Lemon Loaf

Have you thought of putting a crumb topping on lemon bread? I hadn’t until I found this recipe over at Stephie Cooks, and I have to say it is quite a brilliant idea.

I’m crazy about lemons, particularly in quick breads. This recipe yields a drier treat than I was expecting – it’s almost like a pound cake – and has great texture from both the crumb topping and lemon drizzle. I added more lemon zest and drizzle than the original recipe called for, because I believe you can never have too much lemon flavor in a bread like this.

Many quick breads call for vegetable oil and milk, but this recipe employs evaporated milk instead of the regular kind, and that was something new for me. The remaining 7 ounces of evaporated milk are currently waiting in my fridge and are destined to be made into fudge later this week, since I bought a 12-ounce can instead of the 5-ounce variety in the original recipe. And that’s okay – stay tuned for (hopefully) peanut butter fudge later this week.

Ingredients

Crumb Topping

• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• pinch of salt
• 2 tablespoons melted butter

Lemon Bread

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 5-oz evaporated milk
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• zest of 1 large lemon
• 2 eggs

Lemon Drizzle

• 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
• 4 teaspoons lemon juice

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease and flour an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 loaf pan.

Prepare the crumb topping: in a small bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt, and melted butter. Stir with a fork until crumbs form; set aside.

Prepare the bread batter: In a medium bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a small bowl combine evaporated milk, vegetable oil, lemon zest, and eggs. Stir well to combine, then add all at once to the flour mixture. Stir to combine.

Pour batter into prepared loaf pan and top with crumbs. Bake for 50-75 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean (mine baked for about 55 minutes). Cool completely in pan; carefully remove and place on a wire rack above parchment or waxed paper for drizzling.

Prepare the drizzle: in a large measuring cup, combine powdered sugar and lemon juice. Stir well, until consistency is drizzly and easily pourable but not too thin (add a small amount of additional powdered sugar if necessary). Pour over top of loaf; allow to set before serving.