Sweet Summer Berry Bread | Dessert... or Breakfast?

Summer is officially here. Emma's home with me all week for a little summer break and while we have a couple of projects to work on (never ending closets to organize, and prints to frame for her room...), we plan to spend most of the time in the berry patch, at the pool and petting zoo.

With the new easy breeze feeling of summer, my baking is evolving from pans of brownies to lighter, brighter flavors... for the most part. I'm not quite sure where the idea for this came from, but I had a vision for a pound cake packed with berries that I could get away with enjoying for breakfast. I wanted it to be full of berries of every color - almost half berries, half cake.

I added just a touch of lemon zest for extra freshness, but you could easily add extra vanilla instead. Because I was packaging these for gifts, I did not garnish them, but I think next time I will sprinkle them with powdered sugar or a lemon glaze.

It is perfect with coffee in the morning, or whipped cream at night. I recommend storing it in the refrigerator (or freezer for an extended period) because of the extreme moisture from the extra berry content.

They make great gifts or summer party favors, too. See the packaging details at the bottom of the recipe.

Sweet Summer
Berry Bread

1 stick of butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk

1 teaspoon lemon zest

1 teaspoon of vanilla bean paste

3 cups of berries

....

optional garnishes :

-powdered sugar

-lemon glaze

Preheat oven to 350.

In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Cream together butter and sugar for 3 minutes. Add eggs. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, soda and salt. In another separate bowl, combine milk and extract. Add half of the wet ingredients to the butter sugar mixture, mix for 5 seconds, then add half of the dry and mix for 5 seconds. Repeat with second half, ending with dry ingredients.

Toss berries in tablespoon of flour before adding them to the batter.

Fold in berries carefully.

Pour batter into lined loaf pans. This recipe will make about 6 of my medium-sized wooden baking basket loafs.

Bake for 25-30 minutes (longer depending on size of pans) until a cake tester comes out clean.

Serve plain, sprinkled with powdered sugar or a drizzled with a lemon glaze.