Breakfast? Dessert? Bread So Good You Can Eat It Twice!

The other day, a loyal reader my little blog here asked me if "all I can do is cook?"  I inquired a little further as to the meaning of the question, just to decipher how insulted I should be by the question.  "Well, you only ever make 'dinner' type things... You never bake or make breakfast or dessert."  Clearly this is a friend who never sampled one of my cupcakes during my baking phase a year or two ago.

Regardless, I decided I needed to prove this friend wrong. But how?  Do I make breakfast?  I've got a great recipe for Maple Pecan Scones or Cheesecake Pancakes.  No... I'm not much of a breakfast person, myself, but I know other people are.  I have to really be in the mood for it.  Do I bake cupcakes or a cake of some sort for dessert?  Maybe.  Then it dawned on me.  Why not make a bread that could be eaten on its own with a little butter or cream cheese for breakfast, or dressed up with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a dab of whipped cream for dessert?  It pleases everyone with a sweet tooth, no matter what time of day!  I settled on a quick and easy Apple Cranberry Bread with Lemon Glaze.

Apple Cranberry Bread with Lemon Glaze

• 1 cup of shredded Apple, squeezed dry (about 2 large apples)
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• 3/4 cup rolled oats
• 1 1/4 cups flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup cooled melted butter
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp lemon zest (optional)
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1 tbsp milk
• 1 tbsp lemon juice or orange juice
• 1 tsp lemon or orange zest

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly butter a 9x5 inch loaf pan.  (Personally, I love my silicone bakeware, but the shape does always end up a little more flat and wide than tall with them, so if you prefer a traditional loaf shape, stick with glass.)  

Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg in a large bowl until well combined.  Add in the rolled oats and dried cranberries and mix well.

In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, melted cooled butter, sour cream, vanilla extract and option lemon zest.  Stir in the grated apple which has been squeezed dry into the egg mixture.  It's ok if this starts to brown a little, but don't grate the apple too far in advance or you will have brown apples.  Fold the egg mixture into the dry mixture until just combined.

Spread the batter in the prepared pan.  Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 55 minutes.  Remove from the oven and cool in the pan on a wire cooling rack for 30 minutes.  Then, turn the bread out onto the rack to cool completely.

Once the bread has cooled completely, prepare you glaze by whisking together in a medium bowl the confectioners' sugar, milk, lemon or orange juice and lemon or orange zest.  Place the wire rack with the bread on it on a baking sheet or wax paper and pour the glaze over the top, making sure to cover the top of the bread, letting the excess drip down the sides.  Let the glaze set for 20-25 minutes, or until firm.

For serving, I placed the bread on a small white platter, cut the first 1/4 of the bread into thin (1/2 inch) slices and leaned them up against the remainder of the bread, then sprinkled the plate with some extra dried cranberries.  This is an ideal serving method for breakfast, allowing people to take a slice and place their own spread of butter, cream cheese marmalade or jam on top.

For a dessert plating, which is what I served this bread as at home, I placed a scoop of vanilla ice cream in a shallow soup bowl, leaned a thicker (3/4 - 1 inch) slice against the scoop of ice cream and then put a dollop of whipped cream in the center on top of the bread and ice cream.  I then sprinkled a few dried cranberries on top and around the edge of the bowl for garnish.

All-in-all, this is a simple breakfast or dessert to make a day ahead of time and then you have it on hand for the next few days, as it keeps well.  After Shaun and I sampled for dessert, I brought the remainder into work the following morning to share with coworkers for breakfast.  Needless to say, my friend had a piece and hasn't asked me if I can do anything other than cook since.  Happy baking!