen

    May 05, 2015 at 12:26 pm

    Ooh looks delicious. I'm looking forward to getting rhuhbarb in my veg box next week. I'm planning on making the traditional crumble but would love to make you cake too.

    Reply
    • Mandy Mazliah

      May 05, 2015 at 8:55 pm

      Thanks Julie, I absolutely love rhubarb but the kids are less keen!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

FRUIT AND VEG
RECIPES THAT
KIDS LOVE

Categories

  • Breakfasts
  • Snacks
  • Main meals
  • Puddings
  • Sauces
  • Baked goodies

RECIPE OF THE MONTH

avocado pesto pasta on pink and blue plates

Footer

Disclosure

Privacy Policy

Contact me

Copyright © 2023 Sneaky Veg on the Foodie Pro Theme