Apple, Carrot & Walnut Bread

Serves 12-14 (Makes 1 Loaf & 4 Muffins)

This deliciously moist and tasty bread is a total revelation. It is sweet but not too sweet and literally brimming with wholesome and nourishing ingredients.  It was the first time I made it and I was really pleased with how it turned out.  I have a veritable bounty of fallen apples in my garden right now and I literally cannot keep up with making enough recipes with them before they turn mouldy.  This mouth-watering loaf can be enjoyed any time of the day – it is great for breakfast with a dollop of nut butter, can be eaten alone as an afternoon snack, or with some cream for dessert.  

For some reason, I’ve never been brilliant with quantities, so this recipe makes 1 loaf plus 4 muffins, instead of the intended single loaf.  So treat those extra muffins as a surprise gift for your freezer, and enjoy the loaf fresh over the next few days.  It’s as easy as mixing everything together in one bowl, so that minimizes on the washing up and means that it’s a good recipe for little helping hands too. My kids just loved picking the apples in the garden, helping me with the recipe and then enjoying this delicious and healthy sweet treat an hour later. As an added bonus, I love how it fills the house with that homely freshly baked cinnamon aroma, which is just perfect to greet you on these cold afternoons.

One serving provides 180 calories, 4g of protein and 5g of fibre, which really does make it an ideal blood sugar stabilising after school snack.  And thanks to the micronutrient rich carrots, one slice also provides 157% of my daily Vitamin A requirements, which makes it a great immune booster too.

NOTE: If you are dairy free – I’m sure the butter could be easily substituted for coconut oil instead.

INGREDIENTS

·     100g Jumbo Porridge Oats
·     150g Plain Wholemeal Flour
·     50g Chopped Walnuts 
·     25g Sugar of your choice (I used Monk Fruit Sweetener)
·     ½ tsp Cinnamon
·     ½ tsp Nutmeg
·     1 tsp Baking Soda
·     2 tsp Baking Powder
·     3 Large Eggs
·     50g Butter - melted
·     1 tsp Vanilla extract
·     6 Eating Apples
·     200g Carrots 

METHOD

·     Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
·     Peel and core the apples.
·     Coarsely grate the apples and carrots into a large mixing bowl.
·     Melt the butter on a low heat in the microwave in 30 second increments until fully melted.
·     Add all of the ingredients one at a time to the apple and carrots in the mixing bowl and combine well.  There’s no secret to the stages here – it all just needs to go in the bowl to be mixed!
·     Line a loaf tin with non stick parchment paper, or a loaf liner.  
·     Grease 4 muffin holes in a muffin tray.
·     Carefully spoon the mixture into the loaf tin and muffin holes.
·     Top with a sprinkling of extra porridge oats and chopped walnuts.
·     Bake the muffins in the oven for 25 minutes and the loaf for approximately 55 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
·     Cool on a wire rack and enjoy! 
·     Suitable for freezing.

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

Calories – 180
Protein – 4g
Fat – 8g
Carbohydrates – 27g
Fibre – 5g
Vitamin A – 157%
Calcium – 58%