Walnut Streusel Bread

Last week, I bid farewell to a colleague I have worked with on our department's anti-bullying initiatives since June. She is going on to a fabulus opportunity, but she will be greatly missed by our groups. For our final editorial board meeting, I organized a farewell breakfast, contributing this walnut streusel bread. This is the second quickbread I've made in a month and I still find that my oven takes a bit longer than instructed for it to finish baking. But I've included the regular cooking instructions, just adjust accordingly per your oven.

Walnut Streusel Bread (serves 16...very tiny people)

Ingredients:

Streusel

• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/3 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 TB all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• Dash of salt
• 2 TB butter, melted
• 2 TB chopped walnuts

Bread

• 9 oz all-purpose flour (about 2 cups)
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 5 TB butter, softened
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup fat-free buttermilk
• Baking spray with flour (such as Baker's Joy)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°.

To prepare streusel, combine first five streusel ingredients in a medium bowl. Add 2 tablespoons melted butter, stirring until well combined. Stir in nuts. Set aside.

To prepare bread, weigh or lightly spoon 9 ounces flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Combine 5 tablespoons butter and granulated sugar in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium-high speed until well blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition; beat in vanilla.

Beating at low speed, add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture; beat just until combined. Scrape half of batter into a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan coated with baking spray; sprinkle with half of streusel mixture. Spread remaining batter over streusel; swirl. Sprinkle remaining streusel on top of batter.

Bake at 350° for 50 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs clinging.

Cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack. Remove from pan; cool completely on wire rack.