poppy seed bread

This is my mother's recipe.  I'm sure she modified it based on a recipe she found, but I don't know where that was so I call it hers.  I absolutely love this bread -- it is quite easy to make and always reminds me of home in a way that no store-bought lemon poppy seed muffin ever can.  In Singapore, it was impossible to find poppy seeds, because of their association with opium.  Being able to make this again now that I no longer live there always feels like a special treat!

Makes 5-6 small loaves or 2-3 large ones. 

 

Ingredients:

For the Bread:

- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 1/4 cups granulated sugar (2 works too - depending on how sweet you want it)
- 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 3 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups milk
- 2 Tbsp. poppy seeds
- 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 tsp. almond extract
- 1 1/2 tsp. butter extract (can omit or replace with 1 Tbsp. butter if you want butter flavor)

For the Glaze:

- 1/4 cup orange juice (no pulp).  You could probably replace this with lemon juice - slightly less than 1/4 cup, in that case.  Other options could be chocolate or espresso powder dissolved in 1/4 cup of water, or another juice like raspberry. 
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp. butter extract (can omit or replace with 1 tsp. butter if you want butter flavor)
- 1/2 tsp. almond extract
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar (2/3 cup works as well for the orange juice, depending on desired sweetness)

Directions:

For the Bread:

1. Mix all the wet ingredients together until uniform. 

2. Sift the dry ingredients (or just combine) in a separate bowl.

3. Gently fold dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.

4. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour at 350 degrees Fahrenheit in greased, floured pans.  Depending on the depth of the pans, you might want to start checking it after about 30 minutes.  It is done when a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.  

For the Glaze:

1. Combine and boil all ingredients for a couple of minutes (until sugar is completely dissolved). 

2. Pour over baked loaves while they are still hot.  At this point, you could also add toasted sliced almonds on top of the glaze.  

3. Cool the loaves in pans for 10-15 minutes.  Then remove from pans and cool completely on wire racks.