Description
Spiced peach bread delivers a delightful Southern comfort with sweet ripe peaches and warm cinnamon notes. Bakers can savor this moist quick bread that highlights seasonal fruit and comforting spices you’ll eagerly slice and share.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 cups diced peaches (about 3 small peaches, skin on)
- 1.75 cups cake flour (or all-purpose flour)
- 1 cup (2 sticks / 226 g) unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 3 large eggs (room temperature)
- 1 cup dark brown sugar (packed)
- 0.5 cup cultured buttermilk
- 1.5 tsps baking powder
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 0.5 tsp salt
- 0.5 tsp allspice
- 0.5 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
- 0.25 tsp ground cloves
- 1 tsp coarse sparkling sugar (or granulated/raw sugar for sprinkling)
Instructions
- Preparation: Generously butter a 9×5-inch loaf pan and line with parchment paper, ensuring extended edges for effortless bread removal.
- Creaming: Merge brown sugar and butter in a stand mixer, whipping until achieving a cloud-like consistency with no visible sugar crystals, creating a smooth foundation.
- Egg Integration: Methodically add eggs one at a time, fully incorporating each to develop a silky, voluminous mixture that forms the bread’s structural base.
- Dry Ingredient Fusion: Whisk flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, and cloves in a separate bowl, eliminating potential lumps and ensuring uniform spice distribution.
- Batter Construction: Gently combine dry ingredients with creamed butter mixture, alternating with buttermilk to maintain the batter’s delicate airiness and prevent overmixing.
- Peach Incorporation: Tenderly fold diced peaches throughout the batter, guaranteeing even dispersion without compromising the bread’s light texture.
- Baking Preparation: Pour batter into prepared pan, smoothing the surface and sprinkling coarse sparkling sugar for an enticing textural crunch.
- Oven Transformation: Bake at the recommended temperature for 50-55 minutes, positioning the pan centrally in the oven until the bread rises magnificently and a toothpick test reveals moist, not wet, crumbs.
- Cooling and Serving: Rest the bread in the pan for 10 minutes, then lift using parchment paper handles, allowing it to cool completely or serve warm for maximum flavor enjoyment.
Notes
- Prevent Peach Browning: Toss freshly diced peaches with a touch of lemon juice to maintain vibrant color and prevent oxidation.
- Buttermilk Substitution: No buttermilk? Mix regular milk with a tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice, letting it sit for 5 minutes to create a perfect tangy alternative.
- Spice Balancing: Toast whole spices briefly before grinding to unlock deeper, more complex flavor profiles that elevate the bread’s warmth.
- Storage Strategy: Wrap cooled bread tightly in plastic wrap or store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, or freeze for extended enjoyment.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 50-55 minutes
- Category: Breakfast, Snacks, Desserts
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 9
- Calories: 318
- Sugar: 22 g
- Sodium: 210 mg
- Fat: 16 g
- Saturated Fat: 10 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 41 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 70 mg