Tag: quick bread

Applesauce Bread

Baking in the Time of Coronavirus will make you ask yourself interesting questions, like can I bake quick bread with whole wheat flour because I want to ration my white flour because a bunch of people who have probably never even made chocolate chip cookies before are hoarding all the white flour and my local grocery store is sold out? The answer to this question is yes.

My trusty Better Homes & Gardens Baking book has a wonderful recipe for “Make-it-Mine” muffins, which convert easily into quick bread. Make-it-mine recipes give you quantities of ingredients, then you pick the type of flour, sugar, liquid, and spices you want to use. I decided to go with an applesauce bread using apple pie spice and a combination of whole wheat flour and white flour. The flavor is delicious, but the texture is definitely drier than I’d like. This could be because of the wheat flour, but it could also be because I baked it a few minutes too long. Next time, I’ll give it a slightly shorter baking time and see what happens; I’ll also add some pecans into the batter.

Ingredients

  •  1/2 cup white flour
  • 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2 eggs
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 3/4 cup milk
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1-2 teaspoons apple pie spice, to taste
  • Streusel topping:
    • 3 tablespoons flour
    • 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
    • 1/4 teaspoon apple pie spice
    • 2 tablespoons butter, cut into small cubes
  • Drizzle icing:
    • 1 cup powdered sugar
    • About 2-3 teaspoons water

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 x 5 loaf tin.

In a medium bowl, stir together flours, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and apple pie spice. In another medium bowl (or large measuring cup), combine eggs, applesauce, milk, and vegetable oil. Add all at once to flour mixture and stir until just moistened, with no dry streaks of flour remaining.

Pour batter into loaf tin and allow to rest for a few minutes while you make the streusel; in a medium bowl combine flour, brown sugar, and apple pie spice. Rub in the butter until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs, then sprinkle over batter.

Bake for about 35 minutes, then tent with foil and continue baking another 10 minutes or so, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool in tin for about 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool either partially or completely; you can glaze this loaf when it’s still warm (not hot) without the drizzling dripping off.

To make the drizzle, place powdered sugar in a small bowl and add water, one teaspoon at a time, until you reach a thicker drizzling consistency. Using a spoon, drizzle over the loaf. Allow to set before serving.

Store well-wrapped at room temperature for 2-3 days.

 

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Mini Snickerdoodle Loaves

My friend Kanika and I met at Catholic Charities Foundation many years ago in DC. Our team had two back-to-back unsuccessful hires for the events assistant position, so we asked our priest to bless the desk and exorcise the bad luck. A few weeks later Kanika joined us (thanks, Father Mario!), bringing amazing professional skills, a great sense of humor, and a picky appetite to our crew. As a fellow picky eater, I fully supported this. We had some very funny times on that team, many thanks to her.

Kanika sends me recipe ideas sometimes, and when these mini snickerdoodle loaves came across Facebook Messenger, I knew I needed to bake them. The end result is absolutely delicious, with a tender crumb and great cinnamon flavor. I can see this recipe as a base for other flavor combinations; the original came from Health Printable Recipes, and I tweaked it just slightly based on only having 6 ounces miniature cinnamon chips in my pantry. My recipe yielded five loaves, rather than four; two of those loaves are on their way to Kanika right now. Thanks for the recipe, Marbles!

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 cups of flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1  cup butter, softened
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 3 eggs, at room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 3/4 cup sour cream
  • 6 ounces miniature cinnamon chips
  • About 2 tablespoons sugar, for topping
  • About 2 teaspoons cinnamon, for topping

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease five miniature loaf tins (about 5 x 3 size).

In a medium bowl, combine flour and baking powder; set aside.

In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter, sugar, salt, and cinnamon until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating between each addition. Stir in vanilla and sour cream, then stir in flour mixture until no dry streaks remain. Stir in cinnamon chips and incorporate evenly, being careful not to over-mix your batter, which will be fairly thick.

Divide batter between loaf tins, filling about 2/3 full; mine had about 10 ounces of batter in each. Combine 2 tablespoons sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon, then sprinkle on top of each loaf.

Bake for 35 – 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Remove from oven and serve warm, or cool completely and store, tightly wrapped, at room temperature.

Make 5 miniature loaves.

Sour Cream Quick Bread – Spice Version

Sometimes you think of something brilliant the moment you put a bake in the oven and hope you’ll remember for next time. Adapting my lemon poppy seed sour cream quick bread to a version with apple pie spice and chopped pecans presented me with a liquid dilemma. I couldn’t use juice, like in the original recipe, so I went with milk instead.  But the moment I closed the oven door, I thought that applesauce, or better yet grated apples, would have been a great choice instead.

Truth be told, although this bread is very tasty, texture-wise it’s a bit too dry for my liking. Next time, I’ll go with either applesauce or grated apples and see what happens. This is one of the many benefits of baking; you’re always learning something new.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups flour
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3 teaspoons apple pie spice
  • 3/4 cup sour cream
  • 1 large egg, beaten
  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon milk
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon apple pie spice
  • 3 teaspoons water

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 x 5 loaf pan or spray with baking spray.

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and apple pie spice in a large bowl; set aside. Combine sour cream, egg, vegetable oil, and milk in a medium bowl, mixing well.

Add sour cream mixture to flour mixture all at once, stirring to combine until no dry streaks remain. Stir in chopped pecans. Your batter will look a bit dry, but that’s normal.

Spoon batter into prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes, then cover with a foil tent and continue baking for another 10-15 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in the pan for about 20 minutes, then remove from the pan and cool completely on a wire rack.

Make the spice drizzle by combining powdered sugar, apple pie spice, and water in a small bowl. Pour over top of bread; allow to harden before storing.

Store tightly wrapped at room temperature for up to 4 days. Makes about 8 servings.

Sour Cream Quick Bread – Lemon Poppy Seed Version

Every baker needs a few good quick bread recipes, and this is one of mine. Adapted from a King Arthur Flour recipe, this bread provides a great base for a number of flavor combinations, and today’s combination is lemon and poppy seed.

This bread is on its way to my friend Carrie, because now and then we all just need someone to send us baked goods, right? We’re both Eastern European, so poppy seeds are kind of the seeds of our people. Lemon poppy is a great flavor combination, of course; you could enhance this bread with a lemon drizzle icing, or just serve it with some lemon curd, whatever you like. I’m betting it will be delicious with Earl Grey tea, too.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups flour
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3 lemons, zest and juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
  • 3/4 cup sour cream
  • 1 large egg, beaten
  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons poppy seeds

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 x 5 loaf pan or spray with baking spray.

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl; set aside. Combine lemon zest and juice, sour cream, egg, and vegetable oil in a medium bowl, mixing well.

Add sour cream mixture to flour mixture all at once, stirring to combine until no dry streaks remain. Your batter may look a bit dry, but that’s okay – don’t be tempted to add more liquid. Stir in poppy seeds.

Spoon batter into prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes, then cover with a foil tent and continue baking for another 10-15 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in the pan for about 20 minutes, then remove from the pan and cool completely on a wire rack.

Store tightly wrapped at room temperature for up to 4 days. Makes about 8 servings.

Cinnamon Pumpkin Bread

Pumpkin bread in March? Yes! Thanks to canned pumpkin puree, I bake with pumpkin throughout the year. This recipe is an adaptation of pumpkin pecan streusel bread, simply using miniature cinnamon baking chips instead of pecans and streusel.

I got my mini chips at King Arthur Flour, which offers a great variety of ingredients. My chips melted during baking, as you can see from the photo to the left; they left behind sort of ghost marks of where they’d been, but that didn’t stop their flavor from permeating the loaf. This is an excellent recipe, easy to bake and very tasty when done. You could leave the loaf plain, but I find that the allspice glaze really adds more depth of flavor to this treat.

Ingredients

For the bread

  • 1 2/3 cups flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, plus an extra dash if you like
  • 1/2 teaspoon allspice
  • 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 8 tablespoons melted butter
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup pumpkin puree
  • 3/4 cup miniature cinnamon chips

For the allspice drizzle

  • 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon allspice
  • 2-3 teaspoons water

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease an 8 x 4 or 9 x 5 loaf pan or spray with baking spray; I used a 9 x 5 for this recipe.

In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg.

In a separate, medium-sized bowl whisk melted butter, eggs, and pumpkin puree until well-combined.

Add pumpkin mixture to dry mixture and stir to incorporate so that no dry streaks remain, then stir in cinnamon chips.

Pour batter into pan and bake for 45-60 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. You’ll want to check the bread around 35-40 minutes and may want to cover it with a foil tent to prevent over-browning.

Remove from oven and cool in loaf pan for about 30 minutes, then remove from pan and place on a wire rack. Cool another 15 minutes, then make the drizzle: in a small bowl, combine powdered sugar and allspice. Add water 1 teaspoon at a time, stirring until you have a smooth, thick drizzle. Pour drizzle into a medium-sized zip-top bag; snip the corner, then pipe drizzle over top of bread (or just spoon it on if you prefer).

Allow to cool completely before serving; store well-wrapped at room temperature for up to 4 days.

Autumn Spice Bread

Sometimes people tell me that they don’t bake because baking isn’t as creative as cooking. This bread is a perfect example of how baking can be much more creative than people realize.

This recipe began as a basic quick bread and used cinnamon and walnuts in the filling and topping, but when I thought about it, that flavor combination didn’t seem to pack enough of a punch for me. I added both cinnamon and allspice to the batter and swapped pecans for the walnuts, creating a richer, autumn-themed treat. Next time, I’ll put about half of the batter into the pan and sprinkle it with the nut mixture instead of two-thirds; my nut layer rose to the top a bit more than I expected, and although that’s definitely not a bad thing, I’d like more bread between it and the crunchy streusel topping.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
  • 2/3 finely chopped pecans
  • 3 teaspoons cinnamon, divided
  • 1 teaspoon allspice
  • 2 1/4 cups flour, divided
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/3 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease the bottom and 1/2 inch up the sides of a 9 x 5 loaf pan.

In a small bowl, combine 1/2 cup sugar, 2 teaspoons cinnamon, and pecans. Stir together well.

In a large bowl, stir together 1 cup sugar, 2 cups flour, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, allspice, baking powder, and salt.

In a medium bowl, combine egg, milk, and vegetable oil. Add all at once to flour mixture and stir just until no dry streaks remain; batter should be lumpy, so be careful not to over-mix.

Spoon half the batter into the loaf pan and top with half the nut mixture, then spoon in remaining batter. Add flour to remaining nut mixture, then stir in melted butter to make a crumb topping. Sprinkle topping over batter.

Bake for 60 to 65 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. You may need to cover the loaf during the last 20 minutes of baking to prevent over-browning.

Cool loaf in pan for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and cool completely on a wire rack. Store tightly wrapped at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

Mike has quite the garden going this summer, growing tomatoes, beans, squash, and zucchini in the best spot in our backyard. And because you can only grill so much zucchini, I decided to grate some and mix it into this chocolate bread.

The recipe below is adapted from King Arthur Flour’s Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread, which is simple to make and smells delicious when baking. I strongly recommend shredding your zucchini in a food processor rather than grating it by hand to save time, but you could hand-grate if you like. Also, if you add your vegetable oil before you add your honey, you can use the same measuring cup and the honey will slide right out because of the residual oil on the sides of the measuring cup. Very convenient!

Ingredients

  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/3 cup honey
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/3 cup cocoa powder
  • 1 2/3 cups flour
  • 2 cups shredded, unpeeled zucchini, gently pressed to release some of the liquid
  • 1 cup chocolate chips

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly grease an 8 x 4 loaf pan.

In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs, oil, honey, brown sugar, and vanilla until smooth.

Add the salt, baking soda, baking powder, cocoa, and flour, mixing until well-combined.

Stir in zucchini and chocolate chips.

Pour batter into the loaf pan and bake for 60-70 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean or with a light smear of melted chocolate chips.

Cool in pan for 15 minutes, then turn onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Wrap well and store at room temperature for 2-3 days.

Cinnamon Bread

A few nights ago I really wanted to make a quick cinnamon bread, so I adapted a muffin recipe from my trusty Better Homes & Gardens Cookbook into a loaf. It turned out pretty well, though I’ll fully admit that this bread was best on the evening it was baked, and the morning after. It dried out quicker than I expected, but hey, live and learn.

To adapt a muffin recipe into a quick bread, you’ll need a longer baking time at a lower temperature. For example, as muffins, this recipe bakes at 400 for 20 minutes, but as quick bread, it bakes at 375 for about 35-40 minutes. Make sure to keep an eye on your bread to ensure that it doesn’t over-brown; I covered my loaf after about 25 minutes of baking to make sure it didn’t burn.

 Ingredients

  • 1 3/4 cups flour
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten
  • 3/4 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease an 8 x 4 loaf pan.

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Make a well in the center.

In a medium bowl, combine egg, milk, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract; pour into the well in the dry mixture and stir until just moistened. The batter will be lumpy, but that’s fine – you don’t want to over-mix.

Spoon batter into loaf pan and bake for 35-40 minutes, checking around 25 minutes to make sure your loaf isn’t browning too much. The bread will be done when a cake tester inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs.

This bread can be served warm, but if you prefer to cool it, allow it to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes then turn it out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Store at room temperature for 1-2 days.

Pumpkin Pecan Streusel Bread

I need to write one blog post that lists everything you can do with different quantities of leftover pumpkin. Earlier this week I made ginger pumpkin bread, and I had about 1 cup of pumpkin puree left over. This pumpkin pecan streusel bread offered a great way to use it in a Lent-approved treat (I’ve given up cookies and cake).

I love streusel on quick breads, and it’s very easy to make, but you could certainly leave it out if you wish. Next time I make this bread, I might forgo the streusel and chop the pecans finely, then mix them into the batter. Don’t skip the allspice drizzle, though – it adds a nice flavor and texture to the top of the bread. If you don’t have allspice, a cinnamon drizzle would be just fine.

Ingredients

For the streusel topping

  • 4 tablespoons flour
  • 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 3 tablespoons cold butter, cubed
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans

For the bread

  • 1 2/3 cups flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, plus an extra dash if you like
  • 1/2 teaspoon allspice
  • 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 8 tablespoons melted butter
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup pumpkin puree

For the allspice drizzle

  • 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon allspice
  • 2-3 teaspoons water

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease an 8 x 4 loaf pan or spray with baking spray.

Make the streusel: in a small bowl combine flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Using a pastry cutter or two knives, cut in the butter until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Stir in pecans; set aside.

Make the bread: In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg.

In a separate, medium-sized bowl whisk melted butter, eggs, and pumpkin puree until well-combined.

Add pumpkin mixture to dry mixture and stir to incorporate so that no dry streaks remain.

Spoon about half the batter into the loaf pan, spreading evenly with a rubber spatula. Pour about half the streusel mix over the first layer, then carefully top with remaining batter. I use a spoon to sort of “float” the rest of the batter on top of the first streusel layer in blobs, then spread the blobs together/out with a rubber spatula. Top with remaining streusel.

Bake for 45-60 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool in loaf pan for about 30 minutes, then remove from pan and place on a wire rack.

Cool another 15 minutes, then make the drizzle: in a small bowl, combine powdered sugar and allspice. Add water 1 teaspoon at a time, stirring until you have a smooth, thick drizzle. Pour drizzle into a medium-sized zip-top bag; snip the corner, then pipe drizzle over top of bread.

Allow to cool completely before serving; store well-wrapped at room temperature for up to 4 days.

Ginger Pumpkin Bread

ginger-pumpkin-breadPumpkin isn’t just for fall, you know. The availability of canned pumpkin puree makes pumpkin-themed baking a year-round endeavor for me. Take this ginger pumpkin bread, for example.

This recipe is adapted from one I found in the Better Homes & Gardens Baking Book, for ginger pumpkin muffins. I didn’t feel like making muffins today, so I turned the recipe into a quick bread, which required just a few adjustments. According to the folks at Cooks Illustrated, you can convert most muffin recipes into quick breads by lowering the baking temperature by 50 degrees and extending the baking time to about 60-70 minutes. I did just that for my bread, and it turned out very well – the ginger and pumpkin balance each other very well, and the streusel adds a nice crunch to the top.

Ingredients

For the bread

  • 2 cups flour
  • 2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
  • 8 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1/2 cup sour milk*
  • 2 eggs

*To make sour milk, place 1/2 tablespoon vinegar in a glass measuring cup and add enough milk to equal 1/2 cup total. Stir; let stand for 5 minutes before using. 

For the streusel

  • 3 tablespoons flour
  • 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons butter, cut into small cubes
  • 3 tablespoons chopped pecans

For the drizzle

  • 1 1/4 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/8 teaspoon ginger
  • 2 teaspoons water

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease an 8 x 4 loaf pan or spray with baking spray.

In a large bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, and salt.

In a medium bowl, combine pumpkin, melted butter, eggs, and sour milk; mix until well-combined, then add all at once to the dry mixture, stirring until no streaks of dry ingredients remain.

Make the streusel: in a small bowl, combine the flour and brown sugar, then cut in butter until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Stir in pecans.

Pour batter into prepared loaf pan and top with streusel.

Place loaf pan on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 40 minutes, then add a foil tent to the top to prevent the streusel from burning. Bake another 20 minutes and check to see if the bread is done by carefully inserting a cake tester into the center of the loaf. The cake tester should come out with just a few moist crumbs when the bread is done; if necessary, bake another 7-10 minutes.

Remove from oven and allow to cool in the loaf pan for about 30 minutes, then gently run an offset spatula around the edge of the loaf and remove it to a wire rack to cool for another 20 minutes.

Make the drizzle: combine powdered sugar, cinnamon, and ginger in a small bowl and add 1 teaspoon of water at a time until you reach a thick drizzling consistency. Pour drizzle into a small zip-top bag, snip off the end, and pipe drizzle onto bread while it’s still warm.

Allow to cool completely before serving.