Tyneisha Lewis
Strawberries are one of the most popular berries in the warmer months and summer season. Why not celebrate the warmer weather by making strawberry bread? Kara Mae Harris, author of Old Line Plate, a Maryland-based food blog drawing on local history and recipes, talks strawberries and shares three recipes for strawberry bread.
What was Maryland like, [as] a source for strawberries?
Kara Mae Harris: Maryland had a huge strawberry industry in Anne Arundel County and on the Eastern Shore. A lot of immigrants who lived in Baltimore would go to pick them each year. And in the spring, churches would hold strawberry festivals to raise funds and celebrate the crops.
What was strawberry picking like for you?
KMH: I actually didn’t always like it that much—you often pick strawberries in the heat and sun and you have to crouch down. But that’s why it’s easier for kids to do. Even though I didn’t enjoy the picking, I enjoyed preserving and eating the strawberries, and it was a good learning experience.
Strawberry Nut Bread
Makes 5 loaves
Ingredients:
1 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 cup strawberry jam
½ cup sour cream
1 cup walnuts (broken)
1 ½ cup sugar
¼ teaspoon lemon extract
3 cups flour (sifted)
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
Directions:
1. In a mixing bowl, cream butter, sugar, vanilla and lemon extract until fluffy.
2. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well until after each addition.
3. Sift together flour, salt, cream of tartar and soda. Combine jam and sour cream.
4. Add jam mixture alternatively with dry ingredients to creamed mixture, beating until well combined.
5. Stir in nuts.
6. Divide among five greased and floured 4 ½ by 2 ¾ by 2 ¼ -inch loaf pans. Baked at 350°F for 52 to 55 minutes, or until it tests done.
7. Cool 20 minutes in pans; remove and cool completely on wire racks.
—Susan Harple (“Bread – the symbol of home, hope and hospitality” – Cookbook: Jerusalem Lutheran Ladies Aid. “What’s Cooking in Jerusalem Lutheran” 1977)
Strawberry Bread
Ingredients:
2 eggs
1 cup brown sugar, packed
½ cup granulated sugar
⅔ cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 ½ cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
1 ½ cup quartered strawberries
¾ cup chopped walnuts
Topping:
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
½ teaspoon cinnamon
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Grease two standard loaf pans. Prepare strawberries; set aside.
3. Beat eggs; add sugars, oil and vanilla. Beat in salt and soda.
4. Add flour alternately with buttermilk in three parts. Begin and end with flour. (You can use 2 cups of flour and ½ cup wheat germ.)
5. Gently stir in strawberries and walnuts. Pour into loaf pans; sprinkle with topping.
6. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, or until it tests done. Cool in pan for 10 minutes.
7. Finish cooling on racks.
—Carrie Brennen (Cookbook: Old Friendship United Methodist Church. “Country Classics Vol. 2” 1980s)
Strawberry Bread (additional recipe)
Ingredients:
4 eggs
1 ¼ cup salad oil (can use
vegetable oil)
2 cups sugar
½ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups flour
3 teaspoons cinnamon
¾ cups chopped nuts
1 (16-ounce) package frozen strawberries, thawed
Directions:
1. Beat eggs and add salad oil.
2. Then, add sugar; beat well. Mix with dry ingredients (salt, soda, flower and cinnamon).
3. Stir in nuts. Fold in the package of thawed strawberries.
4. Put in greased loaf pans. Makes two large (or four to five small) loaves.
5. Bake at 350°F in oven for 50 to 60 minutes. Test bread with a toothpick, like a cake.
6. Remove from the pan. Cool on rack.
—Mae Kumsher, Boonsboro Library Board (Cookbook: Boonsboro Free Library. “Friends for A New Boonsboro Library Cookbook” 2004)
