Fruit Bread (1933)

The 1930s Fruit Bread recipe is studded with candied orange peel and nuts. The recipe produces two golden loaves and freezes well for later use.

Two things worth noting in this recipe. First, this recipe calls for Graham flour – coarse ground whole wheat flour. Regular whole wheat flour can be substituted if you can not find Graham flour but we recommended the heartier texture and nuttier flavor of Graham flour for this bread.

The second thing to note is in the original directions it is recommended that the loaves be stored overnight before slicing. This a tough directive. We get it (coming from someone who has repeatedly burned themselves while eating molten hot brownies from the pan). Your house is going to smell amazing. There are going to be two beautiful golden loaves of fruit bread tempting you, but hear us out.

Since the recipe produces two loaves testing how significant waiting to slice the bread was built into our test run of this recipe. We sliced it into one loaf after about 40 minutes of cool time and left the second loaf overnight.

Was the 40-minute cool time loaf a disaster when sliced? Not at all. It was crumbly but held up nicely. Flavor-wise the candied orange seemed more tart while the bread was still warm out of the oven. Was the overnight loaf better? Some could argue yes. The flavors had settled allowing the orange flavor to permeate the crumb and the loaf’s exterior had hardened up allowing for easier slicing. Our recommendation is this: if you want to slice it for toast or sandwiches, make it a day in advance and let it firm up overnight. You’ll have firm, easy-to-slice bread with a moist interior. Otherwise, let it cool down for 30-40 minutes and dive in.

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Fruit Bread - 1933

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Total Time 1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes

1930s Fruit Bread recipe is studded with candied orange peel and nuts. This recipe produces two golden loaves and freezes well for later use.

Equipment

• 2 Loaf Pans

Ingredients

• 2 cups Flour ((shifted))
• 4 tsp Baking Powder
• 1½ tsp Salt
• ¾ cup Sugar
• 2 cups Graham Flour*
• ¾ cup Candied Orange Peel (finely chopped)
• ¾ cup Chopped Nuts
• 2 Eggs
• 1⅔ cup Milk
• 4 Tbs Butter (melted)

Instructions 

• Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease two loaf pans and set aside.
• Shift together flour, salt, baking powder and sugar.
• Stir in Graham flour, orange peel, and nuts until combined.
• In a separate mixing bowl combine eggs, milk, and melted butter. Slowly add to flour mixture until evenly incorporated.
• Divide batter between two greased loaf pans and bake in preheated oven for 45-60 minutes or until firm to touch at center.
• Remove from pans and cool thoroughly before slicing.** Store in an air-tight container. Freezes well.

Notes

*Graham flour is coarse-ground whole wheat flour. Regular whole wheat flour can be substituted.

**The original directions recommend allowing loaves to set overnight before slicing. While this produces a firmer, easier-to-slice loaf, it is not obligatory to enjoy the bread.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Suggestions

+ Substitute or mix candied fruit such as cherries, lemons, apples, etc.

+ 1 Tbs fresh lemon or orange zest

+ Spice it up with a 1/2 tsp of cinnamon, pinch of nutmeg, or allspice.

Source

Adapted from a recipe appearing in All About Home Baking (1933 edition).