Quick Brown Butter Cherry Poppy Seed Bread Recipe
Brown butter, honey, rye flour, and poppy seeds turn this cherry loaf into something truly special. Light, tender, and bursting with juicy cherries, it's the kind of recipe you'll bake all summer long.
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Equipment
- 9x 5-inch loaf pan
- parchment paper
- Light-colored saucepan, skillet
- Two large mixing bowls
- Whisk and spatula
- zester
- Cherry pitter
- measuring cups and spoons
- wire cooling rack
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 180 grams all-purpose flour
- 60 grams medium rye flour save 1 TBSP
- 1¾ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 45 grams poppy seeds
- 2 lemons zest
- ½ teaspoon cardamom
For the Cherry filling
- 1½ cups cherries or sour cherries, pitted and halved
- 1 tablespoon rye flour or all-purpose flour, for coating the cherries
Wet Ingredients
- 170 grams unsalted butter
- 170 g honey (clover or wildflower work well)
- 200 grams sour cream full-fat or full-fat Greek yogurt, + 2 tbsp
- 3 eggs large, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
Topping
- ¼ cup 25–30 g sliced almonds
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease a 9 × 5-inch loaf pan and line it with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on the long sides for easy removal.
- Place 170 grams unsalted butter in a light-colored saucepan over medium heat. Cook, swirling occasionally, until the butter foams and the milk solids turn deep golden brown and smell nutty, about 6–8 minutes. Immediately pour the browned butter into a heatproof bowl, scraping in all of the browned bits. Let it cool until just warm.
- Pit and halve 1½ cups cherries. Toss them with 1 tablespoon rye flour (or all-purpose flour) just before adding them to the batter. This helps keep the cherries evenly distributed throughout the loaf.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, combine: 180 grams all-purpose flour, 60 grams medium rye flour, 1¾ teaspoons baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon fine sea salt45 grams poppy seeds, zest of 2 lemons,½ teaspoon cardamom.
- In a separate large bowl, whisk the cooled browned butter with 170 g honey until smooth. Add 200 grams sour cream (or full-fat Greek yogurt) and whisk until combined. Add 3 eggs, one at a time, whisking well after each addition. Stir in 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and 1 teaspoon almond extract
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and gently fold with a spatula until only a few streaks of flour remain. Fold in the floured cherries. Be careful not to overmix. The batter should be thick and slightly lumpy.
- Fill the loaf pan. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and smooth the top. Sprinkle ¼ cup 25–30 g sliced almonds evenly over the surface.
- Bake for 60–70 minutes. After about 45 minutes, loosely tent the loaf with aluminum foil if the almonds or the top are browning too quickly. The loaf is done when a skewer inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs but no wet batter. An instant-read thermometer should read 200–205°F (93–96°C) in the center.
- Cool the loaf. Let it cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then use the parchment overhang to lift it onto a wire rack. Allow it to cool completely before slicing. This helps the crumb set and yields cleaner slices.
- Serve. Enjoy as is, or serve with a pat of butter, whipped honey butter, or a dollop of lightly sweetened whipped cream alongside a cup of coffee or tea.
Notes
Don't overmix the batter. Overmixing develops gluten and makes the loaf tough.
Tent with foil at 45 minutes. The almonds on top and the edges of the loaf will brown faster. A loose piece of foil over the top for the last 15 to 25 minutes fixes this without steaming the loaf.
Nutrition
Serving: 1sliceCalories: 317kcalCarbohydrates: 34gProtein: 6gFat: 19gSaturated Fat: 10gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0.5gCholesterol: 81mgSodium: 229mgPotassium: 190mgFiber: 3gSugar: 15gVitamin A: 532IUVitamin C: 11mgCalcium: 132mgIron: 2mg
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