By Keighley’s Mike Armstrong, an award-winning master baker with a big passion for baking...

I LOVE to revive old and forgotten recipes, so here we go again with another lost bake our grandparents would have bought after the Second World War – called Bismarck.

Thankfully I do recall making them with some of the older bakers who served in the Second World War.

So what is a Bismarck? Let me tell you. A Bismarck is a spicy, fruited tea loaf filled with marzipan which was folded over into the shape of a Cornish pasty and then iced with a scattering of toasted flaked almonds and a cherry placed on top.

From what I do know, the Bismarck loaf was a very popular bread to buy after the Second World War when the sinking of the Bismarck battleship – the pride of the German fleet – was still fresh in everyone's minds.

The Bismarck battleship broke into the Atlantic Ocean and raided allied shipping between North America and Great Britain. British naval units were deployed to block its route. HMS Hood and HMS Prince of Wales engaged the Bismarck and in an ensuing battle Hood was sadly destroyed. The Bismarck herself was damaged, forced to end her raiding missions and limp back to occupied France to effect repairs. This spurred a relentless pursuit by the Royal Navy to hunt down the Bismarck and two days later, Bismarck was attacked by torpedo bombers from the aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal which crippled the Bismarck, and her final engagement was with two British battleships which scuttled her and she sank with heavy loss of life.

For this country and prime minister Churchill, the sinking of Bismarck was an important triumph and a great boost for our nation's morale.

After the war, the British Federation of Bakers was quick to act, making Bismarck loaves with the word Bismarck pronounced this side of the Pennines ''Bismark'' – meaning bold, brave, courageous and good news.

Other areas of the UK made long torpedo-shaped Bismarck sweet buns filled with raspberry jelly or custard, but I do feel the Bismarck loaf originated in Yorkshire and this lost bake needs a return to the surface again.

Reading about the history of this famous battle was fascinating, especially connecting bread with war, but saying that, the Roman army did march on bread!

RECIPE

YORKSHIRE BISMARCK TEA LOAF

Ingredients:

250g/9oz strong bread flour

Pinch of salt

40g/1.5oz caster sugar

1 heaped teaspoon mixed spices

30g/1oz butter

150g/5oz mixed dried fruits

1 small egg

1 medium orange, zest and juices

120ml/4fl oz tepid milk

7g/1 sachet of instant dried yeast

150g/5oz marzipan

Topping:

150g/5oz icing sugar

2-3 tablespoons cold water

50g/2oz toasted flaked almonds (toast them while the loaf is baking)

1 large cherry to decorate

Method:

1. In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, salt, yeast, sugar and mixed spices and rub in the butter to rough breadcrumbs, then add the dried fruits and orange zest.

2. Stir in the milk along with the egg and orange juice to form a soft pliable dough, knead the dough for 8 minutes until smooth and springy, return back to the mixing bowl, cover with a tea towel and allow to double in size.

3. Roll out the dough to the size of a large dinner plate, roll the marzipan into a large ball and roll out to a small circle, fold in half and place over half of the dough,

leaving a slight border to egg wash.

4. Fold over the dough to form a Cornish pasty shape, sealing the edges, and place onto a greased baking tray, egg wash and allow to rise for 15 minutes before baking.

5. Bake in a preheated oven at 200C/180C fan/Gas Mark 7 for around 25 minutes or until a golden brown colour.

6. Once cool, make a thick spreadable icing to spread over, and scatter over the flaked almonds with a cherry on top.