Description
Bake a truly comforting quick bread that families cherish. This easy recipe delivers a genuinely moist loaf every time, perfect for breakfast, snacking, or holiday gifting.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 cup boiling water
- 1 cup packed pitted dates, chopped
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup chopped walnuts, plus extra for topping
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour a standard 9×5 inch loaf pan.
- Place the chopped dates in a heatproof bowl. Pour 1 cup of boiling water over the dates and stir in the baking soda. Let this mixture sit for 10 minutes to soften the dates. This step is key for a moist loaf.
- In a large bowl, cream together the softened butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla extract.
- In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing on low speed until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Gently fold in the chopped walnuts and the date mixture (including all the liquid). The batter will be somewhat thin.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle a few extra chopped walnuts over the top, if desired.
- Bake for 55 to 65 minutes, or until a wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. If the top browns too quickly, loosely tent it with foil after about 40 minutes.
- Let the bread cool in the pan for 10 minutes before carefully turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- For an extra rich flavor, substitute half of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour.
- Serve this homemade quick bread warm with butter spread over it for the best comfort food experience.
- If you want a slightly sweeter loaf, you can add 1/2 cup of mashed ripe banana to the wet ingredients.
- Prep Time: 15 min
- Cook Time: 60 min
- Category: Quick Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 280
- Sugar: 25g
- Sodium: 180mg
- Fat: 12g
- Saturated Fat: 5g
- Unsaturated Fat: 7g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 42g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 5g
- Cholesterol: 55mg