Cantaloupe Quick Bread

Cantaloupe Bread

I use a stand mixer, but a sturdy electric hand mixer will do nicely.

Clean, slice and place very ripe cantaloupe in a blender and puree

Pureed cantaloupe

Sift and combine dry ingredients in a large bowl

Combine wet ingredients with mixer

Mix dry ingredients into wet ingredients by hand

prepare loaf pans

baked bread, cooling on wire racks

Loaves removed from pan and glazed while still very warm

Our garden had OVER-PRODUCED cantaloupe this past year and they just kept on coming!  The fruit was little, but oh-so-sweet... but we couldn't eat them fast enough! Rather than letting them spoil, I found and made MAJOR modifications to a pumpkin bread recipe which now works beautifully with ripe to very ripe cantaloupe. We loved this bread! The bread did NOT taste like cantaloupe, it tasted like a sweet, moist lightly-spiced quick-bread. Very delicate flavor. It's easy to make and worth the effort. I think you'll be really surprised!

Cantaloupe Quick Bread

3 eggs
1 cup coconut or canola oil
2 cups white sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 cups gently pureed cantaloupe (I used my blender; pulsing the puree button. Do not liquefy)
3 cups all-purpose flour (NOT self-rising flour and measure first, then sift)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

Glaze
3 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons lemon extract
Enough milk to make a thick glaze (you won’t need much and use a metal whisk; it’s thick!)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Lightly grease and flour two 9×5 inch loaf pans.
In a large bowl, beat together eggs, oil, sugar, vanilla and cantaloupe puree. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and ginger. STIR (not mix)  flour mixture into cantaloupe mixture; stir to combine. Do not overwork the batter; stir just until no traces of flour remain. Pour batter into prepared pans.
Bake in preheated oven for 55-60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of a loaf comes out clean. 

(While the bread is baking, make the glaze. Add the lemon to the powdered sugar. Stir in milk, one tablespoon at a time, until a thick glaze is reached. When you lift the whisk, it should fall in an even stream and form a ribbon before disappearing.)

When loaves are finished baking, set pans on cooling rack, cool 8 minutes. Remove loaves from pans and set directly on cooling rack over a cookie sheet. Spoon glaze onto loaves right away until glaze covers the top of the loaf and drizzles down the side. Leave on racks until cool. Wrap loosely when completely cool.

Bon Appetite!!

Priscilla Farmer
Lake Fort Phantom Hill
Jones County Texas