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Filled with fall apples, studded with pecans and dried cranberries, and crowned with a sweet streusel topping, this Apple Pie Bread is what breakfast dreams are made of!
I know it’s only September 9th and it’s still blazin’ hot outside, but you guys, I kind of think I’m ready to decorate for fall.
I probably shouldn’t have walked into both Kirkland’s and Home Goods yesterday, but ever since seeing all the pumpkin decor, I’ve been thinking about pulling the fall/Halloween bins up from the basement.
Tell me..when do you decorate for fall?
Not only am I ready to decorate for fall, but I am also pretty excited about fall baking – especially apple recipes like this Apple Pie Bread!
MY FAVORITE APPLE CINNAMON BREAD
This time of year, things get pretty pumpkin serious around here.
I’m waiting to share my first pumpkin recipe on the blog this year, but that doesn’t mean that I haven’t made a loaf of pumpkin bread or a stack of pumpkin pancakes for my family yet.
But don’t think I forget about one of my other favorite fall treats: apples!
We love to go apple picking, and Old Fashioned Apple Crisp, Crockpot Applesauce, and Slow Cooker Apple Butter all get made multiple times throughout the season around here.
Another recipe we make a lot every year is this Apple Pie Bread.
Simply calling this “apple cinnamon bread” doesn’t do it justice. It’s so much more than just an apple cinnamon bread.
To start, it uses my homemade apple pie spice, which has nutmeg, allspice, ginger, and cardamom in addition to the cinnamon.
And before baking, the batter – which is full of grated apple, chopped pecans, and dried cranberries – is sprinkled with a pecan streusel topping. The streusel gets wonderfully crunchy in the oven and adds the perfect amount of texture and sweetness to this bread.
It really is like biting in a piece of apple pie in bread form.
Apple Pie Bread is delicious for breakfast, as an afternoon snack, or even as a bite of dessert when you just need something sweet. But don’t get me started on all the other dirty things we could do with it, like French toast or bread pudding.
My oh my, this Apple Pie Bread is the stuff my dreams are made of.
HOW TO MAKE APPLE PIE BREAD
Apple Pie Bread comes together like most of the quick bread recipes we make.
The wet ingredients get combined together, then the dry ingredients get added to the wet ingredients. Next, fold in the mix-ins – in this case, shredded apple, chopped pecans, and dried cranberries.
Because apples are a little bit of a harder fruit, I like shredding them for this recipe instead of dicing them to make sure they cook through. It’s similar to what we do when making carrot cake or zucchini bread.
If your apples give off a lot of liquid after shredding them, give them a light squeeze to wring out excess moisture before adding them to the bread.
Once the bread batter is made, mix together the streusel. Stir together the dry ingredients and then cut the butter into them with a pastry blender.
Sprinkle this streusel on top of the bread batter and bake for about an hour.
You can serve the bread the same day it is baked, but I prefer to wrap it up after it has cooled and wait to serve it the next day. I love the way the flavors really shine through the next day!
HOW TO STORE APPLE PIE BREAD
If you are planning to eat this bread within a day or two, you can go ahead and wrap it up or put it in an airtight container and store it at room temperature.
Because the apples make this bread pretty moist, especially after the first couple of days, I would recommend storing the bread in the refrigerator if you don’t plan to eat it within 2 days.
If stored in the refrigerator, it should last 4-5 days.
If you’d like the bread to have a longer shelf life, simply wrap it in foil or plastic wrap and place it into a freezer bag and freeze it for up to 3 months. You can freeze the loaf whole or cut it into slices and wrap those individually for quick breakfasts throughout the week.
Apple Pie Bread
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup lightly packed light brown sugar
- ¼ cup buttermilk
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 eggs
- 1 ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons homemade apple pie spice
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups shredded peeled apple (about 4 medium or 2 large) (see note below)
- ¾ cup chopped pecans
- ½ cup dried cranberries
For the streusel topping
- ¼ cup lightly packed light brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon homemade apple pie spice
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ⅓ cup chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9x5x3-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the butter on medium-high speed for about 30 seconds.
- Add in sugars and mix until well combined.
- Add buttermilk and baking powder; beat until combined.
- Add eggs and vanilla; beat until thoroughly incorporated.
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, apple pie spice and salt, whisk until combined.
- Slowly add the flour mixture to the bowl and mix on low speed until just incorporated.
- Fold in apples, pecans and cranberries.
- Spoon batter into prepared pan; spread evenly. Prepare the streusel topping.
- In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, flour and apple pie spice. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in pecans. Spoon streusel topping over the batter, pressing them gently into the batter.
- Bake for 60 to 65 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
- Cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack. Wrap and store overnight before slicing.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi Jaime I have a question i have made this bread twice, the first time i got over zealous and pressed all of the juice out of the apples with a potato ricer (my husband said the bread was kinda dry in the middle – go figure :) ). I made it again last night, for my husbands Mens Group this morning, and gently pressed some of the moisture out of the apples my husband said the bread was a bit moister but not much so here is my question – oh i should mention all of the men ate the bread with no complaints, it is lovely bread – my question I am at high altitude does that make a difference, the bread never seems to want to leave the loaf pan and the outside is somewhat difficult to cut through, even with a serrated knife, and it is really crumbly, maybe that is ok – i accidentally put the batter and struesel amount of pecans into the batter but didn’t think this would make the bread dry and crumbly. Any and all help is appreciated. I am trying to get a loaf that is moist and not terribly crumbly. Thanks much, appreciate your time and this blog, it is amazing.
Cheers!!
Cory, I know that altitude definitely affects the texture of baked goods, but I really can’t help because I’ve never had to bake at high altitude. I would suggest doing some research on how to adjust recipes for high altitude. I think the bakers at King Arthur Flour’s website can help you too – they have a chat service where they’ll answer your questions for free. Or check out the Become A Better Baker website.
– Jamie
I would like to make the mini loafs with your recipe. If I make them today will they still be fresh enough to give for Christmas?
Thank you
Maureen, I’m sorry I didn’t get a chance to answer you sooner. I don’t think they would have been fresh 10 days later. I wouldn’t make this bread more than 2-3 days before you plan to give it.
– Jamie
I made this to take to a luncheon last week and I am making it again today. It is so delicious, easy, and fun to make. I was amazed at how well it turned out. I also used a bundt pan, but mine didn’t remove well, despite lots of spraying with cooking oil. It is not a teflon bunt pan but rather Alsacian pottery (I went for “prettiness” and took it in the bundt form). The ladies didn’t mind, though, it was such a hit because it tasted out of this world.
Katie-
I’m thrilled that everyone loved the recipe so much! Thank you for stopping in to share your experience. Happy holidays and thank you for following MBA!
-Jamie
I was a little disappointed with this
bread. It is not very sweet and turned
out rather dry.
This recipe sounds so delicious. Can’t wait to make it. Alot of my co-workers don’t eat nuts, and I was wondering if there was some other way to make the topping.
Made two loaves today! One for my house and one to bring to my niece who just became a 1st time mom. The house smelled amazing. We just had some and loved it! No we didn’t wait overnight, BUT, I made it this morning and it’s been 8 hours…and we just couldn’t wait! Tomorrow morning, lightly toasted for breakfast…what a fab recipe! Btw, I didn’t have buttermilk so I used non fat plain yogurt…perfect! Thanks for recipe!
Ellen-
Thank you so much for stopping to share about the recipe. I’m thrilled that you loved it! Have a fantastic day!
-Jamie
I made this last night and the house smelled heavenly. I omitted the nuts, folded in 1/3 cup raisins in the batter instead and baked in a bundt pan because I did not have a large enough loaf pan. I let it sit until this morning and it tasted great but it was more dry and dense than I imagined it would be. The texture was almost like a dense scone. I am going to try again and see if I measured all of my ingredients correctly. I grated 6 small Granny Smith apples in order to get 2 cups. There was a lot of liquid from the apples (almost 1 full cup) that I did not use. The batter was very thick. It tested done with a toothpick after 45 min in the bundt pan.
This is delish! Loved it. Def need to drain the juice from the apples after shredding.
Laurie-
Thank you so much! It’s great to hear that you enjoyed the recipe! Have a fantastic day!
-Jamie
I love this type of bread for breakfast. I slice it thick and toast it, then cover it with butter. I can’t wait to try this recipe. Thanks!
Everything is better with butter, right? Thanks so much for stopping by – have a great night.
-Jamie
I just love your recipies !!! I’ve tried the best chocolate cake, the best banana bread and now this apple pie bread is baking in my oven as I type ….I do agree they are the best !! I’ve already made the chocolate cake and banana bread almost 5 -6 times !!!!….my family loves them !! I know for sure the apple pie bread is going to come out just fine :-) ….your tips on baking too are very useful !
Thanks a lot – Anna
Anna-
That is so wonderful to hear! I’m thrilled that you and your family love the recipes! Have a fantastic day and thank you so much for following MBA!
-Jamie