Mixing the Batter

The secret to moist, soft quick bread is in the mixing: use the human touch—no machines! Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl—the flour, leavening, salt, and spices; sift them together or mix them completely with a wire whisk or spoon. In another bowl, beat together the fat (oil), sugar, and eggs in the order the recipe advises. Stir any other ingredients (fruits, flavorings, or extracts) into the wet ingredients. Only when each bowl of ingredients is mixed completely should they be combined. When you are ready, pour the dry ingredients into the wet ones, and fold them together gently.This is the one of the secrets of good bread: mix by hand with a spoon instead of using a mixer. Add nuts and fruits; stir just until they are mixed-in. Over-mixing will cause "tunnels"--holes where the air bubbles escaped--and will make the bread tough.

Common problems:

Bread sticks to pan. Always grease and flour the pans before you pour in the batter. The best thing to use for greasing the pan is shortening, because its melting point is higher than any other kind of fat, which helps maintain a "shield" between pan and batter while the bread is baking. A baking spray, which has flour in it, is also a fast, easy fix. (Keep in mind that baking spray and cooking spray are two different things.) Let the bread cool for at least twenty minutes in order to set (Bundt loaves should cool twice as long) before inverting the pan.

There are big holes and "tunnels" in the bread, and/or the bread is tough. These problems are usually caused by over-mixing.

There's a big crack down the middle of the quick bread loaf. The crack on top happens when top of the loaf "sets" in the heat of the oven before the bread is finished rising. Don't worry--it's normal for quick breads. Drizzle the loaf with glaze or dust with confectioners' sugar.

The bread looks done on the outside but it's still raw in the middle. This is a common problem and the remedy is the second secret to great homemade bread: use small loaf pans. I use small loaf pans that measure 3 inches by 5 and 1/2 inches long. The smaller loaves give me more crust on each loaf and you do not have to worry about doughy centers.

I get asked for this recipe, more than any other (except perhaps, how to make Pupusas). This is an incredible recipe. Do NOT change anything and enjoy the perfection.

Tammy’s Poppy Seed Bread

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour

• 2 ½ cups white sugar

• ½ teaspoon salt

• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

• 3 Tablespoons poppy seeds

• 1 1/8 cups vegetable oil

• 1 ½ cups milk

• 3 eggs

• 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

• 1 ½ teaspoons almond extract

• 1 teaspoon orange extract

• 1 teaspoon lemon extract

• 1 teaspoon butter flavored extract

Glaze

• 1/4 cup orange juice

• 1/2 teaspoon butter flavored extract

• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 2 cups confectioners' sugar

Directions

Tammy’s Apple Coconut Bread

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour

• 2 1/4 cups white sugar

• 1/4 cup brown sugar

• ½ teaspoon salt

• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

• 1 cup vegetable oil

• 3 eggs

• 2 cups of finely chopped apples

• 1/2 can of crushed Pineapple

• 1 cup of coconut

• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

• 1 teaspoon butter flavored extract

• 1/2 cup brown sugar

• 1/4 cup milk

• 1/2 cup butter

Bring to a boil and boil for 2 minutes. Let cool just a bit, then pour over bread.

Carrot Orange Pineapple Bread

I grated carrots and was going to make carrot bread, but then I got adventurous when I saw a can of mandarin oranges and added them as well as a can of crushed pineapple. I also added cinnamon, and all-spice, and nutmeg.

It was perhaps the best bread I have ever made (except for the apple coconut bread I made last night…ha). Everyone raved about it and told me it was a different, but amazing new taste.

I used the same recipe as the coconut-apple, but then added the other ingredients, and voilà, a great new recipe.

For Sweet Potato Bread: do not add the coconut and instead of apples, added a can of cut sweet potatoes (but I squished them with my fingers). I also added a teaspoon of cinnamon and a teaspoon of all-spice. Wow! What yummy bread.

I also had made the Apple-Coconut bread this week and changed it somewhat. I did not have two cans of apple to add. So I substituted a can of tropical fruit instead. Wow. The bread was great. Also, when I add a can instead of using real apples, I take a knife and cut the apples (fruit) into small pieces.