This Spiced Peach Bread is a delicious and comforting quick bread that's bursting with the flavors of juicy peaches and warm spices. I love how this recipe is both easy to make and incredibly satisfying. It's perfect for breakfast, brunch, a snack, or even dessert, and it's a great way to use up those ripe peaches. Get ready for a bread that's moist, tender, and packed with flavor!
Why You'll Love This Spiced Peach Bread
- Moist and Tender: The combination of butter, buttermilk, and peaches creates a wonderfully moist and tender crumb.
- Flavorful: The blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves complements the sweetness of the peaches perfectly.
- Easy to Make: This recipe uses simple ingredients and straightforward instructions.
- Perfect for Fall: The warm spices and peaches make this bread a perfect treat for fall baking.
- Versatile: Enjoy it for breakfast, brunch, a snack, or dessert.
Ingredients for Spiced Peach Bread
Here's what you'll need to make this delicious bread. The full list with measurements is in the recipe card below.
Main Ingredients
- Dark brown sugar, packed (Sweetener)
- Unsalted butter, at room temperature (Fat)
- Large eggs, at room temperature (Binder)
- Cake flour (or all-purpose flour) (Dry Ingredient)
- Baking powder (Leavening Agent)
- Salt (Seasoning)
- Cinnamon (Spice)
- Allspice (Spice)
- Freshly grated nutmeg (Spice)
- Ground cloves (Spice)
- Cultured buttermilk (Dairy)
- Diced peaches, skin on (Fruit)
- Coarse sparkling sugar (optional)
(Note: the full ingredients list, including measurements, is provided in the recipe card below.)
Variations
I love this Spiced Peach Bread as is, but here are a few ideas for variations:
- Add Nuts: Stir in some chopped pecans, walnuts, or almonds to the batter.
- Different Fruit: Use other fruits, such as nectarines, plums, or berries, instead of peaches.
- Add a Glaze: Drizzle a simple glaze (powdered sugar mixed with milk or cream) over the cooled bread.
- Make it a Crumble: Top the bread with a crumble topping before baking.
- Add Vanilla Extract: For enhancing the flavor
How to Make Spiced Peach Bread
Let me show you how easy it is to make this Spiced Peach Bread:
Preheat Oven and Prepare Pan
- I preheat my oven to 350°F (175°C).
- I lightly butter a 9x5 inch loaf pan and line it with parchment paper with long ends so I can lift the bread out later for glazing and slicing.
Cream Butter and Sugar
- I put the brown sugar and softened butter into a stand mixer and cream until light and fluffy - a full 5 minutes. I make sure to get all the lumps out of the sugar.
Add Eggs
- I add in the eggs, one by one, making sure each egg is fully incorporated before adding the next one.
- I continue beating for another 2-3 minutes. The batter will be light and fluffy.
Combine Dry Ingredients
- I whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg and cloves.
Combine Wet and Dry Ingredients
- I add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, alternating with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with dry ingredients.
- I finish mixing by hand, to make sure everything is thoroughly mixed, but I don't overbeat.
Fold in Peaches
- I fold in the diced peaches.
Bake
- I turn the batter into my prepared pan.
- I spread out evenly.
- I sprinkle the top lightly with sparkling sugar.
- I bake on the center rack for 50-55 minutes, or until fully risen and a toothpick inserted near the center comes out without wet batter clinging to it (moist crumbs are fine).
Cool and Serve
- Cool and serve
Tips and Tricks for the BEST Peach Bread
Here are my secrets for making this bread truly exceptional:
- Room Temperature Ingredients: Make sure your butter and eggs are at room temperature for the best results.
- Don't Overmix: Overmixing the batter can make the bread tough. Mix just until the ingredients are combined.
- Freshly Grated Nutmeg: Freshly grated nutmeg has a much more intense flavor than pre-ground nutmeg.
- Check for Doneness: Use a toothpick to check for doneness. It should come out clean or with just a few moist crumbs attached.
- Cool Completely: Let the bread cool completely before slicing to prevent it from crumbling.
How to Serve
This Spiced Peach Bread is delicious served:
- Warm or at Room Temperature: It's delicious both warm and at room temperature.
- Breakfast or Brunch: A perfect addition to your breakfast or brunch spread.
- Snack: A great afternoon treat with a cup of coffee or tea.
- Dessert: Serve it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream.
Make Ahead and Storage
This bread keeps well for several days. Store it in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator. You can also freeze the bread for longer storage.
FAQs about Spiced Peach Bread
- Can I use a different type of fruit?
- Yes, you can use other fruits, such as nectarines, plums, or berries.
- Can I make this without the spices?
- The spices add a lot of flavor to the bread, but you can adjust them to your liking.
- Can I make this into muffins?
- Yes, you can
Enjoy this moist, flavorful, and perfectly spiced Spiced Peach Bread! It's a perfect treat for any time of year.
Print
Spiced Peach Bread
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 10-12 1x
- Category: Bread, Quick Bread, Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert
- Cuisine: American
Description
This Spiced Peach Bread is a moist, flavorful quick bread studded with juicy pieces of fresh peach and infused with warm spices. It's perfect for breakfast, brunch, or a sweet treat any time of day.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 cup (200g) packed dark brown sugar
- 1 cup (2 sticks, 226g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 ¾ cups (219g) cake flour (see notes for substitution)
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground allspice
- ½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ cup buttermilk, room temperature
- 2 cups diced fresh peaches, skin on (about 3 smallish peaches, ½ inch dice)
- 1 teaspoon coarse sparkling sugar (optional, for topping) or granulated sugar or raw sugar (such as turbinado)
Instructions
- Preheat Oven and Prepare Pan: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Lightly butter a 9x5-inch loaf pan. Line the pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on the two long sides to create "handles" for easy removal of the bread after baking. Butter the parchment paper as well.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: In a large mixing bowl, using an electric mixer (stand mixer with paddle attachment or hand mixer), cream together the softened butter and dark brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Make sure there are no lumps of brown sugar remaining.
- Add Eggs: Add the room-temperature eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition until fully incorporated. Continue beating for another 2-3 minutes. The mixture should be light and fluffy.
- Combine Dry Ingredients: In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the cake flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, and cloves until well combined.
- Combine Wet and Dry Ingredients: Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, alternating with the room-temperature buttermilk. Begin and end with the dry ingredients. Mix on low speed until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Finish Mixing by Hand: Finish mixing the batter by hand with a rubber spatula, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure everything is thoroughly incorporated, but being careful not to overmix.
- Fold in Peaches: Gently fold in the diced peaches until evenly distributed.
- Transfer to Pan: Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and spread it evenly.
- Add Topping (Optional): Sprinkle the top of the batter evenly with coarse sparkling sugar (or granulated/raw sugar).
- Bake: Bake in the preheated oven for 50-55 minutes, or until a wooden toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean (or with a few moist crumbs attached). The top should be golden brown.
- Cool: Let the bread cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Then, use the parchment paper overhang to carefully lift the bread out of the pan and transfer it to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Room Temperature Ingredients: Using room-temperature butter, eggs, and buttermilk helps the ingredients emulsify properly, resulting in a more tender and evenly textured bread.
- Cake Flour: Cake flour has a lower protein content than all-purpose flour, which creates a more tender crumb. If you don't have cake flour, you can substitute all-purpose flour, but the texture of the bread may be slightly different.
- Measuring Flour: For best result use the weight.
- Buttermilk: If you don't have buttermilk, you can make a substitute by adding ½ tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to ½ cup of milk. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes before using.
- Peaches: Use ripe but firm peaches for the best results. You can use yellow or white peaches.
- Do Not Overmix: Overmixing the batter can develop the gluten in the flour, resulting in a tough bread. Mix just until the ingredients are combined.
- Baking Time: The baking time may vary slightly depending on your oven. Start checking for doneness around 50 minutes.
- Serving Suggestions: This peach bread is delicious served warm or at room temperature. It's great on its own, or with a spread of butter, cream cheese, or jam.
- rage: Store leftover bread, tightly wrapped, at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to a week.
