the weather lately has me feeling so happy! gone are the scorchingly hot + humid summer days, + in their place are slightly chilly mornings + evenings, with sunny, clear days. for me, weather like this = an instant good mood. yesterday felt like a perfect fall morning – i put on a hoodie + took the dog for a stroll, thinking about all the awesome fall baked goods i wanted to make. by the time i got home, i had to bake something autumny, ASAP. i remembered this amazing-sounding apple-cinnamon bread i had bookmarked, so i gathered up the ingredients + got bakin’!
first, let me warn you – do NOT make this bread while you’re hungry. smelling the incredibly delicious aromas of apples, cinnamon + sugar baking for almost an hour will make you more ravenously hungry than you ever thought possible. i made that mistake + by the time the bread was cool enough to slice + eat, i devoured more than i’d like to admit. =) this truly is a perfect fall bread. it has a moist, light, apple-studded inside that works beautifully with the sweet, sugar + cinnamon-crusted outside. and it’s versatile – it makes for a great breakfast treat, a perfect afternoon pick-me-up with a cup of tea, or a wonderful light dessert when topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. so what are you waiting for? pick up the ingredients + give this a try – you’ll be happy you did!
apple cinnamon bread
makes 1 loaf, serves 8-10, adapted from two peas & their pod
ingredients
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon all spice
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2 large eggs
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup granulated sugar
2 cups (about 2 apples) chopped apples, skin removed – i used granny smith applesfor topping:
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamondirections
preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. spray an 8 by 4 loaf pan with cooking spray + set aside.
in a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, all spice, + cloves. set aside.
in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the eggs + beat on medium speed for about 30 seconds. add in oil, applesauce, + vanilla + mix until smooth. next, add the sugar + mix until well combined.
slowly add in the flour mixture + mix until flour is barely combined. gently fold in the apple chunks. pour batter into prepared loaf pan.
in a small bowl, mix together brown sugar, sugar, + cinnamon. sprinkle this topping over the batter in the loaf pan. bake for 50-55 minutes, or until loaf is golden + a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
cool bread in pan for 10 minutes. loosen sides of the loaf with a butter knife, then remove the loaf from pan. cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.