QUICK BREADS

Quick breads are wonderful because they provide a quick side dish to eat with soup or chili or can be a slice of warmth and sweetness on a cold morning. They don’t require the prep and extra attention that yeasted breads do; you can basically dump the ingredients into a loaf pan and you’re done. Simple yet impressive, just the way I like it.

• BEST BANANA BREAD

• YOU ARE MY SUNSHINE LOAF

• CORNIN’ AROUND BREAD

• GOING, GOING, GONE! GINGERBREAD

• CHOCOLATE STOUT BREAD

• SWEET POTATO BREAD

• BAKLAVA BREAD

• PUMPKIN CINN-A-ZAG BREAD

• SAUCY APPLE BREAD

• IRISH SODA BREAD

• BASIC BISCUITS

• BETTAH CHETTAH BISCUITS

BEST BANANA BREAD

I have been told by multiple people that this is the best banana bread they have ever had, vegan or otherwise. After hearing this several times, I had to have my co-worker, who is a banana bread connoisseur, weigh in with his opinion and he agreed. Success! Try adding walnuts or pecans to this bread for a textural treat. Don’t like “stuff” in your bread? Eat it as is.

1 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup oil
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1 cup mashed banana
(about 2 bananas)
1/3 cup milk

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with margarine or oil.

 

In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a large bowl, combine oil and brown sugar. Add bananas and milk and stir to combine. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until just combined.

 

Spread batter in the loaf pan and bake for 43 to 48 minutes, until bread is golden and a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 30 minutes. Run a knife around the edge to loosen, and turn bread out of the pan to let cool on a cooling rack. Store leftover bread covered at room temperature.

 

Yield: 1 LOAF, 10 SLICES
Prep time: 25 MINUTES
Difficulty:

YOU ARE MY SUNSHINE LOAF

This bread is so bright and sunny you can almost feel the sunshine on your face. If California could be made in the form of a bread, this would be it. With its lovely orange color and citrus notes, along with sweet bursts of raisins, this is a welcome breakfast bread on the grayest days of winter.

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup white-wheat flour
(or all-purpose flour)
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup shredded carrots
1 medium apple,
peeled and shredded
1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup oil
zest of 1 medium orange
juice of one medium orange
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup walnuts

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 × 5-inch loaf pan with margarine or oil.

 

In a medium bowl, combine all-purpose flour, white-wheat flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, combine shredded carrots, shredded apple and milk and mix until well-combined. Add oil, orange zest and orange juice. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients in two batches until just combined. Gently mix in raisins and walnuts.

 

Spread batter in the loaf pan and bake for 50 to 55 minutes, until bread is golden and a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in the pan on a cooling rack until the pan is cool enough to touch, about 40 minutes. Run a knife around the outside of the loaf to separate it from the pan, and turn bread out of the pan to finish cooling on a rack. Store leftover bread covered at room temperature

 

Yield: 1 LOAF, 10 SLICES
Prep time: 30 MINUTES
Difficulty:

CORNIN’ AROUND BREAD

Mmm, cornbread. This slightly sweet bread is perfect crumbled over chili or soup. It’s easy enough to whip up while your meal is simmering. You can make this in muffin cups if you’d like, or you can add a little chili pepper for a southwest flair. Try to buy organic cornmeal if you can; you don’t want any mutant GMO corn bread in your kitchen!

1 cup flour
1 cup cornmeal
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/3 cup oil
1 cup milk
1/4 cup frozen sweet corn

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease an 8 x 8-inch baking pan with margarine or oil.

 

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, mix applesauce with oil, then whisk in milk. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix until just combined, then stir in corn.

 

Spread batter into the pan and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until bread is lightly browned and a toothpick comes out clean. Store leftover bread covered at room temperature.

 

Yield: 9 SQUARES
Prep time: 20 MINUTES
Difficulty:

GOING, GOING, GONE! GINGERBREAD

When it’s rainy and gray in Portland, it’s easy to forget that it’s wintertime, and feeling the joy of the holiday season can be a stretch. The easiest, and tastiest, way to remedy this is by whipping up a batch of gingerbread. This bread is moist and sweet and spiked with just the right amount of spice. Even Jim, who insists that he doesn’t like gingerbread, devours this fragrant loaf.

2 cups flour
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1/2 cup oil
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar,
divided
1/4 cup molasses
1 teaspoon vinegar
1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger
(optional)

 

Try adding 1/4 cup chopped candied ginger to this bread for some added kick and texture.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. If you want a gingerbread loaf, lightly grease a 9 × 5-inch loaf pan. If you prefer to have gingerbread squares, lightly grease an 8 x 8-inch baking dish.

 

In a large bowl, combine flour, ground ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg and salt. In a medium bowl, combine oil and I cup sugar. Whisk in molasses until mixture is smooth. Add milk and vinegar and whisk until well-combined, then add fresh ginger, if using. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix until just moistened, making sure that there are no pockets of the dry ingredients remaining.

 

Spread batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle with remaining I tablespoon sugar. For a gingerbread loaf, bake for 55 to 60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. For gingerbread squares, bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in the pan on a cooling rack completely before serving. Store leftover bread covered at room temperature.

 

Yield: 10 SLICES OR 16 SQUARES
Prep time: 30 MINUTES
Difficulty:

CHOCOLATE STOUT BREAD

This bread is a little more grown-up than some of the other recipes. It is a bit more savory, with a hint of chocolate and that fermented edge from the stout. This bread is a fantastic snack with your favorite bottle of beer on a hot summer afternoon.

2 3/4 cups flour
1/3 cup baking cocoa, sifted
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups chocolate stout
1/4 cup oil
1/3 cup milk

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 × 5-inch loaf pan with margarine or oil.

 

In a large bowl, combine flour, cocoa, sugar, baking powder and salt. Make a well in the middle of dry ingredients and add stout, oil and milk. Mix until just combined.

 

Spread batter into the loaf pan and bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let loaf cool in the pan for 30 minutes before turning out on a cooling rack to finish cooling. Store leftover bread covered at room temperature.

 

Yield: 1 LOAF, 10 SLICES
Prep time: 25 MINUTES
Difficulty:

SWEET POTATO BREAD

This fragrant, moist bread is sweet enough to enjoy as a treat but savory enough to eat with a bowl of soup. Feel free to use canned or freshly pureéd sweet potatoes, or try yams.

1 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup applesauce
1/4 cup oil
1/3 cup milk
1 cup sweet potato purée
1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 × 5-inch loaf pan with margarine or oil.

 

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. In a separate bowl, combine brown sugar, orange juice, applesauce, oil, milk and sweet potato pureé until well-mixed (you may need to use an electric hand mixer on a low speed). Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix well until the batter is just moistened. Stir in pecans, if using.

 

Spread batter into prepared pan. Bake for about I hour until loaf is lightly browned and a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in the pan on a cooling rack for 45 minutes. Run a knife around the edge to loosen and turn loaf out of the pan to finish cooling on the rack. Store leftover bread covered at room temperature.

 

Yield: 1 LOAF, 10 SLICES
Prep time: 25 MINUTES
Difficulty:

BAKLAVA BREAD

I love baklava, and while I like a baking challenge, making baklava from scratch is more of a challenge than I’m looking for. This bread will satisfy any craving you may have for Mediterranean sweets and will also make you question why we don’t use pistachios more in American baking traditions.

BREAD:

3 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cups milk
1 teaspoon mild vinegar
1/2 cup melted margarine
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons
pistachios, chopped, divided

SYRUP:

2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup agave nectar
1/4 cup water

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 × 5-inch loaf pan with margarine or oil.

 

For Bread: In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. In a large bowl, combine milk and vinegar and let sit for 2 minutes. Add melted margarine and whisk to combine. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients in batches until just mixed, then add 3/4 cup pistachios.

 

Spread batter in the loaf pan and bake for 48 to 52 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan on a cooling rack.

 

For Syrup: Combine sugar, agave nectar and water in a saucepan over medium heat. Stirring continuously, cook until sugar dissolves and syrup bubbles, about 7 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.

 

Using a pointed object, such as a straw or a chopstick, poke 2-inch holes in top of loaf. Pour half of syrup over loaf and let sit until all syrup is absorbed, then pour on remaining syrup. After all syrup is absorbed, sprinkle bread with remaining 2 tablespoons of pistachios. Let loaf cool completely before serving. Store leftover bread covered at room temperature.

 

Yield: 1 LOAF, 10 SLICES
Prep time: 40 MINUTES
Difficulty:

PUMPKIN CINN-A-ZAG BREAD

This bread came from a combination of ideas submitted by readers on my blog. One person suggested pumpkin bread and another suggested cinnamon swirl. Several others wanted a bread without any nuts in it. This was the result!

1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 tablespoons plus
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup pumpkin purée
(not pumpkin pie mix)
1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup apple butter
(or apple sauce)
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup brown sugar

 

As with anything pumpkin, this bread is even better the next day, when the spices have had some time to really meld together.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with margarine or oil.

 

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, I teaspoon cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together pumpkin, oil, apple butter and milk. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until just mixed. In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar and 2 tablespoons cinnamon; set aside.

 

Pour half of batter into the loaf pan, then sprinkle with brown sugar mixture. Pour remaining batter on top. Draw a knife through the loaf in several directions to mix the zigzag layer around.

 

Bake for 48 to 52 minutes until center of bread is set and a toothpick comes out clean. Let loaf cool in the pan on a cooling rack for 45 minutes. Run a knife around the edge to loosen and turn bread out of the pan to finish cooling on the rack. Store leftover bread covered at room temperature.

 

Yield: 1 LOAF, 10 SLICES
Prep time: 25 MINUTES
Difficulty:

SAUCY APPLE BREAD

This moist bread is chock full of appley goodness. With its crunchy pecan topping, it is the Perfect breakfast bread, lightly toasted with some melted margarine on top... I can taste it now.

BATTER:

2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup oil
1 cup applesauce
1/4 cup milk
1 medium apple,
peeled and chopped

TOPPING:

1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
2 tablespoons cold margarine
1/3 cup chopped pecans

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with margarine or oil.

 

For Batter: In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. In a large bowl, combine sugar and oil. Add applesauce and milk and mix well. Incorporate dry ingredients into wet ingredients until just mixed. Stir in chopped apple.

 

For Topping: In a small bowl, combine sugar and flour. Cut in margarine with the back of a fork until mixture is crumbly. Add pecans.

 

Spread batter into the loaf pan and sprinkle topping on top of bread. Bake for 52 to 55 minutes, until topping is browned and a toothpick comes out clean. Let bread cool completely on a cooling rack before serving. Store leftover bread covered at room temperature.

 

Yield: 1 LOAF, 10 SLICES
Prep time: 30 MINUTES
Difficulty:

IRISH SODA BREAD

Irish Soda Bread is a lifesaver when you want to make a hearty meal but don’t have the time to wait around for a loaf of bread to rise. It whips up in a cinch and relies on baking soda to quickly rise to the occasion (hence the “soda bread” part). You can make oat flour by processing dried oats (traditional, not steel-cut) in a food processor for a few spins until they are coarse and grainy.

1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup oat flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon mild vinegar

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

 

In a medium bowl, mix flour, oat flour, baking soda and salt. In a small bowl, mix milk and vinegar together and let sit for 2 minutes. Create a well in the dry ingredients and pour wet ingredients in the middle. Mix until just incorporated, and shape dough into a ball. Dough may be a little floury on the outside and that is fine.

 

Place dough on the baking sheet and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until bread is browned and sounds hollow when tapped. Let cool 15 minutes before serving. Store leftover bread covered at room temperature.

 

Yield: 1 LOAF, ABOUT 8 SLICES
Prep time: 20 MINUTES
Difficulty:

BASIC BISCUITS

Biscuits are a great standby when you don’t have time to make bread or if you just want to have something warm and starchy to smother with gravy. Feel free to roll them out on a floured surface and cut them with a glass or biscuit cutter. Call me weird (or lazy), but I like mine blobby and irregular.

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
(or all-purpose flour)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon mild vinegar
1/4 cup oil

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

 

In a large bowl, combine all-purpose flour, whole-wheat pastry flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a medium bowl, mix milk and vinegar. Let sit for 2 minutes. Add oil and whisk quickly. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix until just combined, being sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl. Dough may be slightly lumpy

 

Drop in 6 large scoops on the baking sheet, at least 3 inches apart. Bake for 10 minutes or until biscuits are puffy and browned. Store leftover biscuits covered at room temperature.

 

Yield: 6 BISCUITS
Prep time: 20 MINUTES
Difficulty:

BETTAH CHETTAH BISCUITS

These cheesy biscuits are wonderful with a slab of margarine in the middle or crumbled over a bowl of soup.

2 cups flour
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon powdered garlic
2 tablespoons margarine, melted
2 tablespoon light miso
3/4 cup milk

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

 

In a large bowl, combine flour, nutritional yeast, baking powder, salt and powdered garlic. In a small bowl, whisk together melted margarine and miso. Add milk and whisk to break up miso. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix until just incorporated.

 

You can either drop the batter onto a baking sheet in 1/2 cup-sized blobs or roll out dough on a well-floured surface and cut into 6 rounds using a biscuit cutter. Bake for 18 to 22 minutes, until biscuits are lightly browned. Store leftover biscuits covered at room temperature.

 

Yield: 6 BISCUITS
Prep time: 25 MINUTES
Difficulty: