A bread to bring you luck...

I love when strawberries come into season. Talk about nature?s candy. As much as I adore eating them fresh from the carton (sometimes without washing?don?t tell my mom, okay?), these little ruby jewels were made to be used in baked goods! [Cue the music] Enter King Arthur--have I mentioned I'm obsessed with everything about KA, from their recipes to their products?--to provide me with a fabulous recipe for Strawberry Walnut Quick Bread! Not only did this bread sate my craving for moist and delicious, spicy and sweet, strawberry goodness, but it also brought me luck! You see, after baking this bread, I won the King Arthur contest on Donna?s blog, Spatulas, Corkscrews, and Suitcases! (When Donna shared this fabulous news with me, I had to climb out of the fort of law books I had erected around myself and do a little happy dance. Notably, this happy dance is quite similar to my 80s dance, which also happens to be my only dance. Needless to say, this dance is reserved for special occasions. But, I digress.) Thank you King Arthur, and thank you Donna!

If you haven?t checked out Donna?s blog, well, that?s just plain unacceptable. She has fabulous recipes for all occasions. You simply must go. Plus, she does fabulous recipe ?round ups,? a compilation of truly mouth-watering treats, and of course, amazing giveaways! Go on, go on. Click the link and go say hi! Even better yet, visit her blog AND check out her article on why she loves KA so much!

Okay, now let?s talk about this lucky bread! I?ve adapted the KA recipe a bit, so we?re now using macerated strawberries. Macerating the berries not only brought out their fabulous sweetness, but also made them super tender. Tender berries make for a moist and delicious bread! Add some toasted walnuts tossed with a bit of butter while warm! Sounding good so far? I also threw in a bit of cinnamon because, you know me, I can?t resist the cinnamon. (Be warned: if you have a problem with spice, you might want to decrease the cinnamon to ¼ tsp and nix the nutmeg. This is a spicy bread, though it mellows after sitting for a day or two.) The original recipe also called for ½ cup vegetable oil, but I replaced this with ¼ cup heavy cream. I wanted the tender richness that cream imparts. I still got a delicate crumb despite the lack of oil. I also used a bit of lime zest rather than the lemon zest called for in the original. And, last, but not least, I added 1 cup of white chocolate chips. These did wonders for the bread?they essentially melt into the dough and make for a moist cake studded with hints of melty, white chocolate!

This bread is totally divine. But, that?s not surprising come from King Arthur now, is it?

Strawberry Walnut Quick Bread with White Chocolate Chips
Recipe Adapted from King Arthur

1 ¼ cup chopped strawberries (about 1 cup, macerated)
2 TBS granulated sugar
1 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped
2 TBS butter
1 ½ cups AP flour
1 cup granulated sugar
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
Zest of one lime
2 eggs
¼ cup heavy cream
1 cup white chocolate chips

Method:
(1) Macerate the berries. Chop strawberries and place in bowl. Sprinkle 2 TBS sugar over the berries. Allow to sit for a couple of hours (if you have time), until the strawberries are swimming in their own juices!

(2) Preheat the oven to 350. Grease a 9x5 loaf pan.

(3) Toast the walnuts on a baking sheet for 7-9 minutes until fragrant. Immediately toss the walnuts with the 2 TBS butter. Allow to cool. Coarsely chop the nuts and set them aside.

(4) Mix flour, sugar, soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg with a whisk and set aside.

(5) Whisk together the zest of one lime, two eggs, heavy cream, and the strawberries (and their liquid). Whisk this wet mixture into the dry mixture until a sticky, wet dough forms. Stir in toasted walnuts and white chocolate chips.

(6) Pour dough into the prepared pan. Bake for 55-60 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean.