Dec 19, 2018 5 min read

At this time of the year, I love quick breads. Not only do they taste great, are easy to prepare and easier to eat, but they also make great gifts.

Quick breads are called such because they need no time to rise or need to be kneaded by the cook (a lot of “need”). The most notable of quick breads are loaf breads like zucchini, nut and banana bread. The quickness is created by the use of leavening agents such as baking powder or baking soda. The rise is due to reacting of these agents with heat or acid in the ingredients. Basic quick bread can be cooked many ways in many vessels. It can be done in loaf pans, muffin tins, spooned onto parchment, in a round cake pan, and as I do sometimes, in donut pans.

Although there may seem to be a bohemian sense to the recipes, there are some quirks to quick bread. Combine all the dry and wet ingredients separately and fully. Then mix. Fold wet and dry gently and just only until they are just incorporated. Do not overmix; always mix by hand. Overmixing will cause tougher bread and may create holes in bread, from air bubbles. If adding fruit and nuts, fold in gently at the end.

If putting dried or regular fruit in your batter make sure it is covered by batter. If they are on top, they will burn. Dried fruit can dry out bread slightly, because it pulls moisture from the batter. This can also be avoided by soaking your dried fruit overnight in juices or liquor. Fresh fruit may fall to the bottom of your breads or cause it to undercook because of moisture in it. To help with these problems, coat fruit with a little flour, before folding into batter. Definitely coat berries in flour, as they will discolor when reacting with acid in the ingredients. If using frozen fruit, fold fruit in frozen and you should not have to coat in flour. You probably will not have to make any adjustments when adding nuts or things like chocolate chips.

Quick breads are also sticky breads. They will stick to the vessel they are cooked in, without help. If you are using Silpat or good nonstick metal or silicon pans, you probably do not need to grease the pans. Vegetable shortening is best to use, with butter becoming a second best choice. A sprinkling of flour on the greased pans will also help. Cooking spray can work, but a lower quality one will affect taste and sometimes color. If you are spoon dropping, do so on parchment paper or a greased cookie tray. Remove breads from the pans while still warm (15-20 minutes after baking). Be careful, however, because if they breads are too warm, they may crumble.

The best way to make your quick bread more versatile is to change muffins to loaves and vice versa. If you have a great muffin recipe and you want to make it into loaves for gifts, you barely have to make any adjustments. A loaf of bread is equivalent to a dozen cupcake size muffins; check recipe for yield. Muffins are baked 25 degrees hotter than quick breads. Average size quick breads in loaves take about three times longer than muffins – 15 to 18 minutes versus 45 to 50 minutes. Apply the reverse when converting loaves to muffins.

Outside of loaves and muffins, you make more quick breads than you know. Other members of the quick bread family are pancakes and waffles as well as scones and biscuits.

Just remember, quick breads are also eaten quickly: Be prepared to make more.

Buttermilk Walnut Bread

1 large egg

½ c sugar

½ cup brown sugar

2 Tablespoon melted butter

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Cup buttermilk

2 cups flour

½ tsp salt

Teaspoon baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

½ cup chopped walnuts

½ cup dried fruit(optional)

Beat egg into sugar, add butter, vanilla and butter milk. In separate bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Fold dry ingredients into wet ingredients until just incorporated. Fold in nuts and fruit(opt). Pour into loaf pan. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 45-50 minutes.

Raspberry Muffins

Cup milk

Tablespoon lemon juice

½ cup butter melted

1 egg

Teaspoon vanilla

2 ¼ cups flour

Teaspoon baking powder

Teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup sugar

1 ½ cups raspberries fresh or frozen(do not thaw)

Mix together milk and lemon juice. Let sit a couple of minutes. Stir in egg, melted butter and vanilla. Whisk together; flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and sugar. Fold wet and dry together until incorporated. Gently fold in raspberries. Pour into muffin tins and bake in preheated 375 degree oven for 15-18 minutes.

The bread looks done on the outside but it’s still raw in the middle. This is one of the most common quick bread problems, and it can be caused by a few different factors. The oven temperature could be too high. (Use an oven thermometer to check: they’re cheap and available at most supermarkets.) Try lowering the oven temperature and/or putting a loose tent of foil over the top of the bread so it won’t burn before the middle has time to catch up.

Chef Joe Carei is a chef from Fayette County. He can be reached at joe@elliemaescatering.com/.