Name: Date and orange loaf
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 1 h 10 min
Yield: 10–12 slices
Cuisine: Australian
Ingredients: 125 g butter, softened; 1 tsp vanilla essence; 165 g (¾ cup) caster sugar; 2 eggs; 1 tbsp grated orange rind; 120 g (¾ cup) finely chopped dates; 225 g (1½ cups) self-raising flour; 125 ml (½ cup) milk; Frosting: 90 g cream cheese; 2 tsp grated orange rind; 80 g (½ cup) sifted icing sugar; About 2 tsp orange juice

Method

Heat oven to 180°C. Grease a deep 20 cm round pan or loaf pan; line base.
Beat butter, vanilla and sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time, then orange rind. Stir in dates.
Fold in sifted flour alternately with milk. Spread into pan.
Bake about 50 minutes (loaf may need ~60 minutes) until cooked. Cool on a rack.
Beat cream cheese until creamy; beat in rind, icing sugar and enough juice to spread. Frost cold cake.

Tip: Variation of classic AWW butter cake — dates keep the crumb moist.