Apricot and chocolate chip loaf cake

Do you really always want elaborate cakes? Sometimes I do and sometimes it is the downright simple that really hits the spot. So, on that note, this cake is going to be one of the downright simple variety and no  less good for that. It is perfect with a hot cup of tea.

One thing that my mother taught me about cooking was:

If you don't put good things into your food don't expect a good result.

So this cake is made with all good things but the making is simple.

What you'll need:

250g self raising flour
120g butter
120g sugar
2 eggs
perhaps a splash of milk
100g dried apricots, the no soak variety. Chop them up a bit
75g chocolate chips
a teaspoon of vanilla extract

To make:

heat your oven to approx gas mark 4 or 160 C.

Put the flour and sugar in a bowl. Add the butter and rub it into the dry ingredients until it resembles small peas. No need to be too fine with this.

Add the apricots that should be about the size of peas, and the chocolate. Stir in.

Break the egg into the mixture and stir well. Do't over stir as this mix is a bit like a muffin mix and you can toughen it if you over mix. Only add a splash of milk if you find that it's dry.

Put the mix into a greased a lined 2lb loaf tin and bake at approx gas mark 4 or 160 C. It will be cooked when as knife or cake probe is insirted into the middle and it comes out dry. Approx 30 - 40 mins. It depends on your oven.