Almond Poppy Seed Bread

I’m a fan of something sweet to eat in the morning with my cup of tea (usually a chai latte from Starbucks). I usually eat breakfast at my desk at work because I don’t really take the time to eat before leaving the house. I modified this almond poppyseed bread recipe that I saw on pinterest.com for my breakfast for the next couple of days. It doesn’t take too much effort to make this in the evening so that you can grab it and go in the morning before work. It holds up well in traveling to the office, is moist, and sweet. It’s homemade – so that must be healthier than eating a donut or store-bought pastry in the morning, right?! That’s my justification to indulge in this yummy morning treat. 

Almond Poppyseed BreadFor the bread…
1 1/2  cups all-purpose flour *
1/4  teaspoon salt
3/4  teaspoon baking powder
1 1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract
1 teaspoon melted butter
1 tablespoon poppy seeds

*You could use a mix of almond flour and white rice flour to make this gluten-free.

For the glaze…1/4 cup orange juice
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Grease a loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray, line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper, and grease the paper.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar. Add the oil, eggs, extract, and butter in whisk until just combined. Stir in the poppy seeds.  Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake at 325 for 55 minutes (or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean).

Remove the bread from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Run a knife along the edges of the bread and remove bread from pan. Cool completely on a wire rack.

To make the glaze…
In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the orange juice, sugar, and almond extract. Cook until sugar is completely dissolved. Allow to cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Brush glaze over the top of the bread. As the glaze drips down the sides, brush it back onto the top. The glaze will be quite thin, but will set to a sweet little crust as it cools.

Slice and enjoy!