Pistachio, Blueberry and Lime Loaf

The perfect blend of zesty citrus, blueberry freshness and chewy pistachios

There’s a particular green you only get from pistachios ground at home. Not the bright dyed stuff, but a soft, dusty green that makes the crumb look like it’s been sitting in a spring garden.

The blueberries burst with flavour and colour as you slice into the loaf, and the glaze on the top has just the right amount of tartness from the limes.

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FOR THE LOAF

• 150g salted butter, room temperature
• 175g caster sugar
• zest of two limes
• 3 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1/4 teaspoon almond essence
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence
• 90g self-raising flour
• 75g ground pistachios
• 40g ground almonds
• 200g fresh blueberries

FOR THE ICING

• 75g icing sugar
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 15g pistachios, roughly chopped

METHOD

1. Prepare your equipment: Preheat the oven to 170˚ Celsius. Grease and line a 900g loaf tin.
2. Rub the lime zest into the caster sugar with your fingertips until the sugar is fragrant and slightly damp.
3. Cream the butter and lime sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
4. Add the eggs one at a time, making sure to incorporate each well before adding the next.
5. Add in the flavourings: Mix in the lime juice, vanilla essence and almond essence.
6. Fold in the dry ingredients: Gently fold in the ground pistachios, ground almonds and flour until just combined.
7. Add the blueberries: Fold in 150g of the blueberries, then spoon the batter into the tin and smooth the top.
8. Bake for 15 minutes, then scatter the remaining 50g of blueberries over the top and bake for a further 30 minutes, or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. If the top is browning too quickly after about 25 minutes but the loaf isn’t baked through yet, loosely cover it with foil to stop further browning.
9. Cool: Let the loaf cool completely before icing.
10. Make the icing: Whisk the icing sugar and lime juice together until smooth and thick enough to drizzle. Add a few more drops of juice if it’s too stiff, or a little more icing sugar if it’s too runny.
11. Decorate: Drizzle the icing over the top of the loaf, sprinkle with the chopped pistachios and let the icing set before slicing.

Recipe by adventureswithsugar.com