This lemon tea bread has just the right balance of sweet and tart. Even though the recipe is called lemon tea bread, it actually doesn’t contain any lemon except for a small amount of juice in the glaze on top. That being said it is still very lemony, light and refreshing and perfect for any time of the day. When I want to bake something for someone this is the recipe I go to most often. When you receive this tea bread as a gift you know you are special. It was adapted from a recipe in Bon Appetit (June-2006) that was submitted by Normandy Farm Bakery in Charleston, South Carolina.
- 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup Canola oil
- 3 large eggs lightly beaten
- 2 teaspoons almond extract
- 1 2/3 cup milk
- 2 tablespoons poppy seeds
- 1 cup confectioner's sugar
- zest 1 lemon
- 2 teaspoons butter melted
- 1 - 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease two 8 1/2-inch X 4 1/2-inch metal loaf pans and line the bottom with wax paper.
- Whisk flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a KitchenAid mixer, (or using hand mixer) beat sugar, oil, eggs and almond extract until pale yellow and thick, about 5 minutes.
- Add dry ingredients to sugar mixture in 3 additions alternately with milk. Mix until just combined. Stir in poppy seeds and pour into prepared loaf pans.
- Bake until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 50 - 60 minutes.
- Whisk confectioner's sugar, zest, butter and lemon juice. Add more lemon juice as needed to make drizzling consistency. Drizzle over cooled loaves. Enjoy!
Feel free to substitute almond milk for cows milk. Also, the glaze should not be so thin that it just drips off of the bread. Adding a little bit of fat (butter) to the glaze helps it to set.
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