C’s Berry Bread

This was a week of discovery for me. Allow me to share my new found knowledge.

1. Wearing high heeled boots to work after a particularly heavy spell of freezing rain is maybe not a smart idea. Particularly when the driveway/skating rink is sloped. Particularly since everybody and their brother told me it was icy. Particularly since this is not my first experience with freezing rain. I’ve lived in this climate my whole life. Mel=Genius.

2. Alone time with scissors and an idle brain = reappearance of bangs. Bangs that I have tried to grow out at least 6 times. Fail.

3. Books are far too consumable. Especially when you are reading one novel  a day. Needless to say, I’m taking a Dark-Hunter break. It’s amazing how much I can get done in a day.

4. Apparently escape-ee border collies are foxes. Who knew?

5. Toasted blueberry bread makes for an excellent breakfast. 🙂

This recipe came from C, who I used to work with. Every year when the strawberries came in season, she would make loaf after loaf of this bread, dotted with the sweet berries. It was a treat everyone looked forward to. I was fortunate enough to snag the recipe and tweaked it a bit to suit my taste. The beauty of it is that it’s good with really any berry. Or even a mix of berries.

C’s Berry Bread

makes 1 loaf

• 1/2 c butter, softened.
• 3/4 c sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 tsp lemon extract ( or the zest of 1 lemon. I just didn’t have any in the house)
• 2 c flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 c sour cream
• 1 1/2 c chopped berries ( I used blueberries this time around)

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 5×9 loaf pan.
2. In a large bowl, beat together the butter and the sugar, until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each. Add the lemon extract (or zest)
3. In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Slowly add the dry mix to the butter mixture, alternating with the sour cream, mixing just until combined.
4. Stir in the berries, then carefully pour the batter into the prepared pan.
5. Bake for about and hour, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
6. Let cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely.  ( Or you know just until you can handle it, the hack of a big slice, slather it in butter and eat it warm. You know)

Did I mention this is amazing toasted with a bit of butter?

-Mel