Holiday Bread Recipe

My friend Heidi makes super delicious sweet breads for the holidays. I always love to taste her creations for they are tasty treats indeed! The recipe she is sharing with us today is called Caramel Apple Bread with Coconut Topping. Just the name sounds yummy!!! Treat your friends with this delicious bread for the holidays!


Caramel Apple Bread with Coconut Topping


3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 cup applesauce
1/2 cup butter
1 Tablespoon vanilla
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon (Heidi always adds extra)
1/4 cup dried coconut

1. In an 8-10" nonstick frying pan over high heat, shake and tilt 1/2 cup sugar until melted and amber colored (about 4 minutes); be careful not to burn. At once, pour hot caramel into a 12" foil square on a flat surface. When caramel is cool enough to handle, peel off foil. Break caramel into chunks and put in a heavy plastic food bag. With a rolling pin, crush into small pieces.
2. In a large bowl combine egg, applesauce, 1/4 cup butter, vanilla and brown sugar. With a mixer on medium-high speed, beat until well blended. Stir in flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon; beat just until evenly moistened. Stir in caramel.
3. Scrape batter into a large buttered loaf pan.
4. Set pan on a sheet of foil placed on oven rack (to catch drippings). Bake at 350 degrees until bread is firm when pressed in the center--about 40 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix coconut with remaining 1/4 cup sugar and 1/4 cup butter. When bread is firm to touch, spread mixture evenly over hot loaf. Continue to bake until coconut topping is evenly brown--15-20 minutes. Let bread cool on a rack for about 10 minutes, then invert to release bread. Let cool another 10 minutes.

**NOTE: This tastes just as yummy without the coconut topping. Heidi says it's too sweet with it. This is a special bread she makes ONLY during the holidays!

Thanks for the wonderful recipe, Heidi! We are all looking forward to impressing our friends with this great recipe.

This is definitely baking weather so enjoy!  Kat