New! The Coziest Apple Quick Bread with Buttermilk Icing

It’s almost comical how fast this Apple Quick Bread disappeared from my kitchen counter the day I made it. Perhaps that’s where it gets its name? Maybe so, but regardless of what you call it (I toyed with the name for a while before deciding), this recipe is an apple lover’s dream come true. Admittedly, the word “loaf” has always been a bit of a turn-off for me – clunky and oafy and just not attractive – but this bread is for sure a loaf, and what a loaf it is! It tastes like a mashup of apple fritters and apple muffins and is absolutely the coziest, most lovely thing in the fall.

What is Quick Bread?

Anyway. If you’re not very familiar with quick breads, let’s take a hot second to familiarize ourselves. You’re probably WAY more familiar with them than you even realize because quick breads, as it turns out, are all around, all the time …

Because there is no yeast involved in this bread’s baking process, the loaf/loaves come together rather fast – hence garnering the name “quick bread.” You need not worry about setting a timer so the dough can proof and double in size. In fact, there’s no dough to deal with at all with a quick bread.

A Quick Bread is a Yeast-less Bread

I’ve always thought of quick breads more as muffins in loaf form (ooof – there’s that word again). You get an almost-cake-but-not-quite crumb, that isn’t quite as sugary sweet as cake, but still – in a pinch – could probably pass pretty well as, say, a coffee cake.

Yes, this Apple Quick Bread is basically a coffee cake. Instead of creating a stretchy, glutinous dough by way of a yeast-fueled proof, in this case, we’ll actually stir together a batter (again, just like a cake). The leavening in this quick bread comes from baking powder, and the eggs will give it some volume as well.

So, that is another defining characteristic of a quick bread – the leavening comes not from a yeast of any sort, but rather from baking powders and baking sodas. (yep. like a cake.) This is referred to as “chemical leavening.”

Popular Types of Quick Breads

Muffins (like these BEST Banana Toffee Crunch Muffins)

Biscuits (such as “Alison Roman’s Luckiest Biscuits in America”)

Scones

Cornbread (like my Honey Caramelized Tomato Upside Down Cornbread)

Banana Bread and Zucchini Bread

Categories of Quick Bread

Quick breads are essentially split into two primary categories: the ones made with batter and the ones made with dough. The ones that are made via batter include things like muffins, cornbread, and easy loaf breads (like banana bread and zucchini bread). Quick breads that are made with a dough include things like biscuits and scones.

The Breakdown: How to Make this Apple Quick Bread

There are two main mixing methods utilized when making quick breads. The “muffin mixing method” is applied when making muffins, quick loaf breads, and other things such as waffles and pancakes. The biscuit method is used to make biscuits and scones.

Both the muffin mixing method and the biscuit mixing method are designed to keep gluten development at a minimum. By working the batters and doughs as little as possible, the gluons won’t develop as much, thus resulting in lighter, more tender breads in the end.

Ingredients for this Apple Quick Bread

Quick breads can be made with a lot of different, but for the most part, you’ll find flour, some sort of fat (oil or butter), sugar, eggs, salt, and a chemical leavener (baking soda/baking powder). 

Quick breads made using the muffin mixing method will likely use a liquid fat (like vegetable oil). But breads made using the biscuit mixing method are made with solid fats (like butter or shortening).

How Long to Store Quick Bread?

Most types of quick bread with last for two to three days when covered and stored in a dry, cool place.

What you’ll need to make this Apple Quick Bread

This list of ingredients reads like many a fall-leaning baked good. Cinnamon, brown sugar, and apples have long been buddying up in all sorts of great autumnal treats.

Apple Quick Bread Ingredients

• 1 tart apple, such as Granny Smith, diced (about 1.5 cups)
• ⅓ cup brown sugar
• 2 tsp cinnamon, divided
• 1.5 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 6 TBSP butter, at room temp or softened
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• ½ cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• Buttermilk icing (see below)

For the Buttermilk-Vanilla Icing:

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 to 3 TBSP buttermilk (and more, as needed to achieve drizzling consistency)

How to Make Apple Quick Bread

Apple Quick Bread DIRECTIONS

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 by 4-inch or 8 by 4-inch loaf pan.
• In a small bowl, combine the apple, brown sugar and 1 tsp of the cinnamon, Stir to mix and let it sit while you prepare the batter.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
• Next, in the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large mixing bowl with a hand-held mixer, cream the butter until soft and fluffy; about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the granulated sugar and cream until well mixed. Add the eggs, milk, 1 tsp of cinnamon, and the vanilla. Mix just until combined.
• Pour half of the batter into the pan and spread to cover the bottom. Top with about ⅓ of of the apples and then the rest of the batter. Top with the remaining apples, along with all of their juicy cinnamon-sugar liquid. Drag a knife all through the bread to swirl the apples/liquid evenly throughout. Bake for 55 minutes to an hour, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
• Cool for 10 minutes before removing the bread from the pan, and then allow it to cool completely before drizzling all over with the icing (see below). 
• To make the icing: In a small bowl, stir together the powdered sugar, buttermilk and vanilla until smooth and drizzle-able.

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