The temperatures have really dropped now here in New Jersey. That means I love to have my oven going with something scrumptious baking in it. It warms the house both with the heat and the great smells! I’m still trying to eat a little better in 2016 though, so I have been trying to find ways to make my baked goods a little leaner and more nutritious. This herbed lemon poppy seed bread was just the ticket! It had all of my favorite Mediterranean flavors that I grew up loving without as much of the guilt. I used almond milk to make it lighter and give it a nutty flavor at the same time. I also used quinoa flour to make it more nutritious. Best of all, it was so easy to make!
This herbed lemon poppy seed bread has such a tender crumb and all of the Mediterranean flavors I love. Best of all it's gluten free!
- 1 3/4 cups quinoa flour
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon herbs de provence
- 1 teaspoon poppy seeds plus additional for sprinkling on top
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 whole lemons zested and juiced
- 1 cup almond milk
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 whole eggs
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme leaves removed from the stems
- Pre-heat the oven to 350 and liberally spray a standard loaf pan with cooking spray. Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, herbs de provence, poppy seeds and salt in a large mixing bowl. Whisk all of that together to aerate the dry ingredients. In another bowl combine the lemon zest, lemon juice, almond milk, olive oil, eggs and fresh thyme. Whisk those wet ingredients together until smooth. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients and whisk it all together into a smooth, thick batter.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth it out to be even on top. Sprinkle a generous amount of additional poppy seeds on top, then bake the loaf for around 50 minutes. Use a toothpick inserted in the very center to test whether it is baked through, it's the most reliable way. It should come out cleanly.
- When it's done, let the bread cool in the loaf pan for 15-20 minutes, then turn it out onto a cutting board to finish cooling. Slice the bread and serve with a great cup of coffee or tea! It will also keep for a day or so sealed in a container. Enjoy!
It is the same with me, I also bake more in the winter, every reason to get the oven going is good with me. 🙂 This bread looks delicious. I am sure I cannot find quinoa flour around here, but I suppose it would be ok to just mill some quinoa like I would do with regular wheat grains?
Thank you so much! I’ve never milled my own flour, so I’m unfortunately not sure how it would go. If you have trouble with it, you can substitute any flour you can get a hold of. AP flour works well in this recipe 🙂
Yummy! I love almost anything lemon flavored, so I will have to make this. It seems to have a great mix of other flavors.
Thanks very much, Ayanna!
I’m such a huge fan of lemon and poppy seed together! I love this!
One of my favorite combinations too, Marta! Thanks so much :-).
Love that you use quinoa flour in your recipe. Lemon poppy seed is one of our favorite, thanks for sharing!
Thanks so much!!
Looks amazing! Makes me miss fall in the northeast!
Thank you very much!!
This looks delicious and so pretty too! I feel like I can bake a bunch and wrapped them up nicely and it’ll make a great hostess gift!
Absolutely!! They make fantastic gifts. Thanks very much :-).