Apricot Bread
Cookbook Author
"These breads aren’t bread in the classic sense—they contain no yeast—but are quick breads leavened with baking powder. But they look like bread because they are baked in loaves. You can bake the batter in 3 small loaf pans, or make a larger single loaf and bake it at 350°F. You can use this recipe as a model for a variety of fruit and nut breads by substituting other dried fruits for the apricots and adding the same volume of nuts as fruit."
–James Peterson
Ingredients
- 2 cups dried apricots
- 1/2 cup butter, at room temperature, plus more for the loaf pans
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1/2 cup milk
Method
Cut the dried apricots into 1/3-inch cubes and pour over just enough boiling water to barely cover. Let sit for 20 minutes and drain. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Butter three 3 1/2 x 6-inch loaf pans.
In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a large bowl, cream the butter, sugar, and vanilla. Don’t worry if it’s a little lumpy. Add the eggs one at a time and beat until smooth. Fold in half of the flour mixture, half of the milk, the rest of the flour mixture, and the rest of the milk. Fold in the apricot cubes. Fill the pans about three-quarters full. Smooth the tops with an offset spatula.
Bake for about 40 minutes for small loaves, 50 minutes for a large loaf, or until a knife slid into the loaves comes out clean.
Yield
Three 2-cup loaves
