Ham and Cheese Bread

...a delicious savory quick bread featuring a soft, moist interior under a crackled and crunchy crust.

A last-minute tweak to the Sunday brunch menu left piles mountains of sliced ham and cheese hanging out in my fridge. "No problemo," I thought since these basic deli ingredients are incredibly versatile. We love loaded chef's salads, open-faced smorrebrod sandwiches, decadent Monte Cristos or Croque Madames, mac 'n cheese minis with ham... and the list goes on. Initially a few late hour snack attacks partnered the ham and cheese with crackers, mustard and pickles. Impromptu nibbles are the best! but we didn't make a dent in the leftovers. It was time to get serous.

Carb cravings kicked in when I ran across a Patricia Wells quick bread recipe, found in her book, Salad as a Meal. Yes, it would be Ham and Cheese Bread to the rescue! 

Wells called for chunks of ham and French comte cheese cut in 1/4-inch dice, but I worked with the slices of Black Forest ham and smoked gouda cheese already on hand. A rough chop of the presliced ingredients substituted for the specified cubes. It worked. Kalamata olives added some welcome salty, savory notes on day one, a tasty match for za'atar flavored chicken thighs and a Greek salad, but the olives were too dominant the next morning on the toasted slices. Was it the contrast with my mixed fruit breakfast smoothie? maybe. I'll try milder olives in the next loaf, or swap in nuts instead. 

The original recipe called for a 25-30 minute cooking time, but it took 45 minutes in my oven for the center to cook through and a cake tester to come out clean. By then the crust was well past golden, but I really do prefer breads with a crunchy, browned crust. Why so long a cook? was it my oven temperature? was it the glass pan? Some quick online research indicated it might be both, or either, or neither. Sigh. Use the listed cooking times as suggestions, checking often with a tester until the interior is done. 

We loved thin slices from the still warm loaf, without butter or any other accompaniments (like fig jam). Cooled to room temperature the slices offered less of a flavor punch, but still made delicious snacks and led me to thoughts of a savory bread pudding. Toasted breakfast slices were less well-received; I'll blame it on those assertive olives. Nonetheless the entire loaf disappeared in less than 24 hours. Now it's time to plan some flavor and ingredient tweaks for the next loaf, maybe four mini loaves with two for appetizers and two for the freezer. 

Ham and Cheese Quick Bread

recipe largely from "Salad as a Meal" by Patricia Wells

5 TBS extra-virgin olive oil 
1 cups All-purpose flour
1/4 cup whole wheat flour   
2 level tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt
5-oz cheese, chopped or cubed (Fontina, gruyere or swiss)
5-oz cooked ham, chopped or cubed
1/3 cup olives, pitted & halved (Kalamata or pimento-stuffed green)
additional olive oil or cooking spray to coat the loaf pan

1. Place an oven rack in the center; preheat the oven to 400 F. Generously oil bottom and sides of the loaf pan.
2. Use a large bowl and combine thoroughly the first 7 ingredients, olive oil through yogurt. 
3. Add the cheese, ham and olives and stir to incorporate but don't overmix.
4. Scoop the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Bake in preheated oven until the crust is a rich golden color and a cake tester comes out clean. This takes roughly 30 minutes in a metal pan. (It took 45 minutes in my oven using a glass pan)
5. Remove from the oven and place the bread pan on a wire rack to cool. After the loaf cools, tilt it out of the pan to slice and serve at room temperature.

*Patricia Wells notes the loaf can be stored "at room temperature wrapped in foil for up to 3 days."

Apple Quick Bread with Hatch Chiles & Nuts

What is sweet/hot/salty/nutty delicious?

Everything baked in the Fall when apple season and chile harvest overlap... or maybe it just seems that way. Apples, green chiles and nuts are meant to mingle in so many tasty ways.

Our apple-plus-chile cravings developed during a New Mexico road trip, spurred on further with the purchase of Santa Fe Hot & Spicy Recipe.

Cookbooks and local specialty food items are my favorite souvenirs when we travel and I hit the jackpot with this collection of nearly 400 original recipes from Santa Fe's restaurant chefs. Chef's comments and cooking tips add an additional wealth of information. Often I would rather read a cookbook than a novel. You too?

The recipe for Green Chile Pecan Apple Pie (from chef Maggie Faralla at Zia Diner) launched me into full-blown apple/chile baking love. What's not to love about sweet and semi-spicy apple pie with a pecan crust?! Now it seems I want to tweak any apple recipe, savory or sweet, and add green chiles. We may live in the Pacific NorthWest, but we still relish spicy SouthWest flavors. 

This apple/chile quick bread recipe is still a work in progress; the first two batches were too moist and fall-apart crumbly to be quickbread, but were not quite cakelike either. I'll add some cornstarch to the dry ingredients in the next batch to see if it will work as a thickener and create a tighter crumb. If not, then cake pans might replace loaf pans and the result will become a coffeecake instead of a sliceable quickbread. (grin) I forsee a lot of taste tests coming up soon.

Apple Quick Bread with Hatch Chiles & Nuts

1-1/3 cups AP flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon Penzey's Apple Pie Spice
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
2 cups apples, peeled, cored and coarsely chopped (2 medium Granny Smiths)
3 Hatch chiles (about 1/4 cup), roasted, peeled, deseeded, chopped and tossed with 1 Tablespoon of flour (or use a well-drained 4-oz can of roasted chiles)
1/2 cup dried currants (or golden raisins)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (or pecans or pine nuts)
1 teaspoon sugar mixed with 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon (for topping)

1. Preheat the oven to 325 F.
2. Use cooking spray to coat 4 small loaf pans. Cover the sides and bottom of the pans with strips of parchment paper to help with pan release and lifting out. Spray the parchment paper.
3. In a small bowl combine the flour, salt, baking soda and spices.
4. In a larger mixing bowl combine the sugar and oil. Beat in the eggs, vanilla, almond & lemon extracts until well blended.
5. Stir in the apple chunks, chopped chiles, dried currants and chopped nuts.
6. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients; mix with a large spoon until the flour is thoroughly incorporated.
7. Pour the batter evenly into the 4 prepared pans.
8. Bake on the middle rack in the preheated 325 F oven for 20 minutes. Slide out the oven rack and sprinkle the mixed sugar and cinnamon topping mixture over the top of each loaf. Bake for an additional 40 to 60 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean.
9. Remove to a baking rack to rest before removing from the loaf pan. Let the loaves cool completely before slicing. Wrap tightly in waxed paper to hold for several days without drying out.  

Cheery Cherry Poppy Seed Muffins

...perfect for a leisurely winter morning

I love the peaceful quiet of a morning when I'm the first one awake and out of bed. There's a typical pattern to this solitary start: 

• gaze south down the lake to see if The Mountain is visible, 
• head downstairs to check out the action at the feeders and enjoy the comings and goings of the early arrivals - busy hummingbirds and songbirds, flickers and downy woodpeckers and two annoying, pesky bandit squirrels,
• load the coffeepot for RL and settle in to savor my own cup of Irish Breakfast tea,
• read or knit or just quietly enjoy the colors of a sunrise as it develops over Mercer Island.

This morning was perfect for all of that, but I fired up the oven instead. My stomach was growly and a baking project sounded appealing, something sweet but not too time-consuming or overly complicated. It was early, after all.

What do you bake when you crave a sweet bite in the morning but don't want to mess with the lengthy process of a yeasted dough? An quick bread or coffeecake would do, but this morning Cheery Cherry Poppy Seed Muffins sounded more appealing. These fruit-filled beauties are delicious with the added bonus of speed - they take less than an hour from start to finish.

We have enjoyed various versions of this Tyler Florence recipe; swapping dried cranberries for dried cherries, adding nuts, changing up the choice of citrus, substituting rosemary or lavender for the poppy seeds, etc. Today's version was a winner, a two-thumbs-up hit due to the addition of the frozen cherries. The whole cherries (defrosted frozen sour cherries) gave the muffins a surprising flavor boost and textural pop. 

Better than an alarm clock, the aroma of baking muffins wafted upstairs and roused RL. Fresh coffee and warm muffins created a perfect start to the day. Sweet and moist, the muffins were scrumptious without butter or jam. This recipe is a winner for family breakfasts, impromptu guests, or as part of a brunch menu. Yum!  

Cheery Cherry Poppy Seed Muffins

adapted from Tyler Florence's Real Kitchen

makes 12 regular or 9 Texas-sized muffins

2 cups AP flour
1 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling on top
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

1 cup milk
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup melted butter
1 Tablespoon poppy Seeds
Finely grated citrus zest (1 orange or 2 lemons, etc.)

1 cup dried cherries (tossed with a bit of flour)
1 cup frozen sour cherries, (defrosted, drained well & tossed with a bit of sugar and flour)optional 
Sugar to sprinkle on top

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F. Spray or grease muffin tins (9 Texas-size or 12 regular size cups).
2. Use a large bowl and mix the dry ingredients until evenly combined.
3. In a second bowl whisk the milk and eggs together; add the melted butter, poppy seeds and citrus zest.
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and fold together until just combined. 
5. Add the dried cherries (tossed with flour to avoid sinking to the bottom) and fold to distribute evenly throughout the batter.
6. Ladle the batter into the prepared muffin tins, filling only two-thirds full. Top each muffin with defrosted frozen cherries and press gently into the batter. Dust the surface with a sprinkle of sugar.
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes or just until a wooden tester comes out clean when inserted uno the center. Be careful not to overtake!
8. Cool for 10-15 minutes in the muffin tins set on a baking rack. Enjoy warm or store cooled muffins in a covered container for a day or two, but fresh, warm muffins are always best, just sayin'.

The Best? Banana Bread

The Best? really? Well, the food department at Epicurious thinks so. The cooks began with a handful of tried-and-true recipes; they tested, tasted, adjusted, retested, ... and kept at it until this revision emerged as the test kitchen favorite, their so-called "frankenrecipe". What?? Weird label, but intriguing nonetheless. I'll admit, I was curious to see what the fuss was all about. Banana bread has been around for eons, what could possibly set this recipe apart?


The Epi kitchen noted four changes that seemingly made all the difference between good banana breads and "The Best".

1. Sour cream replaced one recipe's mascarpone for a hint of tangy flavor and extra moistness. (Mascarpone is too pricey an ingredient to casually toss into any ordinary quick bread, so I like this sour cream swap out.)
2. Dark brown sugar, rather than the usual white granulated variety, brought extra richness to the mix.
3. Four ripe, really ripe bananas guaranteed maximum banana flavor.
4. Walnuts added some essential nutty crunch to each bite. The tasters were evenly split over adding chocolate bits, but nuts alone made the final cut.

These four elements are not earth-shaking revelations, but together they did produce a tasty loaf. Moist but not soggy in the middle, each bite or slice held together nicely on the fork or in the fingers. The essential banananess was taste forward, in a good way, and brown sugar provided hints of molasses without overpowering the flavor. 

Was this loaf "The Best"? Who cares? My five kitchen tasters agreed that it was damned delicious and the entire loaf disappeared in less than 24 hours. I'll use this recipe again; it was worth messing around with three separate mixing bowls. 

The Best? Banana Bread

recipe from epicurious.com

Ingredients:

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, at room temperature (plus more for pan)

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour (plus more for pan)

4 medium very ripe bananas (about 13 oz), peeled and mashed

1/4 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup dark brown sugar, (packed)

2 large eggs (room temperature)

1/2 cup coarsely chopped, toasted walnuts

Special equipment:
A 9x5" loaf pan

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x5" loaf pan with butter and dust with flour, tapping out any excess. (The paper wrapper from the cube of butter works well for this.)

Combine banana, sour cream, and vanilla in a medium bowl. Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a separate bowl.

Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and brown sugar on medium speed in yet another large bowl until light and fluffy, it will take several minutes. 

Add eggs, one at a time, and beat on medium speed until fully combined, about a minute each. Add the banana mixture and beat until just combined, about 30 seconds.

 Add the flour mixture in 2 batches, beating on low after each addition, scraping down the sides of bowl if necessary, until fully incorporated. Use a spatula to fold in the walnuts. 

Transfer the mixed batter to the prepared pan and smooth the top with a spatula.

Bake, rotating halfway through, until the batter is set, the top is a dark golden brown and starting to crack, the sides start to pull away from pan, about 60–65 minutes. Use a tester inserted into center of bread to check for doneness; bake until it comes out clean. (My oven must run cool, it took 72 minutes.) 

Remove to a wire rack and cool in the pan for at least 15 minutes. Run a butter knife around the edge of the pan to loosen, then tap pan gently on its side until the loaf releases. Let cool completely on a plate or cutting board before slicing.

Asian-Style Flatbread (Pancakes)

 - with or without optional Sourdough Starter

The setting:

On the boat, in port, at the dock, with another day of rain, and waiting for a delivery via airfreight. 

The story:

The activity began with an extra quarter-cup of sourdough starter, but without a plan to use it. I just knew that I wanted to play be productive in the galley instead of heading outside for a walk. I know, I know, I can be such a weather wimp – well, sort of... sometimes. Ordinary rain is fine, even pleasant, but heavy, pelting downpours are totally for ducks! Today felt like a comfort food "soup-and-something” kind of day, so why not make a sourdough “something” to enjoy with our Asian ginger chicken soup. Mmmm, just thinking about it perked up my tastebuds.

I was inspired by a recipe for Asian-Style Flatbread found in my latest favorite cookbook, the Soup & BreadCookbook by Beatrice Ojakangas. Her flatbread is more of a quickbread pancake or maybe a fluffy tortilla, with added yeast to contribute some light airiness. Surely sourdough would be a positive addition, at least it was worth a try. Let the fun begin.

Some Working notes:

1. The ingredients, all ordinary galley items, came together quickly in the mixing bowl, but the dough was too sticky to work. This might have been due to the wet weather or even the too-loose consistency of my sourdough starter. It required several small additions of flour, added one heaping tablespoon at a time, to achieve the recommended “slightly stiff” batter.

2.  The “lightly floured” surface and rolling pin still wanted to grab the dough, so I sprinkled a bit more flour onto each dough ball, kneaded it in briefly, and proceeded with more success. Evidently the dough wasn’t “stiff” enough initially, once again I’ll blame the weather or the starter.

3.  Size/thickness matters. I rolled out the first round too thick. It puffed nicely in the pan, but the outside surface overbrowned while the interior was still wet. Rolling the second disk thinner helped, but it still seemed undercooked. Covering the pan with a lid for part of the cooking time handled the problem nicely, creating a crunchy, browned exterior with a soft but cooked interior.

4.  Oiling the pan at the start produced an attractive golden crust with distinct sesame flavor on side one, but added little to side two. Try adding more oil to the pan for side two, or spray the uncooked side of a flatbread before flipping to improve appearance and taste.

5.  The dough needed more salt. The original recipe suggested serving the flatbread with a soy sauce and mayonnaise dipping sauce, so perhaps Ojakangas held back on the salt to balance the taste. We dipped our flatbread in Asian Ginger Chicken Soup, in Ponzu Sauce, in Thai Sweet Chili Sauce, in Thai Peanut Sauce. All were fine, but we preferred it plain… or topped with a slather of butter and a quick grind of sea salt.

The results:

I tore a piece off of the first disk and thought, “Meh, no big deal.” I nibbled on the second flatbread and found it better cooked and maybe a bit more fully flavored. Fast forward to the fourth and final pancake, the double-oiled fully-cooked version with added salt – YUM! We almost fought over the last torn piece with dueling forks. These sesame-flavored, onion-speckled, airy, pancake-like breads were judged to be “keepers”, delicious and unexpectedly popular with the Capt.

Oh yes, I’ll make these again, with or without the added sourdough starter. That extra bit of sourdough remained hidden in the background, contributing little to the flatbread's flavor or rise. No big deal, it was an interesting experiment. Sourdough or not, what’s not to like about a flatbread recipe that takes under one hour to go from mixing bowl to table?

Asian-Style Flatbread  

Adapted from the Soup & Bread Cookbook by Beatrice Ojakangas

Yields 4-6 flatbreads

2 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast
½ cup warm water
¼ cup sourdough starter (optional)
1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour, divided (more or less depending on consistency of starter)
½ teaspoon salt (I increased to 1 scant tsp)
½ Tablespoon sesame oil
small knob of ginger, freshly grated (optional, I used a 1-inch piece)
¼ cup green onions (scallions), white & green parts, minced

Additional flour for rolling
Additional sesame oil for cooking

Preparing the dough:

• Add the warm water to a medium-size mixing bowl and sprinkle the yeast over the water. Add ½ cup flour and the salt; whisk by hand or use a mixer and beat until smooth. Stir in the sourdough (if using), oil, ginger, green onions and enough of the remaining flour (or even a bit more) to make a smooth, slightly stiff batter. 
• Separate the dough into 4 to 6 portions and place on an oiled platter. Cover with oiled plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes. 
• Roll each mound of dough into a ball, working quickly with floured hands to avoid sticking. Use a floured rolling pin and a lightly floured surface roll each ball into a thin roundish disk, about 8-inches in diameter. 

Cooking the flatbread:

• Brush an 8-inch or 10-inch nonstick skillet with some sesame oil and warm over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Add one rolled disk to the skillet and cook on the first side until golden, about 2 minutes. Add a bit more sesame oil to the pan (or brush onto the uncooked side of the dough), then flip and cook the other side until golden, roughly 2 more minutes. (Note: I covered the skillet with a lid for the first minute on each side to be sure the insides were cooked through.) 
• Transfer to a plate or baking rack and cover with foil to keep warm. 
• Repeat with the remaining dough rounds. Serve warm as the flatbread becomes more cracker-like as it cools. 

Sweet Southwest Cornbread... with a little kick

Tonight’s quick bread was meant to be a sidedish, but it stole the spotlight from the bowl of red (chili) it accompanied. Moist and sweet, a bit cheesey with just a hint of chile tang, this crunchy, light-crumbed cornbread didn’t require any butter or honey to be a “just one more, please” bite of delight. Sound the bell, there’s a new winner topping the Best Cornbread Ever list!

I baked this batch in a preheated 9-inch cast iron skillet, just because I love an extra-crispy edge. A standard 8x8-inch baking pan, metal or glass, works equally well to produce a tasty cornbread. Muffin tins or a heavy popover pan are two other suitable choices. Pick your favorite, but certainly give this recipe a try. Your "I don't care for cornbread" family members and friends might become cornbread lovers after their first reluctant nibble. Honest, it's just that good.

Sweet Southwest Cornbread with a Kick

Based on the Soup & Bread Cookbook, Beatrice Ojakangas, 2013

Makes 9 generous squares in a cast iron skillet

1 stick (6 Tablespoons) butter, melted

1/3 cup sugar

2 large eggs, beaten

1/3 cup milk

1/3 cup chile pepper (poblano or jalapeno), deseeded & diced

2/3 cup Jalapeno Cheddar cheese, shredded

1/3 cup green onion, diced

2/3 cup all-purpose flour

2/3 cup coarse-ground yellow cornmeal

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Oil a cast iron skillet or lightly coat an 8x8 baking dish with cooking spray.

Wet ingredients: Use a large mixing bowl and stir together the melted butter and sugar. Whisk in the beaten eggs and milk. Add the chiles, cheese and onion and stir until mixed.

Dry ingredients: Whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl, blending thoroughly.

Add the flour mixture to the eggy batter and stir until smooth and well combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake on a center rack in the preheated oven until a toothpick or tester poked into the center of the cornbread comes out clean, about 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and let the cornbread rest a few minutes, until the edges pull away from the pan. Cut into 9 squares and serve warm.  

Note: a few leftover squares made a great base for sautéed sweet peppers and onions at breakfast. 

Chile Cheese Cornbread in a Skillet

Where's my appetite? It's gone... lost, misplaced, ignored or something. Lately I haven't cared to cook or eat much, and that feels strange. This morning a few guilt pangs propelled me into the kitchen so our breakfast might be something other than the usual smoothie or a bowl of oatmeal. 
  
There I was, hanging out in the kitchen, halfway tuned in to the television chatting away in the background, wondering what to do next? "BACON!" caught my attention, an entire program dedicated to some host's bucket list of bacon dishes. Bacon? no way, not today, not a sensible post-op breakfast choice and it truly had lost it's appeal -- omigosh, that's unusual for this bacon-loving cook!

Quick bread, specifically cornbread, popped into my mind as an easy-to-make, quick-to-bake breakfast item. The longer I thought about it, the better it sounded. Add a few favorite ingredients for flavor, some sour cream to keep it moist, and this could be a winner. How could it miss with corn kernels, chipotle-based chile powder, pepper jack cheese and canned chiles in the mix?

Today's cornbread was unexpectedly tender-crumbed and moist (always a good thing for cornbread), with mild chile-flavored heat and a nice toothy bite from the whole corn. RL requested more chile heat for the next batch, not an usual request from him but surprising since he hasn't cared much for cornbread in the past. I think we have a winner here. 

I ate my wedge with a light slather of butter and RL topped his first slice with hot pepper jelly and his second with orange marmalade plus a few splashes of green tabasco. Mmmmm, good. Any leftover cornbread would be delicious accompanying soup or used as a base for a hot, roasted sweet pepper sandwich. 

Now about that bacon - I served RL several sizzling strips while I enjoyed the aroma without any temptation to eat some... nope, not even one piece. No doubt a strange but temporary condition.

Moist Chile Cheese Cornbread

Oven-Baked in a Cast Iron Skillet

Dry ingredients:
1 cup finely ground cornmeal (yellow or white)
1 cup AP flour
1 1/2  teaspoons baking powder
1.2 teaspoon baking soda
2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon chile powder (Penzey's Chili 3000)

Wet ingredients:
2 large eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
1 can Nestle Media Crema (table cream)
6 Tablespoons (3/4 cube) butter, melted, divided
2/3 cup corn (thawed & drained if using frozen)
2/3 cup PepperJack cheese, grated
1 can diced chiles, drained

1. Place an oven rack in the center position and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Butter the sides and bottom of a cast iron skillet, 10-inch preferred.
2. In a large bowl whisk together the dry ingredients. 
3. Use a medium bowl and whisk together the wet ingredients using only 4 tablespoons of the melted butter (reserve the remaining 2 tablespoons for later).
4. Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and stir with a large spoon or spatula until just combined. Do not over mix.
5. Heat the buttered skillet (briefly in the preheated oven or on stovetop over medium heat). Pour the batter into the skillet, leveling somewhat to avoid a mounded middle.
6. Bake in the middle of the preheated oven for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and drizzle the remaining 2 tablespoons melted butter over the top. 
7. Return to the oven and bake until golden brown and a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean, roughly 10-15 minutes. Cool for 5-10 minutes on a baking rack to let the center set up. Cut into wedges or squares and serve plain or with desired toppings. 

Sourdough Ginger Pear Quick Bread

Sourdough Surprises - October 2013

When I was a youngster, banana bread was the number one choice for quick breads. As a young adult, more than a few years ago, zucchini loaves led the quick bread parade in everyone's kitchen. Lately it seems there has been a quick bread recipe explosion with both sweet and savory offerings. Or have I just noticed? What a surprise to discover that quick breads have been around forever, well for a long time anyway. 

"Quick bread" most probably originated in the United States of America at the end of the eighteenth century. Before the creation of quick bread, baked goods were leavened with either yeast or by mixing dough with eggs. During the American Civil War (1861-1865), the demand for food was high. Thus, bread was rapidly made and leavened with baking soda, instead of yeast. Hence the name "quick bread". Wikipedia

For a more in-depth quick bread primer, go to King Arthur Flour's informative page. 

When Sourdough Surprises announced quick breads and muffins as the October theme, it was an invitation to explore some new possibilities. No banana bread or zucchini muffins for me this month, oh no. 

Piles of beautiful Bartlett pears at an Island market were irresistible, prompting a search for some fresh pear quick bread recipes to adapt to sourdough. Omigosh, too many choices, too similar in ingredients to differentiate, too much fun wasting time and browsing online sources! I went back to paging through the many cookbooks I carry onboard and settled on an Alaskan innkeeper's recipe for pear bread. I chose Annie Unrein's cookbook, From Halibut to Jalapeños, a favorite read for it's history of homesteading the land and opening an inn in Gustavus, Alaska, at the edge of Glacier Bay National Park. I love the book but don't cook from it often enough.  

I added some grated ginger to Annie's original recipe, thinking pear and ginger would play well together. Hmmmm, that was a start and then a sprinkle of nutmeg and cardamom joined the party. That was better, even the raw dough tasted good. My only mistake was in baking just half a recipe the first time. Those two mini loaves disappeared almost before the aroma left the galley! That tantalizing scent wafted out of the boat, stopped passing foot traffic on the pier, and garnered a few offers to taste test.     

Photo: Uneven loaf height may be due to uneven oven heat, or the boat not quite sitting level on that particular day.

RL is not usually fond of pears, noting they are typically either too hard and unripe or are over-the-hill, soft and mushy. This Ginger Pear Quick Bread may have made him a pear fan at last - he certainly ate enough to let me know the recipe is a winner.

Sourdough Ginger Pear Quick Bread 

inspired by a recipe found in From Halibut to Jalapeños

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar (or substitute a heaping 3/4 cup honey)
2 eggs
1 tablespoon (or more) freshly grated ginger
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Dash of nutmeg and cardamom
1/4 cup sourdough starter, well-fed and rested
1/8 cup buttermilk
1 generous cup firm pears; peeled, cored, coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup nuts (optional, I didn't use any)
Sugar to sprinkle on top after baking (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Cream the butter and sugar together, then beat in the eggs one at a time. Stir in the grated ginger.
2. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg and cardamom in a medium bowl. Set aside.
3.  Combine the sourdough starter and the buttermilk. Set aside.
4. Add the dry ingredients and the sourdough/buttermilk mix alternately in several additions to the egg mixture.
5. Using a rubber spatula, gently stir in the pears and the vanilla (plus nuts if you are using any).
6. Pour the batter into 4 greased and floured mini loaf pans or one prepared 9x5x3 loaf pan. Bake until a cake tester inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean - about 40 minutes for the mini loaves and 1 hour for the larger loaf (in my galley oven). (10/30/13 - four small loaves took 50 minutes in the house oven)
7. Let the loaves cool in the pan for a few minutes, sprinkle with sugar if using, then turn out on a rack to cool.

Notes: 

• Almost ripe or ripe-but-still-firm pears are a necessity for this bread. Soft pears will go mushy; their texture will make the bread unappealing to eat. I can recommend Bartlett and Bosc pears, but have not tried other varieties this week. 
• The flavor is reported to intensify and the texture firm up if the loaves are wrapped and chilled for a day... but who can wait that long? We thought the first loaf was delicious when we enjoyed a few slices still warm from the oven. A second loaf was equally tasty served cold at breakfast two days later. No difference noted in texture or flavor.
• Play around with the spices and flavorings. I'm thinking almond extract or perhaps anise, citrus zest, a hint of rosemary, or ....

Now check out the other recipes from Sourdough Surprises bakers.