A sweet, homespun bake that’ll make your mouth happy, this Gluten Free Blueberry Bread is just right for a snack or even for a quick breakfast idea. Easy to make, and totally gluten free!
Scrumptious Blueberry Loaf Cake with Walnut Topping
As much as I love complex desserts with all the bells and whistles, sometimes all you need is a simple treat – think a thick slice of loaf cake with a good cup of coffee. Yum. While I’ve already shared my Gluten Free Brown Butter Banana Bread, a classic Zucchini Bread recipe, and this Cranberry Orange Bread that’s perfect for the holidays, today I’m adding to the party with this amazing gluten free blueberry bread.
This easy blueberry bread recipe is just right for snacking, whether you having it with coffee or slicing it up for the kiddos with a cold glass of your favorite milk. Since it’s gluten-free, it’s an extra-welcome treat for any family members who are sensitive to gluten or have a gluten intolerance. With fresh blueberries and a hint of cinnamon, this is one sweet and luscious quick bread.
The Ingredients You’ll Need
Gluten-free baking doesn’t have to be hard! This easy blueberry bread is made with simple, everyday ingredients and you don’t need to know any complicated techniques. Here’s what you’ll need to make it.
For the Blueberry Bread
- Flour: Use your favorite gluten-free flour blend.
- Salt
- Rising Agents: Both baking powder and baking soda give the bread a light, moist texture.
- Blueberries: Fresh blueberries, picked over for stems or old berries, washed, and dried.
- Egg: One large, whole egg adds structure.
- Coconut Sugar: I like to use coconut sugar, but you can also use brown sugar, raw sugar, etc.
- Butter: Unsalted butter, cubed and softened.
- Lemon Juice: Fresh is best, but bottled is also fine.
- Milk: If you need this recipe to be non-dairy, use your favorite plant-based milk. I used almond milk.
- Extracts: Pure vanilla extract and almond extract.
For the Walnut Topping (Optional)
- Butter: To make a smooth, shiny topping, you’ll need a bit more butter – I use unsalted.
- Brown Sugar: Dark brown sugar, packed into the measuring cup for good measure.
- Cinnamon: Ground cinnamon.
- Walnuts: Chopped.
How to Make Gluten Free Blueberry Bread
To make this old-fashioned blueberry bread with walnut topping, you will need to make the batter and topping separately. Both processes are super easy, though. Here’s how to do it:
- Pre-Baking Tasks. To begin, you will need to preheat your oven to 350°F. Then prepare your loaf pan by lining it with parchment paper, and spraying it lightly with baking spray. You can also butter it instead.
- Combine the Dry Ingredients. Next, get your ingredients out and measure the dry ingredients into a medium bowl (flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda). Add the blueberries and toss to coat.
- Combine the Wet Ingredients. In a separate bowl, use an electric mixer on medium speed to blend the eggs and sugar. Add the butter and mix that in as well. Finally, mix in the vanilla, almond extract, lemon juice, and milk.
- Add the Dry Ingredients to the Wet. Next, lower the mixer speed to low and slowly add the flour mixture to the egg mixture. Blend until the ingredients are well-incorporated. The batter will be quite thick. Spread it gently into the prepared pan.
- Make the Topping. The topping will be baked on top of the bread, so you’ll need to make that next. Melt the butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat, and stir in the sugar. Next, add the walnuts and cook for about 2 minutes, stirring, until the mixture is shiny and smooth, and the nuts are well-coated. Spread the topping over the batter.
- Bake. Bake the blueberry bread for 30 minutes. Check on it, and if the bread is browning too quickly, tent it loosely with foil to prevent the bread from over-browning. Bake for an additional 30 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean.
- Cool. Take the bread out and let it cool for 20 minutes. At that point, you can run a knife around the inside edge of the pan, and remove the bread to finish cooling for one hour on a rack.
- Enjoy!
How Do You Keep Blueberries from Sinking in Bread?
One problem with baking fruit into cakes and breads is that it has a tendency to fall to the bottom of the baking pan during the baking process. The old-fashioned way to keep this from happening is still the best: toss the fruit pieces with the flour (or gluten-free flour, in this case!). This will coat the fruit and help it “stick” to the batter around it instead of sliding down to the bottom.
Recipe Notes
I hope you’re inspired to try this easy recipe! For some helpful tips and substitutions, check out these tips and tricks for baking up the perfect gluten-free blueberry bread.
- Flour: Making your own gluten-free flour blend is great, but be sure that it works as a 1:1 flour substitute if you are using it in this recipe. That usually means including xanthan gum to give the bread a little bit of elasticity. 1:1 commercial blends usually work really well, too.
- Blueberries: I like to use fresh blueberries when they are in season, but you can also bake this using frozen blueberries. Use them frozen – there’s no need to thaw them first.
- Walnuts: The combination of blueberries and walnuts is simply delicious, but if you don’t have walnuts, I recommend using pecans instead. They have a similarly soft-yet-crunchy texture. If you’d rather use almonds, go with sliced or slivered almonds for the closest texture match.
- Resting: Quick breads that are gluten-free often benefit from a good long rest time after they are baked. This one definitely fits in that category! Be sure to let it rest and cool for at least one hour (several hours is even better) after baking. That will give it time to firm up and become slice-able.
Should Blueberry Bread Be Refrigerated?
Blueberry bread will keep longest in the refrigerator – up to four days. Just be sure to store it in an airtight container like a glass storage container with a tight-fitting lid, or a food storage bag with a zip top. That way, it won’t dry out.
Can I Freeze This?
Sure! To freeze it successfully, cool it down completely and then wrap the blueberry bread in two layers of plastic wrap, or one layer of plastic wrap followed by a freezer bag. Mark with the date, and freeze for up to three months.
Gluten Free Blueberry Bread
Ingredients
- 2 cups gluten free flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries
- 1 large egg
- 1 cups coconut sugar
- ¼ cup unsalted butter cubed and softened
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- ½ cup non dairy milk I used almond milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
Walnut topping (optional):
- 1/4 cup 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 cup walnuts chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 9” x 5” loaf pan with parchment paper and spray with baking spray or butter lightly.
- In a medium bowl add flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and blueberries, toss to coat blueberries and combine ingredients.
- With an electric mixer on medium speed, beat egg and sugar until blended. Add butter and blend. Then add vanilla, almond extract, lemon juice and milk.
- Once batter is evenly blended, lower the mixer speed to low and slowly add in the flour and blueberry mixture. The batter will be quite thick.
- Spread gently into the prepared pan.
- Melt the butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the sugar and stir. Add the walnuts and cook for about 2 minutes, stirring, until the butter and sugar mixture is shiny and smooth and the nuts are well-coated with the butter and sugar. Spread over the blueberry bread batter.
- Bake for 30 minutes. Then tent the bread with foil to prevent the bread from over browning. Cook for an additional 30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
- Cool for 20 minutes then run a knife around the inside edge of the pan and remove the bread. Cool for an hour before serving.
Notes
- Storing and Freezing: Store this bread unsliced in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, or in the freezer for several months.
- Flour: Making your own gluten-free flour blend is great, but be sure that it works as a 1:1 flour substitute if you are using it in this recipe. That usually means including xanthan gum to give the bread a little bit of elasticity. 1:1 commercial blends usually work really well, too.
- Blueberries: I like to use fresh blueberries when they are in season, but you can also bake this using frozen blueberries. Use them frozen – there’s no need to thaw them first.
- Walnuts: The combination of blueberries and walnuts is simply delicious, but if you don’t have walnuts, I recommend using pecans instead. They have a similarly soft-yet-crunchy texture. If you’d rather use almonds, go with sliced or slivered almonds for the closest texture match.
- Resting: Quick breads that are gluten free often benefit from a good long rest time after they are baked. This one definitely fits in that category! Be sure to let it rest and cool for at least one hour (several hours is even better) after baking. That will give it time to firm up and become slice-able.
