Blueberry Loaf

Blueberry Vanilla Bean Loaf to be exact. And let me tell you, this loaf is good. Actually good isn't strong enough of a word to explain how tasty and delightful this bread is. I'm not a huge fan of fruit flavoured desserts because deep down within my heart I am a lover of all things chocolate. But remember I did make an exception when it came to making and tasting these. Then I made this loaf and well, I may be a fruit-flavoured-sweet-treats-lover from now on. And I never thought I'd say that...

The secret to the loaf's deliciousness is the ever-so-glorious buttermilk. And the best part to the recipe is that you can use any kind of fruit you'd like. I originally made this with fresh strawberries and then when I knew I had to make it a second time I thought why not try some fresh blueberries. I bet a triple berry loaf would be fantastic too; raspberries, blueberries, strawberries? Yes. Please. But for this loaf, plump, lovely blueberries did the job just perfectly.

Make sure you use fresh scraped vanilla beans instead of vanilla extract. It makes a world of a difference in the final sweetness of the bread. I used one bean per loaf but two beans would be heavenly and give this recipe its special touch. You could even try mashing up a banana for an extra sweet tasting treat. The possibilities are endless. So hurry to your kitchen now, and get your loaf on blogettes.

Blueberry Vanilla Bean Loaf

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temp

4 ounces cream cheese, room temp

seeds from 1-2 vanilla beans

1 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs, room temp

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

In a large bowl, combine your butter, cream cheese and sugar with an electric mixture until fluffy. Blend in the eggs one at a time until the mixture is creamy and smooth. Blend in the vanilla bean seeds and lightly mix. In a seperate medium sized bowl, add in all of the remaining ingredients except the buttermilk. Using a fork, combine these dry ingredients together then pour into the butter and cream cheese mixture. Combine the two mixtures by hand.

Add in the buttermilk and mix until the dough is nice and thick but be careful not to overmix! Fold in your berries and pour into a greased 9 x 5 loaf pan. Bake for 60-70 minutes at 350 degrees or until a toothpick inserted directly into the middle of the loaf comes out clean. Let cool for 20-35 minutes before removing from the pan. Slice into pieces and enjoy. Beware; this loaf will be gone within a few hours. It's that good, lovelies! P.S. This recipe and my photography was featured on Beanilla.com! Check out the newsletter shout out!

P.S. Is that sea foam blue ceramic cake stand not to die for? You will see that beauty again after it gracefully holds our wedding cake up on September 24th. I scored it for $19.99 at Home Goods with a matching serving tray and cannot wait to place it atop our vintage dresser. It was love at first sight :)