Lemon, Almond, and Raisin Loaf

Today’s recipe is a rich quick bread that would be great served at breakfast. The loaf makes a striking presentation topped with sliced almonds.

The source of my recipe is a cookbook called Quick Breads by Linda Collister.

Lemon, Almond, and Raisin Loaf

1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
grated zest of 1 lemon
2 eggs
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
pinch of salt
freshly squeezed juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 cup milk
3/4 cup sliced or slivered almonds
2/3 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and base-line with parchment paper.
Put the butter, sugar, and lemon zest in a large bowl, and beat with an electric mixer until light and creamy. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt to the mixture. Mix until flour is incorporated. Remove bowl from mixer. Add lemon juice and milk, stir in with a spoon. Mix in the almonds (reserving 1 tablespoon for topping) and the raisins.
Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan and smooth the surface. Scatter the reserved almonds over the top, then bake for about 50 minutes until golden and firm, and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then carefully remove from the pan and place on a wire rack to cool completely. Serve thickly sliced.

This recipe makes a thick batter, so it needs to be smoothed out before baking.

Scatter the reserved almonds over the top of the batter before baking.

Serve thickly sliced.