My mom’s homemade apple bread recipe is a favorite around here, loaded with fresh shredded apples that make it incredibly moist and tender. I especially like to bake this in the fall, using just-picked apples from my parents’ trees or ones from a local orchard. The bread is perfectly spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla, and has tons of fresh apple flavor in every single bite!
Mom’s Apple Bread IS LIke A Big Apple-Cinnamon Hug!
My mom has been making this apple bread for as long as our family can remember — our daughters affectionately call it “Grandma Barb’s Apple Bread”. When my parents stay with us for a fall weekend, Mom usually brings us a fresh-baked loaf of this bread and a couple jars of chunky homemade applesauce, which is such a treat. Growing up on the farm with apple trees and my mom’s baking, there’s simply nothing better this time of year!
“This apple bread has the BEST apple flavor.” This is the #1 thing I hear from family, friends, and reader comments. And the secret to its fresh apple goodness in every bite? A mess of shredded apples (unlike diced apples, which can sink to the bottom of your bread)! The shreds are packed with the apple’s natural sweet juices and are small and thin, which allows them to be distributed very evenly throughout the bread. This guarantees that each bite of bread is exceptionally moist + infused with maximum apple flavor. Simply use a box grater to shred the apple, a method I use in my apple bundt cake too, which has become a reader favorite.
Mom is a big fan of cinnamon, and that definitely comes through in each slice, as well as just a touch of nutmeg. The house smells so cozy while this bread is baking; it’s like a big apple-cinnamon hug.
It’s also quick and easy to make. I can have two pans of apple bread in the oven in just 20 minutes!
“Beautiful color and the whole house smelled liked apple pie baking. It’s absolutely DELISH, this recipe totally surpasses others! It’s moist and has such good flavor!”
Susan
make sure to choose a flavorful apple
This can make or break your bread. If you use a variety with weak apple flavor, your bread simply can’t muster up its best fresh apple flavor. I especially like ones that have at least some tartness, as this adds a little contrast to the bread’s sweetness. Also choose an apple that is firm and doesn’t turn to absolute mush when it’s baked; this lends a beautiful, fine texture to the loaf. My favorite baking apples are Haralson (very crisp and firm, famously tart, yet not as widely available) and Honeycrisp (juicier yet still very firm, with a more balanced sweet-tart flavor, very widely available). Granny Smith apples also work well.
Let the shredded apple and sugar mixture sit and mingle for 15 minutes before proceeding. It might be tempting to rush through this step, but this is key to letting the apples’ natural juices collect and the sugar to break down, ensuring fabulous moistness in the finished bread.
I highly recommend using light-colored 8″ x 4″ loaf pans.
I’ve never been a fan of dark-colored baking pans, as they absorb more heat and give the bread’s exterior a darkened color and flavor. Bonus: 8″ x 4″ pans are my favorite because the finished loaf shape is slightly more compact and rises taller (rather than wider).
Can I Leave Out the Nuts and Raisins?
There are very few recipes where I can get away with “sneaking in” raisins and nuts, as our daughters are not the biggest fans. And this apple bread is one of those exceptions. With all the glorious apple-y flavor and texture, they’ve never asked me to omit these two ingredients.
However, if you or anyone in your family is opposed to either nuts or raisins, just leave them out. Your bread will still be great!
Grandma Barb’s Shredded Apple Bread
Ingredients
- 4 cups shredded fresh apple, from approximately 4 large peeled apples (Use apples that are flavorful and firm, and hold their shape when baking, such as Haralson, Honeycrisp, Granny Smith, etc.)
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup chopped roasted pecans or walnuts, optional (I love the roasted, salted pecans from Trader Joe's!)
- 1 cup raisins, optional (or substitute chopped dates)
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon Morton kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two light-colored 4" x 8" loaf pans and set aside. (You could also use 5" x 9" loaf pans, the bread just won't be as tall – start checking the doneness of your bread at 40 minutes.)
- Using the large holes on a box grater, shred peeled apples down to the cores; discard the cores, until you have 4 cups of shredded apple.
- In a large bowl, fold together shredded apples and sugar, and let sit for 15 minutes until sugar dissolves. There will be a lot of liquid.
- Add oil, eggs, vanilla, pecans, and raisins to the apple mixture and stir to incorporate.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- Fold dry ingredients into the apple mixture, just until combined. Divide batter evenly amongst prepared loaf pans.
- Bake 55 minutes, or until golden and center tests done, with a toothpick coming out clean. Remove pans from oven to a cooling rack and let cool for 10 minutes. Then turn breads out of pan onto rack to cool completely before slicing.
Notes
Nutrition Information:
Autumn 2010 on the Farm, when I Originally Shared this Recipe
Autumn on the farm is such a special time. To see the fruits of farm labor harvested is one of my favorite things. And I love to share the experience with our daughters, to show them how I grew up. The following photos were taken in 2010, when I had originally shared this apple bread recipe.
I’ve made this twice now and it is supurb!
So glad you liked this recipe, Jill – thanks for coming back here to let me know and to rate the recipe! :)
I want to thank you for a great recipe. When I was a child back in the 70’s my mom used to make me what she called a green apple cake. When the apples in the pasture were almost ripe, but still pretty green and tart I would pick some and then shell some black walnuts to give to my mom and she would make me this quick bread. I have gone through all her recipes looking for this recipe, but I never could find it. When I ran across your recipe on the internet. It sounded so much like what I remembered. It tastes exactly the way I remember it too. I’ve already made this recipe 3 times this year. Definitely a keeper.
So glad you liked this recipe, Don! Thanks for coming back here to let me know and to rate the recipe! :)
This recipe was delicious. I used an apple peeling tool to remove the skin which was great but in the future I will then shred the apples in a food processor as the hand shredder was very time consuming. I do like how the shredded fruit added a pleasing flavor and texture to the bread. It really is very easy to make. Everyone loved it!
So happy you loved this apple bread, Beth! Thank you for coming back to let me know, and to rate the recipe. :)
I always like to rehydrate raisins before putting in the completed recipe so I shredded the apples on top of them and let them absorb some of the juices. Perfect!
I have always cubed the apples in previous recipes and they would sink to the bottom, so I loved shedding them instead. Great idea.
The only things I did differently was use King Arthur’s gluten free flour, 1:1, and didn’t add nuts but I will maybe next time.
Thank you for this recipe.
Hi Patricia – I love what you did with the raisins, thank you for sharing that tip. I’m so glad you liked this recipe! :)
Made this last weekend and I couldn’t stop eating!!! My boyfriend said this was the best bread he has ever had and requested more, so that’s on my to do list for this weekend :) I made almost as exactly written, but I reduced sugar to 1 1/2 cup because I like more flavor than sweet, and subbed the oil for pumpkin since I was in the fall mood. It came out absolutely perfect!
Oh wow! I love the idea of adding pumpkin!
Fourth batch is in the oven right now due to repeated requests from teenager (a notoriously hard-to-please demographic). I add turbinado sugar to the top before baking for all sweet batter breads, but other than that, haven’t deviated from the recipe at all. Don’t be alarmed with the amount of liquid in the apple/sugar mixture – it works.
Sooo good, and soo easy! I love it!!! I added a little brown sugar on top. 5 star! Going to write it down in my recipe book!!
Hi Kayla – I love what you did with the brown sugar topping!! Thanks for coming back to let me know + rate the recipe. Enjoy! :)
It turned out very well. Moist, sweet, apple flavour throughout-delicious, nutmeg is a great addition. I forgot to flour greased pans & it did stick to bottom of pan.
Hi Sarah – I’m so glad you liked this recipe! Thanks for coming back here to let me know and to rate the recipe. I never have problems with the bread sticking, so I’m sure that was the issue.
The best apple bread ever! I did make a few changes though: reduced sugar to 1 & 1/2 C (1 C organic cane sugar and 1/2C sucanat). Might try reducing to 1 Cup next time. I used whole wheat pastry flour instead of AP. Was thinking about subbing the oil for apple sauce but it really does change the texture of the bread and this bread to very moist using oil. My add in’s were 1 C of chopped pecans and 1 C of cinnamon chips instead of the raisins. I might try adding coconut next time. Like others, I had to force myself to quit nibbling on it especially when still warm from the over and the cinnamon chips are melty. Yummy.
I loved this bread. Can you tell me the weight of the flour? I used 130 per cup. The bread was a little too moist, but still good.
Love this recipe! I shred and freeze my apples in the fall so I can make this year round. I add ishredded coconut to the wet ingredients. I have made regular sized loaves, small and mini loaves and muffins. Everything freezes great and everyone I have gifted a loaf to raves about how delicious it Is. Thanks for a great recipe!
Made this today so yummy! My husband and son loved it!! Will make again. Thank you
Best apple bread I have tried, hands down. Only used 1 cup of sugar since I don’t like my breakfast bread very sweet. Will be making these to bring to work. Thanks for the yummy recipe.
I reduced sugar to 1.5 c and I don’t think I’d go lower than that, though it tastes good with that amount as a breakfast bread. I didn’t want to shred so I chopped finely and no chunks sunk to the bottom. Breads were done when reached internal temperature of 212.
This was absolutely amazing. The only adjustments I made was to throw in whatever mixed spice I had in the cupboard and I added a shot of espresso (I was thinking coffee & walnut cake).
So glad you liked this, Claire! Thank you for coming back to let me know about your experience, and to rate this recipe! :)
Husband loves loaf breads of all types and had trievickied apples and any fruit I may have but want to explore different recipes. Look at serveral and came back to yours. Very simple and easy, due to cutting on sugar did put only 1 .1/4 cup but also added yogurt. Turned out great
So happy you liked this recipe, thank you!!
*Warning* This bread is addictive. It’s so flavorful and delicious that you won’t be able to stay out of it. It is also easy to make!
Excellent, easy. Added 1/2 cup of shredded coconut.
We are in a dairy-free fast until January 7 but these loaves look so delicious and I have a whole bag of apples that I’m just dying to use before my new baby arrives. Do you think I could sub applesauce for the eggs? I am thinking maybe 4-5 Tbsp… I also am curious if you think it’d turn out OK with bread flour instead of APF.
This turned out great! I used half Einkorn and half sprouted buckwheat flour with walnuts and dates. Really yummy and will make again!
So glad you like this recipe!!