It’s strawberry season and what better way to kick it off than with this beautiful and easy strawberry bread recipe.  You are going to love the fresh pops of strawberries running through every bite of bread and the bright pink glaze that is packed with even more sweet strawberry flavor!  Making this bread is a wonderful way to celebrate spring!

Strawberries are on sale everywhere this time of year and I seem to never come home with less than four containers.  When choosing strawberries at the store remember that they stop ripening when they are picked, so you will want to choose bright red ones with fresh looking green tops.  Remember to flip the box over to look at the bottom to see if they are mushy or have any signs of mold!  No-one likes a mushy strawberry!

Once you get them home, strawberries should be kept DRY and in the refrigerator until you want to use them, then you run them under cold water with the caps still on before hulling the caps to eat or bake with them.  Fun fact about strawberries – did you know they are actually a part of the Rosacea family the same as roses?

A couple of tips for this recipe:

• Chop the strawberries the size you would like to have them in your mouth.  (I did little pieces.)
• Don’t over mix the batter – once you have added the dry mixture to the wet mixture, mix until just combined, then gently stir in the strawberries.
• Do NOT open the oven while the bread is cooking.  Be patient or you could end up with bread that sinks in the middle.
• For the glaze, you can absolutely use fresh strawberries instead of freeze dried.  I like the freeze dried because it stays “fresher” on the counter.  If you want to use fresh in the glaze, use 1/4 cup of mashed strawberries, but if you do that, it stores better in the refrigerator.
• When adding the half and half to the glaze, I use the full three Tbsp with the freeze dried strawberries, however, if you are using mashed fresh strawberries they will have some juice, so start with less half and half and then add till it’s the right consistency.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups AP flour
• 1 Tbsp cornstarch
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup half and half
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1-1/2 cups chopped fresh strawberries
• 1 Tbsp flour

Glaze:

• 1/4 cup freeze dried strawberries, (you can substitute 1/4 cup mashed fresh if you like)
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2-3 Tbsp half and half

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a loaf pan with non-stick baking spray (with the flour in it.) (You could alternatively line with parchment paper.)
2. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt together, then set aside.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar, oil, half and half, lemon juice, egg, and vanilla.
4. Add the dry flour mixture to the wet sugar mixture and stir together until just combined.
5. In a small bowl, combine the strawberries with the extra tablespoon of flour, then gently stir the strawberries in to the batter.
6. Spread your batter in to your prepared loaf pan.
7. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes or until the top is golden brown and a toothpick comes out just about clean, (there might be a few moist crumbs.)
8. Let the bread cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Remove the bread from the pan and cool completely on a wire rack.
9. For the Glaze:  Smash up the freeze dried strawberries until they are powder/crumbs.  (I actually pulverize mine in to a powder in my small food chopper.)  Add them to a small bowl with the powdered sugar, then add the half and half as needed to make the glaze the consistency you want. (Less half and half will make thicker, more makes it thinner.)
10. Drizzle or spread the icing over the loaf and let set for 15-30 minutes before serving.