Cinnamon Swirl Apple Bread

I've never made apple muffins or apple bread but I've been wanting to lately. I found this Cinnamon Swirl Apple Bread recipe online last night and it looked really good so I decided to give it a try. It was so easy to make and so delicious - it reminded me of my Aunt Lucia's coffee cake with the addition of apples.

I added 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts to my bread. I chopped my apple pieces small as I don't like big chunks of fruit in bread. I only had Fuji apples so that's what I used. I had a bit over 2 cups (from 1.5 apples) but next time I make this I will not put any more than 2 cups of apples.

It took 45 minutes of baking for my bread to be done, but when I cut into it, it was still slightly runny in the middle.

This was the perfect apple bread for me since I don't like other spices that are in some bread recipes (I prefer only cinnamon). I love that this easily comes together with just a whisk and spatula - no mixer needed. I will definitely be making this one again soon!

Cinnamon Swirl Apple Bread

Recipe courtesy “Mom On Timeout” Website

 

Homemade Apple Bread with a lovely cinnamon swirl is the perfect fall breakfast, snack, or dessert! This easy apple bread recipe is moist, sweet and simply loaded with apples and the flavors of fall. Make enough to share with friends and family or keep the whole cozy loaf for yourself! This easy apple bread recipe is a must make this season!

½ cup brown sugar

1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

2 large eggs, room temperature

½ cup granulated sugar

½ cup butter, melted

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1½ cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

½ cup chopped walnuts (optional)

2 cups chopped apples - Pink Lady, Gala, Honeycrisp - any apples that are good for baking, peeled and chopped (about 2 apples)

 

 

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease and flour an 8 x 5 inch loaf pan or line with parchment paper. Set aside.

 

In a small bowl, whisk together brown sugar and cinnamon and set aside.

 

Whisk eggs and granulated sugar together in a large mixing bowl.

 

Whisk in melted butter and vanilla extract until thoroughly combined.

 

Stir in all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt just until combined. The batter will be very thick. Fold in chopped walnuts (optional) and chopped apples.

 

Add half of the batter to the prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle about three quarters of the brown sugar mixture on top of the batter.

 

Spread the remaining batter carefully on top of the brown sugar mixture. Sprinkle remaining brown sugar mixture on top and use a knife or spoon to gently swirl it into the top layer.

 

Bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until lightly golden on top and an inserted toothpick comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs. (If bread is browning too quickly, tent with foil for the last 10 to 15 minutes.)

 

Let bread cool completely before slicing and serving.

Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake

This coffee cake recipe is my Grandma Filomena's but my Aunt Lucia used to make it all the time. I haven't made it in many years but we are getting ready to go on vacation so I made one today to bring with us. It's the perfect recipe to make ahead of time, freeze and bring on vacation for breakfast. And best of all, while I'm at the beach, it's a recipe that makes me think of two of my favorite women who are now in Heaven. It brings back a lot of memories of beach trips with both of them when I was younger. I also realized we will be at the beach this year on my Aunt Lucia's birthday, which is what inspired me to make it for this trip.

The only change I make is that I add half of the batter, half of the cinnamon/walnut mixture, then the other half of each (rather than in thirds). When flipping this upside down to take it out of the pan, some of the topping falls off. If you swirl the top a little bit after adding the cinnamon/walnut mixture, not as much topping will fall off!

Edit July 2024: I changed the original recipe to add the dry cake ingredients last. The original recipe says to add the layers of cake and topping in thirds, but I do it in halves.

Note: my cousin Patrick told me his mom used to double the amount of sour cream. I’ll have to try that next time.

Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake

 

CAKE:

½ cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

2 eggs, slightly beaten

1 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

TOPPING:

1 teaspoon cinnamon

½ cup finely chopped walnuts

½ cup sugar

 

Cream butter and 1 cup sugar. Beat in eggs. Blend in sour cream and vanilla. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

In separate bowl, mix the cinnamon, walnuts, and ½ cup sugar.

Grease and flour a 10” tube pan; pour in 1/2 of the batter, sprinkle with 1/2 of topping mixture; finish with remaining batter and then remaining topping.

 

Bake at 350˚ for 40-45 minutes.

 

Freeze if desired. To serve, return to room temperature; can be warmed in 350˚ oven.

 

Serves 10.

Cinnamon Banana Bread Muffins

I wanted to share another muffin recipe from my sister Maria. This is a very simple banana muffin recipe that requires no mixer and uses ingredients I always have. One of my sons is very picky about food and does not like anything in his muffins, like blueberries or chocolate chips. My mom made these muffins for him a few times and he loved them. I've made them twice and even though they are plain, they are really good. I haven't put the cinnamon-sugar topping on them, but I'm sure that would make them taste even better!

Cinnamon Banana Bread Muffins

Recipe courtesy “Together as Family” Website

Cinnamon Banana Bread Muffins taste like banana bread in muffin form! They are perfectly light and moist, loaded with banana flavor, and bake up beautifully each time. Topped in butter and a sweet cinnamon crumble for the ultimate snack. All you need is one bowl and no mixer needed!

MUFFINS:

2/3 cup granulated sugar

½ cup vegetable or canola oil

2 large eggs

2/3 cup mashed banana (about 2 small bananas)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 2/3 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

CINNAMON & SUGAR TOPPING:

3 Tablespoons butter, melted

¼ cup granulated sugar

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Heat oven to 375°. Spray bottoms only of 12 regular-size muffin cups with cooking spray, or you can also use liners.

In a medium bowl, combine the sugar, oil, and eggs and stir with wire whisk. Add in bananas and vanilla; whisk until combined. 

Add in flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon and stir together until just combined.

Divide batter evenly among muffin cups. Each muffin cup will be almost to the top, about ¾ full.

Bake 17 to 21 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean and muffins are high and rounded on top. The tops of the muffins should not look wet (that means they're not fully cooked).

Remove muffins from pan to a cooling rack. 

For the cinnamon & sugar topping: Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Put melted butter in a separate small bowl. Dip muffin tops into melted butter and then into cinnamon-sugar.

Serve warm or let cool completely.

Yield: 12 muffins.

Cinnamon Bun Scones

This morning I wanted to bake something so I flipped through one of my baking cookbooks and saw these scones that looked pretty good. I had all the ingredients so I decided to give them a try. A few suggestions, make sure you don't under bake them or they may start to crumble when you dip them in the Cinnamon Dip. This happened with a few of mine, but most of them were baked to a golden brown color and those ones worked better with the dip. This is a great recipe and I thought it was also a good breakfast for the beginning of Fall!

Cinnamon Bun Scones  

Recipe courtesy “A Passion for Baking" Cookbook

Want the taste but not the fuss of a yeasted cinnamon bun? Then these morsels are for you. Great for freezing, these scones are small enough that you can eat two and still feel you have not overindulged. Cinnamon is on the outside; inside is a tender crumb scone that has a light vanilla-butter scent.

SCONES:

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

¾ teaspoon salt

4 teaspoons baking powder

¾ cup unsalted butter, cut into chunks

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 large eggs

¾ to 1 cup heavy whipping cream or whipping cream

CINNAMON DIP:

4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

2 to 3 cups confectioner’s sugar

Whipping cream or milk, as required

Preheat oven to 425°F. Stack two baking sheets together and line top sheet with parchment paper. Arrange oven rack to upper third position.

In a food processer, add flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder and blend briefly. Add butter and pulse to make a coarse, grainy mixture.

Turn out mixture into a large bowl. Make a well in center and stir in vanilla, eggs, and whipping cream to make a soft dough. If it is stiff, add more cream.

Using an ice cream scoop, deposit 15 to 20 scones on prepared baking sheets, or use a smaller 2-tablespoon cookie scoop and deposit 3 dozen baby scones.

Bake until scones are puffy and golden brown, about 22 to 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, for Cinnamon Dip, whisk together all ingredients until you have a thick but drippy glaze. Add more confectioners’ sugar or cream as required.

Cool scones to warm and then dip into Cinnamon Dip. Dip scones again once topping is set.

Yield: about 15 to 20 scones or 36 miniatures.

 

Photos by JoJo

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