It is still impossible to find a recipe for a Veda loaf, over a hundred years after it was invented. However, devotees have had good results by following the instructions for a malted fruit loaf but without the fruit or alcohol.

Although a sweet bread, Veda is often eaten toasted with butter and cheese, although many prefer to add jam or marmalade. It is usually eaten as a snack.

Veda Bakeries hold all the original recipes for Veda bread. Veda Bakeries is a company registered by law. The company is based East Lothian, and is owned by Jim Kerr of forthestuary cereals.

The formula for Veda was allegedly stumbled upon by luck when a Dundee farmer’s house-keeper accidentally used damp wheat which had sprouted to produce malted wheat. When she used the malted wheat for the farmer’s bread it produced a sweet-malted flavoured bread – and Veda bread was born.

Veda Bread

Veda bread is a malted bread sold in Northern Ireland. It is a small, caramel-coloured loaf with a very soft consistency when fresh. Since it is only available in Northern Ireland, many people rely on their relatives to send them veda to other parts of the UK.

In the North West of England, however, veda bread is something quite different: a sweet, sticky loaf made with black treacle. It is eaten sliced, dry, or with butter or margarine. The molasses in the treacle help to preserve the mixture, and veda bread connoisseurs will leave a freshly baked loaf for several weeks in a closed cake tin to allow the flavours to mature before they eat it.

The following is of course not the real recipe for Veda bread but about as close as I could find:

Ingredients
1 tbsp brown sugar
3 tbsp malt extract
2 tbsp black treacle
25g/1oz butter, plus extra for greasing
350g/12oz strong white bread flour, plus extra for flouring
100g/3½oz strong wholemeal flour
pinch salt
14g/½oz fast action yeast
225g/8oz sultanas
250ml/9fl oz warm water
1 tbsp warm honey, to glaze
Preparation method
Place the sugar, malt extract, treacle and butter in a pan and heat gently until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved. Leave to cool.
Mix the flours, salt, yeast and sultanas in a mixing bowl.
Pour in the cooled malt syrup mixture and the warm water. Mix thoroughly; the mixture will be soft and sticky.
Turn the mixture onto a floured surface and knead gently for a few minutes to bring the mixture together.
Grease two 450g/1lb loaf tins and divide the mixture among them. Smooth the mixture with the back of a spoon so that the top is smooth and level. Cover each tin with a plastic bag so that it is loose and not touching the top of the tin. Leave for a couple of hours, or until the dough has risen to the top of the tins.

Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5. Remove the plastic bags and bake for 30-40 minutes. If the top of the loaf starts to brown too quickly, cover with a sheet of foil and continue baking.
Remove from the oven and brush the top with warm honey to glaze. Cool on a wire rack.
Slice and eat with butter.

I intend to make this one day, hope you do too!!

Sources: WIKI and http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes