Brunch Part 2: Sweet Potato Bread & Recap

Brunch was a success! We had eighteen adults and three babies present. The food was super good, the conversation was even better, and there were free-flowing mimosas, bloody marys and coffee, thanks to our dear Christian and Lisa. The $5 cover charge was well-received and even complimented as a brilliant idea (I stole it). Best yet - it wasn't that hard! Everyone asked what time I got up and the answer is 7 a.m., and that's only because my daughter was up by then. I didn't get into the kitchen until about 8, and brunch was fully ready by about 10:20. And it was a leisurely morning, both before and after our friends arrived. It was great! I can't wait until next month.

The most sought after items were the egg dishes (absolutely no leftovers) and the sweet potato quick bread (same), the recipe for which I'm posting today. It was much denser and more cake-like than the zucchini muffins, and accordingly more popular. I kind of miss it actually.

You will too.

Sweet Potato Bread

Adapted from Vanilla Garlic blog

Yield: Two 8" or 9" loaves

1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 cup sugar

1 cup dark brown sugar

1 cup pureed sweet potatoes

1 cup pureed butternut squash (or another cup of sweet potatoes)

3/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled, plus more for greasing pans

4 eggs

1/2 cup maple syrup (grade B, ideally)

1 tablespoon water

1 tablespoon vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Liberally butter two loaf pans and dust with flour.

2. Whisk together flours, salt, baking soda, and sugars.

3. In mixer, blend sweet potatoes, squash, olive oil, and butter. Add eggs one at a time until incorporated. Mix in maple syrup, water and vanilla.

4. Slowly incorporate flour mixture into wet ingredients.

5. Pour batter equally into two loaf pans and bake for about an hour or until tester comes out clean.

This bread is absolutely delicious and freezes exceedingly well. I stored one loaf in the freezer for two months. Today, at brunch, it was perfectly moist and, as I mentioned above, was a total hit.

As a side note, I also tried to make a vegan buckwheat maple bread for the occasion. It was an unequivocal failure. Good flavor, but the texture can be best described as sandy - not something you want in a quick bread. So I'm working on revisions right now... I love buckwheat pancakes with maple syrup and am convinced that a well-constructed maple buckwheat bread would be a simpler, perfect way of enjoying those pancake-y flavors with a crowd. Time will tell. But I'm working on it.

For those of you who made it today, thank you. We had a great time.