Video
Brown Butter Apple Bread
Soft, moist and full of flavor, this Brown Butter Apple Bread is easy to make and loaded with fresh apples. The combination of brown butter, brown sugar and warm spices makes it taste so cozy and perfect for Fall.
Ingredients
Apple Bread Batter:
- 1 ¾ cups (250g) all purpose flour
- 1 ¾ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ¼ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- ½ cup (110g) packed light brown sugar,
- ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (120ml) unsweetened applesauce
- 1 teaspoon (5ml) pure vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup (75g) unsalted butter
- 2 cups (280g) grated apple from about 2 medium apples
Brown Butter Icing:
- 1 tablespoon (14g) salted butter browned
- 2 tablespoon (30ml) whole milk
- ½ cup (60g) powdered confectioner's sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
NOTE: This makes just a small amount for a thin glaze. If you want a thicker layer of icing, you can double the recipe.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line an 8.5 x 4.5-inch loaf pan or 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper leaving a 2-inch overhang at each end and secure them down with metal binder clips. Lightly grease any exposed sides.
- Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg in a large bowl. Whisk to blend evenly and set aside.
- Now prepare the apples. Grate apples on the coarse side of a box grater. If you measure it out, you should have 2 cups of grated apple. Cover it and set aside.
- Brown the butter. Place the butter in a small saucepan and cook it over medium heat until the milk solids brown. It will crackle and foam up as the moisture evaporates before it turns golden with brown flecks. Follow the detailed instructions in this post here to learn how to brown butter in a 1-quart stainless steel saucepan. Set it aside to cool slightly.
- Combine eggs, brown sugar, granulated sugar, applesauce and vanilla in a large bowl. Add slightly cooled brown butter and whisk it in until smooth. Add the dry ingredients all at once and fold them gently until mostly combined with a few streaks of flour remaining. Add the grated apple and fold it in until evenly distributed. Do not over-mix the batter.
- Transfer batter to the prepared pan and spread it out evenly. Draw a line through the center of the batter down its length with a butter knife and bake for 45-50 minutes until evenly golden on top and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes, then use the overhanging parchment to lift the loaf out of the pan and continue cooling on the rack while you make the glaze.
- Make the glaze. Place the butter in a small saucepan and cook it over medium heat until the milk solids brown. It will crackle and foam up as the moisture evaporates before it turns golden with brown flecks. Read this post hear on details for how to brown butter. Once it is browned, carefully stir one tablespoon of milk into the hot brown butter in the pan. It will sizzle a bit. Add powdered sugar with the remaining milk and salt and whisk it in until smooth and glossy. Drizzle the warm icing over the slightly warm loaf and spread it out quickly to let it drip over the sides. The icing will set quickly from the brown butter.
