Apricot Corn Bread – perfect for relaxed Sunday baking

From Renée Elliott’s Me, You and the Kids Too.

If you want something home-baked to fill the tins this weekend, try this delicious, moreish bread. Corn bread makes a tasty change from flour-based snacks and is good warm or cold, plain or toasted with butter. Apricots add a nice touch here, giving extra sweetness and goodness. Make sure you buy organic apricots, which are unsulphured.

Apricot Corn Bread

Makes: 1 loaf

Preparation time: 25 minutes

Cooking time: 1 hour 5 minutes
 
320g/11¼oz/scant 2¼ cups cornmeal or fast-cook polenta
120g/4¼oz/1 cup white spelt flour or white plain flour
60g/2¼oz/½ cup brown rice flour
200g/7oz/1 cup cane sugar
2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp fine sea salt
60g/2¼oz unsalted butter or 60ml/2fl oz/¼ cup sunflower oil, plus extra for greasing
2 large eggs
2 tbsp cream cheese
240ml/8fl oz/scant 1 cup natural yogurt
150g/5½oz/heaped ¾ cup dried, unsulphured apricots, finely chopped

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°F/gas 3. Grease a 23 x 13cm/9 x 5in loaf tin with butter and line with baking parchment. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the cornmeal, flours, sugar, bicarbonate of soda and salt. Heat the butter in a saucepan over a low heat until melted, then remove from the heat. In another bowl, lightly beat the eggs together with a whisk. Add the melted butter, yogurt, apricots and 240ml/8fl oz/scant 1 cup water and mix well.

2. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and beat slowly with a wooden spoon until just combined, but take care not to overmix. Pour the mixture into the loaf tin and level the surface, using a clean knife. Bake for 1 hour until lightly browned and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Remove from the oven and leave to cool for 15 minutes, then turn out of the tin, transfer to a wire rack, remove the baking parchment and leave to cool. Serve warm.

 
‘Renée Elliott’s cookbook is a kitchen essential for new moms and for those who need a little inspiration on how to feed the entire family.’

 
Cooking for a family can be a huge challenge that leaves you feeling like you’re always making compromises. In Me, You and the Kids Too, Renée Elliott makes this do-able. She shows that you don’t have to cook different recipes to please everyone at the table – and that you never have to sacrifice flavour or nutrition to get meals made without stress.

Me, You and the Kids Too by Renée Elliott

Order the eBook for only £7.99