This is a yeast bread, not a quick bread, and it's incredibly good. The easy-to-make bread is moist, a little sweet, and includes a streusel filling and topping. The bread also includes a cup of applesauce and, as it bakes, the bread will fill your home with the aroma of a yeasty apple pie. To give the bread substance and more nutrition, I use a fair amount of white whole-wheat flour (substitute regular whole-wheat flour if you can't find it). A handful of juicy raisins also studs the bread. The filling/topping is a simple mixture that adds a little butter and cinnamon flavor. Much of the filling gets incorporated into the bread as it rises, so, if you want a large ripple running through the bread, you may want to double the amount of filling ingredients. I like the subtle/not too sweet filling that merges into the bread. The bread makes a wonderful treat for breakfast, or try the bread at snack and tea time. It's really good! Enjoy!
Sourdough Applesauce Loaf -- Makes a Large Loaf
1 cup of sourdough starter/discard
1/3 cup of canola oil
1 large egg
1 cup of applesauce
1/2 cup o dark brown sugar
1 1/2 cups of white whole-wheat flour
In a large bowl mix together until thoroughly blended the starter/discard, oil, egg, applesauce, and dark brown sugar. Stir in the white whole-wheat flour until fully blended. Loosely cover the mixture and let it sit at room temperature for at least an hour (I routinely leave the mixture to sit for 4-5 hours while I work, etc.). When you're ready, add:
1 cup of all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon of salt
1/2 cup of raisins
A soft, fairly wet dough should form. Stir it well for several minutes (in lieu of kneading). Spritz a large loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray or line the pan with foil (for easy bread removal and storage) and spritz the foil with spray. Spread about half of the wet dough into the bottom of the loaf pan. Sprinkle on half of the filling/topping (see directions below for the filling/topping). Spread the remaining dough on top of the filling/topping and then sprinkle the remaining filling/topping on top of the dough. Spritz the top of the filling/topping with non-stick cooking spray and loosely cover the bread. Let the bread rise until it increases in size by 1/4 - 1/3. This takes at least a couple of hours for me but will depend on the temperature of your kitchen and the vigor of your starter/discard. When you're ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake the bread for 50-60 minutes or until it reaches an internal temperature of 190-200 degrees (F). Let the bread cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes before turning it out to cool completely. The bread will slice best after it has cooled (and keep better if you let it cool before slicing it). Slices of the bread reheat/toast well, especially in the air fryer.
Filling/Topping
2 tablespoons of melted butter
4 tablespoons of flour
2 tablespoons of brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
Mix all the filling/topping ingredients together well in a small bowl or cup. You want smallish bits and clumps to form.
Recipe was OK, but needed more flavor. Some cinnamon would do nicely. Also, I checked the internal temp and despite getting a reading of 205°, parts were still undercooked.