Monday, February 27, 2012

Daring Bakers - Grape-Almond quick bread


Grapes are not used to their full potential. You see them in tarts,fruit salad and on cheese plates but rarely in other baking. I wasn't sure if there was a reason for this or not but I wanted to find out!

I decided to create a grape quick bread with a lemon glaze (lemons and grapes really compliment each other). Did it work? Definitely! The grapes shrink a little bit which increases their sweetness and the lemon glaze adds a bit of zing.

The Daring Bakers’ February 2012 host was – Lis! Lisa stepped in last minute and challenged us to create a quick bread we could call our own. She supplied us with a base recipe and shared some recipes she loves from various websites and encouraged us to build upon them and create new flavor profiles.

See other recipes here.


Adapted from thekitchn

Ingredients
1 tsp ground Cinnamon
1/4 tsp Nutmeg
2 tbsp ground Flax (optional)
2 tbsp hemp hearts (optional)
1/2 c whole wheat flour
1-1/2 c all purpose flour
1/2 c super fine sugar
1 c grapes, cut in half
1 egg
1 c buttermilk
1/4 c butter, melted
1 tsp almond extract
1-1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
1-2 tbsp lemon juice depending on how thick you want it
What to do
  • In a large bowl, whisk together spices, flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
  • In a medium bowl, combine melted butter, buttermilk and almond extract.
  • Pour wet ingredients over dry.
  • Stir to combine. Use a light hand and stop as soon as ingredients are mixed. If you over stir, your loaf will be tough.
  • Gently fold in grapes.
  • Scoop batter into 9 x 5 pan.
  • Bake for 45-55 minutes or until toothpick inserted into middle of loaf comes out crumbless.
  • Remove from oven and cool for 5 minutes.
  • Meanwhile prepare glaze by combining powdered sugar and lemon juice. Whisk until smooth.
  • Poke loaf multiple times with a wooden skewer or toothpick.
  • Pour glaze over warm loaf.
  • Cool and dig in!

6 comments:

  1. Your bread looks great! The grape bunches look so tasty sitting next to your loaf. I never would have thought to put grapes in a quick bread. Nice job on the challenge!

    ReplyDelete
  2. What a great and delicious idea! Your Grape-Almond Quick Bread looks Fantastic. Wonderful pictures :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I've been wondering how I can incorporate grapes into baking and now I know! Your loaf sounds and looks really good! Well done! :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Ohh, what an interesting recipe! I haven't ever baked with grapes, so I'd be really eager to try this. Lovely job!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I agree.. I have never baked with grapes or never even tried anything baked with them! Looks great!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I think it's true to say I don't believe I've ever seen grapes used in this way, but why not? Love photos!!

    :)
    ButterYum

    ReplyDelete