Quick Breads

Ingredients:
3 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1 1/2 cups sour cream

Preparing the quick bread:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease or line a 12-well muffin tin with paper liners or grease a loaf pan.

In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt, and whisk until thoroughly combined.

In another large mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs, and melted butter.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients alternating with the sour cream and mix just to combine. Avoid over-mixing the batter.

[If adding any variations, add them now.]

Pour the batter into the prepared muffin tin or loaf pan that have been greased or lined.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes for muffins or 45 to 50 for loaf bread or until a tester comes out clean.

Variations:
Cranberry Nut Orange: Add 1 tablespoon orange zest to the wet ingredients, fold 1/2 cup fresh or frozen cranberries and 3/4 cup nuts into the batter.

Lemon Blueberry: Add 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon zest to the wet ingredients. Fold in 2 cups blueberries tossed with 1 tablespoon flour to batter.

Almond Poppy Seed: add 3 tablespoons poppy seed to the dry ingredients, 2 teaspoons almond extract or paste to the wet ingredients. While baking, heat 1/2 cup sugar and 1/4 cup lemon juice in saucepan until the sugar dissolves and forms light syrup. Brush over the bread while warm.

Banana Nut: Add 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon to dry ingredients. Substitute brown sugar for white sugar and add 2 cups mashed bananas combined with 1 teaspoon lemon juice. Fold in 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans.

Pumpkin: Add 2 cups pureed pumpkin to the wet ingredients. Add 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon and 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg to the dry ingredients.

Makes 12 muffins or 1 loaf of bread