Description
This festive Christmas Bread is a delightful sweet treat perfect for the holiday season. It features a soft, moist batter studded with colorful Christmas sprinkles and a rich vanilla glaze on top. The bread combines warm cinnamon spice with a tender crumb, making it an ideal holiday breakfast or dessert.
Ingredients
Scale
Bread:
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs
- ½ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup whole milk
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅔ cup Christmas sprinkles, plus more for topping
Icing:
- 1¼ cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Prepare the Pan: Preheat the oven to 350°F and spray a 9×5-inch loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray; set aside.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: In a large bowl, use a hand mixer to cream together the softened butter and granulated sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy, providing a smooth base for the bread batter.
- Add Wet Ingredients: Beat in the eggs and vanilla extract just until combined to avoid overmixing, then mix in the sour cream and whole milk until well incorporated; set aside.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a separate large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and ground cinnamon until evenly combined.
- Combine Wet and Dry: Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir gently until just combined with no visible flour streaks, maintaining a tender crumb.
- Fold in Sprinkles: Carefully fold in the Christmas sprinkles to distribute them evenly without overmixing, which could cause the colors to bleed.
- Bake the Bread: Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan, spreading it evenly. Bake for 60 to 70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the top is lightly golden. Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes.
- Cool Completely: Transfer the bread to a wire rack to cool completely before icing to prevent the glaze from melting.
- Prepare Icing: While the bread cools, whisk together the powdered sugar, heavy cream, and vanilla extract until smooth and spreadable.
- Glaze the Bread: Spread the icing evenly over the cooled bread using a rubber spatula. Sprinkle additional Christmas sprinkles on top if desired for festive decoration.
- Set and Serve: Let the icing set for a few minutes, then slice and serve your delicious Christmas bread.
Notes
- If the bread begins to brown too quickly during baking, tent it loosely with aluminum foil to prevent over-browning while it finishes cooking.
- Allowing the bread to cool completely before icing is crucial to avoid melting the glaze.
- Use nonpareils or hard sprinkles designed for baking to maintain their color and texture.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (1/10th of loaf)
- Calories: 280
- Sugar: 18g
- Sodium: 200mg
- Fat: 12g
- Saturated Fat: 7g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 38g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 4g
- Cholesterol: 70mg
