Friday, February 10, 2012

Blueberry-Lemon Tea Bread


Growing up, my mom used to make a delicious blueberry lemon bread called "Blueberry-Lemon Tea Bread".  I LOVED. that. bread! It was another of those recipes that got put in the back of my recipe folder since it no longer measured up to our new, healthy standards.  Recently, I have been SERIOUSLY craving this bread, so I decided to hop on the internet and see if I could find a good base for my version.  I am so pleased to pass this bread on to you! It is just as good and maybe better than the original (Tim says it is!).  We were especially surprised at the texture of the bread! Brown rice flour is known for being a bit crumbly and grainy, but THIS was NOT!

So without further ado:

Blueberry-Lemon Tea Bread

2 cups flour (I used brown rice flour)
2 tsp xanthan gum (optional)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Scant 1/2 cup of honey
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
3 Tablespoons lemon juice
1/3 cup milk
1 cup blueberries

Preheat oven to 350.  Grease 9"x5" loaf pan.

In medium bowl combine dry ingredients.

In large bowl, beat honey and butter together.  Add eggs and beat.

Add flour and milk.  Mix and add lemon juice.  Mix until all is well combined.  Fold in blueberries and put in greased pan.

Bake for 50-60 minutes--until toothpick comes out clean.  Let cool for 5 minutes in pan (make glaze while it's cooling) and put out on a cutting board or plate.

Lemon-Honey glaze:
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup honey (warm and runny--I put my jar on the back of the stove when I put the bread in and that was sufficiently warm)

Mix in a liquid measuring cup or small bowl until honey is incorporated into lemon juice.  Poke top and sides of bread all over with a toothpick.  Brush on the glaze--I know it looks like a lot of juice, but just trust me on this! Before you know it, the glaze will have disappeared into the bread!