Apple Bread
A moist, healthy apple bread with fresh apples, walnuts, applesauce, and warm spices. Easy and the perfect fall treat for breakfast!
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 45 minutes
Total: 1 hour
Servings: 10 slices (one 4x8 inch loaf)
Ingredients
- ½ cup walnut halves raw
- 2 cups tart apples cored, peeled, and ¼-inch diced, such as Cortland or Granny Smith (about 2 medium)
- 1 ½ cups whole wheat white flour or whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
- 2 tablespoons canola oil or light olive oil or melted, cooled coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons milk any kind you like (I used skim)
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For Topping (Optional)
- 1 tablespoon sparkling sugar or turbinado (coarse, raw) sugar
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and lightly coat an 8x4-inch loaf pan with baking spray. Set aside.
- Spread the walnuts in a single layer on an ungreased baking sheet. Place in the oven and bake until toasted and fragrant, about 8 to 12 minutes, stirring once throughout. DO NOT WALK AWAY during the last few minutes and set a timer. Nuts love to burn the very moment you stop watching. Transfer to a cutting board. Once cool enough to handle, roughly chop and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the white whole wheat flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the applesauce, canola oil, milk, sugar, egg, and vanilla until smooth.
- Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, then add the wet ingredient all at once. Mix in by hand just until combined. The batter will look very thick and stiff.
- Fold in the apples and walnuts. It will be hard to do because the batter is so thick. Use a rubber spatula and smush and push it around gently but firmly as needed. Distribute the apples and walnuts as evenly as you can.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. With the back of a rubber spatula, press and smooth the top so it is mostly flat. For the cinnamon sugar topping, stir the cinnamon and coarse sugar together in a small bowl. Sprinkle evenly over the top of the batter.
- Bake for 25 minutes, loosely tent with foil, then bake for 20 additional minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean without any wet batter clinging to it.* Place on a wire rack and let cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy warm or at room temperature.
Notes
- *Quick bread can be hard to judge; the best way is to take its temperature with an instant-read thermometer. When the bread hits 195 to 200 degrees F, it's done.
- TO STORE: Leftover apple bread can be kept in an airtight container at room temperature for four days.
- TO FREEZE: Apple bread can be frozen for up to two months. Let thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.
- TO REHEAT: Place your apple bread on a baking sheet or wrap in aluminum foil, and warm in the oven at 350 degrees F for about 10 minutes or until warmed through. (Or if you are in a big hurry, the microwave works well too.)
Nutrition
Serving: 1(of 10) slicesCalories: 194kcalCarbohydrates: 30gProtein: 4gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 17mgPotassium: 94mgFiber: 3gSugar: 15gVitamin A: 49IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 29mgIron: 1mg
