Happy Fall, everyone! To celebrate my favorite season, I decided to create a sweet caramel apple bread that will fill your home with the fall aromas of baked apples and cinnamon. And to top it off, I added date caramel to make it extra special. Oh man. This cake bread is so good, you’d never guess that it’s vegan, gluten-free, and oil free!
Gluten-free baking can be a bit daunting, so I debated whether to try to create this recipe or not. Well, after spending hours basically destroying my kitchen last weekend, I finally did it! I came up with a nutritious caramel apple bread that’s free of inflammatory ingredients, has great flavor and texture, and is a recipe I’ll make over and over again. And you know, it really wasn’t that hard.
My first version, pictured above, did not contain walnuts. It was delicious, but I prefer the extra chewy/crunchy texture of the nuts. It’s completely up to you whether you want to add them or not. I also did a much better job of swirling the date caramel into the top of the bread on the first go around, as you can see.
Oh well. Taste is really what matters, right?
And this caramel apple bread is SO GOOD.
Apples
Cinnamon
Walnuts
DATE CARAMEL
Need I say more?
Oh, and the recipe makes enough date caramel for two loaves, so feel free to double the rest of the bread recipe and give one loaf to a friend or put it in the freezer for later!
- 8 medjool dates, soaked in hot water 30 mins.
- 1 cup GF all-purpose flour (I use Bob's Red Mill)
- ½ cup almond flour (make your own in the blender if necessary)
- ½ tsp. xanthan gum
- 1½ tsp. baking powder
- ¼ tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- ½ cup almond milk
- 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
- 1 flax egg (1 T. milled flax + 3 T. warm water, allowed to set 5 min.)
- ⅓ cup apple sauce
- 3 T. maple syrup
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup coconut sugar
- 1 cup apple, chopped into ¼-inch cubes (roughly one apple)
- Optional: ¼-1/3 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line a large loaf pan with parchment paper, leaving some overhang.
- Drain your dates and add them to a blender or food processor, along with a pinch of salt and ¼ cup + 1 T. warm water. Blend until you've created a fairly smooth paste. Transfer to a small sandwich bag and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the GF flour, almond flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
- In a separate bowl, combine the almond milk and apple cider vinegar. Stir and let sit for about a minute. This creates a buttermilk by curdling some of the milk proteins.
- Now stir in the flax egg, apple sauce, maple syrup, vanilla, and coconut sugar.
- Pour the wet mixture into the dry and stir just until the clumps disappear. Do not overmix. Fold in the apple and walnuts and pour batter into the lined loaf pan.
- Cut off a small corner of the date caramel bag and pipe half of the caramel onto the top of the batter. Using a knife or small spoon, swirl the caramel into the batter as desired.
- Bake for 35-40 mins (38 mins was perfect for my oven), until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Allow at least 15 mins to cool before removing from pan and cutting.
- Enjoy with your favorite coffee or tea!
My parents are visiting next weekend, and I plan on making this caramel apple bread for them. I just finished off my loaf, so that’s a long wait for me to have another slice . . .
Maybe I’ll try turning this recipe into caramel apple muffins next time. Feel free to try it and let me know how it works out!
♥ ♥ ♥
Love apples and caramel? Try my Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars!
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