Apple Cinnamon Bread

In addition to being simple enough to make right after baking, this light apple cinnamon bread has a warming, buttery and spicy flavor that gives everyone the feeling of autumn. And given how well a warm slice goes with a cup of coffee, don't be surprised if you have to make apple bread with cinnamon on a weekly basis throughout the season. Quick bread turns out to be incredibly moist thanks to the apple and sour cream, but the main thing to make it as tender as possible is to avoid excessive mixing. In fact, once the dry ingredients are added to the dough, it's helpful to finish mixing everything by hand using a rubber spatula, instead of continuing to beat the dough with an electric mixer. When testing the recipe, we used a Granny Smith apple, but you can really use any variety of apples that you have on hand. Do not hesitate to replace walnuts with pecans, which are called "walnuts", or do not add nuts at all.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat a 9x5-inch bread pan with cooking spray; line the pan with parchment paper, leaving 1-2-inch protrusions above the sides of the pan.Whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.Combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, and pecans (if using) in another bowl; using a fork, pour 2 tablespoons of softened butter into the brown sugar mixture. Add the sliced apple to the mixture, toss and cover.In a large bowl, beat the remaining ½ cup butter and granulated sugar with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until smooth, 4-5 minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla; mix until smooth. Add about half of the flour mixture. Add the sour cream and then the remaining flour mixture, stirring until smooth.Pour half of the batter into the prepared pan. Spoon a little more than half of the apple mixture onto the dough, lightly pressing the apples in. Brush the apples with the remaining batter. Spoon the remaining apple mixture onto the top of the loaf, pressing in slightly. Bake at 350 ° C for 55-57 minutes, or until a wooden skewer inserted in the middle of the loaf comes out clean. Cool completely in a large skillet. Before serving, lift the loaf out of the pan using the parchment protrusion and cut into slices.