POPPY SEED BREAD

This delicious loaf bread recipe comes straight from my mother's kitchen.  She has made it for years for her Christmas Church Bazaar, and it sells out as as fast as it hits the shelves.  And rightly so, my daughter and her husband call it "Sugar Cookie" bread because they say it tastes very much like a sugar cookie.  This sweet loaf gets its tanginess from the citrusy orange glaze that is drizzled over its top while still hot from the oven.  Once cooled, the glaze seals the bread keeping it moist for days.  It makes for a scrumptious homemade gift or the perfect guilty pleasure when you wake up to a cold winter morning! 

                                                              INGREDIENTS 

                                                                     Bread

                                                        3 cups all-purpose flour
                                                                 2 cups sugar
                                                                     3 eggs
                                                        1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
                                                                1 1/2 tsp. salt
                                                         1 1/2 tbsp. poppy seeds
                                                               1 1/2 cups milk
                                                          3/4 cup vegetable oil
                                                        1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
                                                        1 1/2 tsp. almond extract
                                                        1 1/2 tsp butter flavoring

                                                               Orange Glaze

                                                                3/4 cup sugar
                                                          1/4 cup orange juice
                                                         1/2 tsp vanilla extract
                                                         1/2 tsp almond extract

Makes 5 mini loaves or 1 - 5"x9" loaf

NOTE:  For gift giving you can buy aluminum mini loaf pans at most grocery stores.  The mini loaf pans that I used were ceramic from Michaels.

INSTRUCTIONS:

STEP 1:  Preheat oven at 350 degrees.  Then combine all 11 ingredients for bread in large bowl and hand mix until thoroughly blended.

STEP 2:  Spoon batter into greased loaf pan/pans filling to 1/2" from top of pan.

STEP 3:  Bake for 1 hour if using a 5"x9" loaf pan, 45 minutes for ceramic mini loaf pans or 35-40 minutes for  aluminum mini loaf pans.  Test for "doneness" using a toothpick.  Insert toothpick in the middle of the mini loaf.  When pulling toothpick out it should be clean or with moist crumbs, if loaf is done.    If the toothpick comes back out with wet batter on it put back in oven for another 3-5 minutes to finish baking.  Repeat process until toothpick comes out clean.

STEP 4:  While bread is baking, make orange glaze by combining all 4 ingredients for orange glaze into a small bowl and stir well until blended.  You will need to continue stirring occasionally for sugar to blend into orange juice thoroughly.

 
STEP 5:  Once bread is out of oven, cool for 10 minutes.  Then drizzle orange glaze over top of each loaf allowing the glaze to permeate through the loaf while still warm and creating a sugared orange crust once cool.

If you are gift wrapping bread, make sure it feels cool/cold to the touch before packaging.  Otherwise condensation will form inside the wrapped mini loaf. 

                                                              ~ Debbie ~

Want more recipe ideas?  Please click below...
Pineapples & Palm Trees