Tag: quick bread

Gingerbread

gingerbreadYesterday we put up our Christmas tree, and it seemed appropriate to make gingerbread. Not gingerbread cookies, despite how delicious (and adorable) they are – but actual gingerbread loaves, which I’d never made before.

I found a great gingerbread loaf recipe from Pillsbury and adapted it slightly to include a thicker glaze than the original.  You could leave the loaves plain if you like, but I highly recommend glazing them – although you might not expect it, lemon glaze adds a wonderful dimension of flavor to this rich, spicy bread. It would also be easy to cut this recipe in half to make just one loaf, or to bake the whole recipe in smaller loaf pans to give as gifts (which I’m totally going to do).

Ingredients

For the gingerbread

  • 2 3/4 cups flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 4 teaspoons ginger
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon allspice
  • Generous 1/2 teaspoon cloves
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 12 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
  • 1 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 3/4 cup molasses
  • 1 cup boiling water
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda

For the glaze

  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease two 8 x 4 loaf pans (or spray with baking spray).

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, and set; set aside.

In a mixing bowl, beat butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each until the mixture is smooth.

In a 4-cup glass measuring cup, combine molasses and boiling water, stirring to combine. Add baking soda and stir; mixture will become foamy.

With the mixer running on low, slowly pour the molasses mixture into the butter mixture, beating until combined. Add flour in three batches, beating until just incorporated after each; stir by hand until well-blended.

Divide batter evenly between the pans and bake for 45-60 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean; my loaves only needed about 45 minutes.

Cool in pans for about 15 minutes, then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely.

To make the glaze, place powdered sugar in a medium bowl and add lemon juice 1 tablespoon at a time; you want a thicker glaze texture. Pour over loaves, spreading to the edges. Allow glaze to set before serving.

Zucchini Bread

zucchini breadIt’s zucchini season, and in my opinion the best way to eat zucchini is to shred it and mix it into quick bread batter with pecans and orange zest. We have a bumper crop of zucchini in our garden this year, and so I suspect I’ll be making many more loaves as the summer goes on.

For this recipe, it’s important to choose a smaller zucchini, which will be more tender, and to shred it finely using the smaller side of your grater so you have (although this sounds strange) a very mushy pile of zucchini shreds instead of strips like shredded cheese. This helps the veggie blend into the batter better, so you’re left with a finer texture when the bread is baked. Next time, I might stir together some orange juice and powdered sugar for a drizzle icing and top that with some toasted pecans.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3/4 cup finely shredded, unpeeled zucchini
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 egg
  • zest of 1/2 medium orange
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease the bottom and 1/2 inch up the sides of an 8 x 4 loaf pan.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg; set aside.

In a small bowl, combine sugar, zucchini, vegetable oil, egg, and orange zest; stir to combine, then pour into flour mixture and stir until just combined, until there are no dry streaks remaining. Be careful not to over-mix, as over-mixing can yield a tough texture in the end result. Gently fold in pecans.

Pour into prepared pan and bake for 50-60 minutes, until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Check the bread around 45 minutes and cover if necessary to prevent over-browning.

Cool completely in loaf pan before serving. Store at room temperature.

Lemon Raspberry Loaf

lemon raspberry loafThis lemon raspberry loaf, while tasty, didn’t turn out at all like I wanted it to. It’s not quite as lemony as I hoped for, nor are the raspberries distributed evenly throughout the loaf. Fear not, lemon-raspberry fans: I have solutions for how to fix this.

The original recipe was written for lemon raspberry muffins, rather than a loaf, which might explain why this turned out differently than I’d hoped. I used an 8-inch loaf pan, but should have either used one larger or two smaller pans because the loaf rose quite a bit during baking. In addition to the pan sizes, the next time I make this, I’ll use 1 1/2 teaspoons of lemon extract in the batter, and I’ll either use regular lemon yogurt if I can find it, or I’ll thin out the Greek yogurt much, much more. I’ll also make a raspberry puree to fold into the batter, instead of just using whole raspberries.

Ingredients

For the loaf

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • zest of 1 medium lemon
  • 8 ounces lemon yogurt*
  • 1 cup raspberries

For the streusel topping

  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 2 tablespoons cold butter, cut into small pieces

*If using Greek yogurt, I’d recommend about 6 ounces, thinned out with milk to equal 8 ounces total. Greek yogurt and regular yogurt will yield very different textures, as Greek yogurt is much thicker.

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly spray a loaf pan with baking spray; I used an 8-inch loaf pan but highly recommend either a 9-inch pan or two 8-inch pans for more even baking.

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In a large glass measuring cup, combine eggs, vegetable oil, lemon zest, and yogurt; mix well, then add all at once to the flour mixture. Stir until just combined; be careful not to over-mix. Fold in raspberries.

For streusel, combine flour and sugar. Cut in butter until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs.

Spoon batter into prepared loaf pan and cover with streusel topping.

Bake for 40-50 minutes, until top is golden and a cake tester comes out clean. Pay close attention to your topping; you may need to cover your loaf with foil to prevent it from over-browning.

Cool completely in the pan and store at room temperature.

Cinnamon Swirl Bread

cinnamonswirlbreadPeople often tell me that they don’t bake because it’s not as fluid and creative as cooking, where you can add a dash of this or a pinch of that and still end up with a tasty, successful result. While it’s certainly true that baking relies on the right ratios of dry and wet ingredients, you can definitely be more creative than most people think, especially when it comes to flavors and spices.

Many experienced bakers tweak recipes all the time, which is what I did with this cinnamon swirl bread I found on Taste of Home. I added vanilla extract in the batter and a dash of nutmeg to the cinnamon-sugar mix, and I’m pleased to say that it turned out very well. Next time, I’ll probably add a streusel topping for some additional crunch, and I might bake two smaller loaves in 8 x 4 pans instead of one larger 9 x 5 one. While I didn’t stray too far from the original recipe, this successful quick bread is proof that you can spice things up – pun intended – with baking too.

Ingredients

For the bread

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup sour milk* (or buttermilk)
  • 1 egg
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the cinnamon sugar

  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 3 teaspoons cinnamon
  • Dash of nutmeg

For the glaze

  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
  • About 3 teaspoons water

*To make sour milk, place 1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice in a measuring cup and add enough milk to equal one cup, then stir. Let stand for 5 minutes before using.

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease the bottom only of a 9 x 5 loaf pan.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In a large glass measuring cup, combine sour milk, egg, vegetable oil, and vanilla; add to dry mixture and stir until just combined. Batter will still be lumpy, and that’s fine – don’t over mix.

For cinnamon sugar, combine sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a small bowl, mixing well,

Spoon half of the batter into your loaf pan and cover with half of the sugar mixture, then repeat with remaining batter and sugar. Cut through the batter with a knife and gently swirl.

Bake for 45-50 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. You may want to cover your bread for the last 10 minutes of baking to avoid over-browning on the top.

Cool in the loaf pan for 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and cool completely on a wire rack.

To make drizzle, combine powdered sugar, cinnamon, and 1 teaspoon of water, stirring to combine. Add additional water to reach a thicker drizzling consistency, then drizzle over the loaf.

Wrap loaf in foil and store at room temperature.

 

 

Zucchini Bread

zucchini breadYes: I am baking with vegetables. People who know me well will be astonished by this, given that until recently I’ve lived a fairly vegetable-free life. My aversion to these nutritional powerhouses began early in life, and I’ve kept most vegetables at arm’s length (or hidden in mashed potatoes, so I don’t really have to taste them) until the last month or so.

You’d think that a kid raised by health and phys ed teachers would eat spinach omelets for breakfast, salads for lunch, and grilled veggies for dinner…but you’d be wrong. I’ve spent most of my life shunning veggies, especially the green ones…and most especially, the leafy green ones. But last month, I committed to improving my overall health and began to work with a health coach (read: my friend and former intern Kate, who is awesome) and she’s helping me figure out ways to sneak vegetables into foods that I already like. Enter zucchini bread.

Skeptical, I was, but curious too. As the bread baked, a lovely cinnamon aroma wafted from my kitchen. Once cool, I cut a slice, then stared it down. I could do this, right? Long ago I adopted an attitude of no fear in my baking, so why should tasting be any different? For the record: this bread tastes amazing. It’s cinnamony and moist and studded with chocolate chips, which makes anything better, really. If all vegetables tasted like this, I’d be the healthiest person in the world.

Ingredients

  • 3 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 3 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 1/4 cups sugar
  • 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 cups grated zucchini
  • 1 cup milk chocolate chips

Preparation

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Spray two 8 x 4 loaf pans with baking spray.

In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon; set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine eggs, vegetable oil, sugar, and vanilla, mixing well. Add to dry ingredients and stir until well-combined and no dry streaks remain.

Add zucchini and chocolate chips and stir to combine.

Divide batter evenly between loaf pans.

Bake for 60-65 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool completely before serving.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

pumpkin choc chip breadPumpkins have appeared everywhere, seemingly overnight. October is prime pumpkin season, and everywhere I look I see them, bins and piles of bright orange squashes. They sit on porches next to mums and bales of hay, waiting to be carved at Halloween. Personally, I prefer my pumpkins un-carved so they can be displayed through Thanksgiving.

We’ve discussed pumpkin at length on this blog, but I continue to be amazed at how many different variations of pumpkin recipes that exist, particularly on the internet. I found this one one another blog, but tweaked it slightly to make it my own (I increased the amount of spices recommended in the original). It’s a rather large recipe, yielding three 8 x 4 loaves; I used foil loaf pans for them instead of using my regular loaf pans so I could give them as gifts. The original author of the recipe reports that they freeze very well, so they could be made ahead of time and given as holiday gifts.

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 cups white flour
  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 3 cups sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
  • 1 cup vegetable oil
  • 4 eggs
  • 2/3 cup water
  • 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spray three 8 x 4 loaf pans with baking spray (or regular nonstick spray)

In a very large bowl, mix flours, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl, stir together pumpkin puree, vegetable oil, eggs, and water until very well blended.

Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients, mixing well so that no streaks of dry ingredients remain.

Stir in chocolate chips.

Divide batter evenly between three pans; I used a 1/4 cup measuring cup to do this.

Bake for 60 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean.

Cool on a wire rack in pans; once completely cool, remove from pans and wrap well in plastic wrap and foil (especially if you’re freezing any loaves).

Nut Bread

nut bread

 

 

 

 

 

Food historians speculate that quick breads originated in the United States during the Civil War, when food demands were high and bakers had neither the time nor the patience to wait for dough to rise in the traditional, yeast-based method. Yeast converts sugar into carbon dioxide and ethanol and causes the dough to rise, but quick breads rely on chemical leavening agents like baking soda and baking powder for rising purposes. Baking soda requires an acid, like lemon juice or buttermilk, while baking powder simply needs any liquid to begin its reaction.

Quick breads are versatile, welcoming creativity. This nut bread recipe uses both walnuts and almonds, but you could easily use pecans or hazelnuts. I’ve chosen not to identify nut bread as a “sweet,” since I have another six weeks to go in my mission not to eat treats; I’m thinking of nut bread as more muffin-like, since muffins are essentially quick breads baking in muffin tins.

Ingredients

  • 3 cups flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 2/3 cup milk
  • 1 beaten egg
  • 1/4 cup cooking oil
  • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1/2 cup chopped almonds

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place five miniature loaf pans on a cookie sheet; spray each with cooking spray.

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

In a medium bowl, combine milk, egg, and oil; stir together and add all at once to the well in the center of the flour mixture and stir until just combined.

Fold in nuts.

Divide batter evenly among loaf pans.

Bake for 35 minutes, until tops are just golden and a cake tester comes out clean.

Cool on a wire rack.

Banana Bread

banana bread

 

 

 

 

 

In the 1930s, recipes for banana bread began to appear in American cookbooks. Some culinary historians cite the availability of baking soda and baking powder as the impetus for this treat, while others believe it came simply from the kitchen of an enterprising and thrifty gal who didn’t want her overripe and hard-earned bananas to go to waste. I’d wager that both are the truth, and being a thrifty baker myself, applaud the woman who mashed up her spotty bananas and whipped up the first heavenly-scented loaf of banana bread.

Banana bread is simple, and very easy to make. Being a quick bread, there is no yeast, kneading, or rising time involved; the whole process, from mixing bowl to table, takes about an hour. Banana bread can be served warm but many bakers, myself included, believe that it tastes better after a day or so, when the flavors have had time to settle.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • generous 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 egg
  • 3 medium very ripe bananas, mashed
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease an 8x4x2 loaf pan and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon.  Make a well in the center and set aside.

In another medium bowl, combine egg, mashed bananas, sugar, and vegetable oil.

Pour into flour mixture and stir until combined.

Pour into loaf pan and bake for about 50 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean; check the bread at about 40 minutes to make sure the top isn’t browning too quickly; if it is, make a tent of aluminum foil and cover the bread until it is through baking.

Cool completely in the plan.

 

Pumpkin Bread

 

 

 

 

 

Pumpkins claim a place of honor in fairy tales, folklore, and popular culture unparalleled by other vegetables. Cinderella traveled in style in her pumpkin coach. Jack Skellington, of Nightmare Before Christmas fame, was proclaimed the Pumpkin King. The Headless Horseman hurled a pumpkin in The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Harry Potter and his friends enjoyed pumpkin juice in the Hogwarts dining hall. Linus missed trick-or-treat fun on Halloween night waiting for the Great Pumpkin to appear—and all that came was a beagle.

These whimsical squashes are both cute and tasty, which is likely why we decorate, celebrate holidays, and cook and bake with them. This was my first experience baking pumpkin bread, and I adapted the recipe from another that I found online, substituting cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves for ginger. Next time, I plan to add chocolate chips to the batter for an extra hint of sweetness and perhaps some toasted pecans for crunch. Once they cool, I may even drizzle them with powdered sugar icing.

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 cups flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon cloves
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup packed brown sugar
  • 12 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 15 ounces canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
  • 3 eggs

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Grease and flour two 8 x 4 loaf pans; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves; mix well.

In another large bowl, combine sugar, brown sugar, butter, pumpkin, and eggs; mix well.

Add pumpkin mixture to flour mixture and stir until combined.

Divide batter evenly between the loaf pans; I used a measuring cup to scoop about three cups of batter into each pan.

Bake for 50-60 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. You may have to cover the loaves later in baking, after about 45 minutes, to prevent them from over-browning.

Cool completely in loaf pans.

Drizzle with powdered sugar icing if desired; combine two cups sifted powdered sugar with one teaspoon vanilla extract and one to two tablespoons of water until you reach a drizzly consistency, then pour over loaves.

 

Banana Pecan Chocolate Chip Bread

 

 

 

 

 

Some recipes are easy to embellish, and this recipe is one of those.  Take basic banana bread, add some nuts and chocolate chips, and you have a whole new treat.  I used pecans and milk chocolate chips, but you could certainly use walnuts and semi-sweet if you like.

I think one of the things that draws me to baking-other than the predictability of the outcome-is the possibility of creativity, and how there are endless ways to make a recipe more interesting.  Add flavoring to cake batter, and you change the cake.  Add nuts to brownie batter, and you change the brownie.  There’s something oddly liberating in that, in imagining the possibilities.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • generous 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 egg
  • 3 medium very ripe bananas, mashed
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans
  • 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease an 8x4x2 loaf pan and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon.  Make a well in the center and set aside.

In another medium bowl, combine egg, mashed bananas, sugar, and vegetable oil.

Pour into flour mixture and stir until combined.

Add pecans and chocolate chips and stir to incorporate.

Pour into loaf pan and bake for 50-55 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean.

Cool in pan or serve warm.