One More Month Of Loveliness & Honey-Baked Strawberry and Poppy-Seed Almond Mini Bread Loaves

There are countless times I have jumped into big piles of burnt leaves.

A season I have always dreaded has actually grown on me. Pumpkin has burst into a flavor I have appreciated greatly and balsamic vinegar has become a staple with all things sour-dough. Maybe the charred leaves are good for props on instagram. And maybe, just maybe, I really do enjoy cinnamon flavored everything. 

Jumping for joy 

I love pictures! Pictures are memories that never end. You can replay the memories over and over again in pictures. Here's the thing: we all grow up but in pictures, everyone stays the same. Nobody is reminded of the animosity of a person someone has become. Or of the dead. Everybody is reminded of the sweet and crisp memories that they shared with the people in the pictures. That is just how life goes on and on and on. 

Anyway, the leaves in the American Fork canyon were beyond beautiful. They were not charred to a flaming red and pumpkin orange yet. They were bursting with dynamic yellows and the Aspen trees were thick with syrupy golden yellows and crimson red leaves. If I were a leaf, I would want to live in the season of Autumn forever. 

Well, I'm a person. I can at least eat Autumn spices and foods forever. So to be very honest with you all, I have been noshing eating lots of warm, creamy, honeyed sweet-breads everyday this Fall. 

I have a standard recipe for all of my mini loaves that pop in and out of my little toaster-oven, so you can surely tweak any of the recipes to make them you very own! This recipe that I'm featuring is going to be an almond poppy-seed and strawberry bread. I use only wholesome ingredients in these loaves, along with only whole wheat flour. You can mix up the whole wheat flour if you really want to: spelt flour is nice, oat flour, almond flour, or even regular all-purpose flour would suffice in this recipe. 

Nothing tastes more like the season of pumpkin spiced-lattes than these babies do!!

HONEY-BAKED STRAWBERRY AND POPPY-SEED ALMOND BREAD + ingredients

*3 Tbs. of whole wheat flour 

*1 1/2 tsp. each of bourbon vanilla extract, freshly squeezed (or bottled) lemon juice, maple syrup, and poppy-seeds

*2 Tbs. of low-fat greek yogurt (I used Trader Joes' brand, but you can of course use any other vegan sub. like soy yogurt or coconut-cultured yogurt. I just haven't found a brand I really like.)

*1/2 C of soy milk

*1/3 or 1/2 of a small mashed, and spotty dotty banana (just as ripe as you would use for traditional banana bread)

*1 tsp. of baking powder

*3 small and very berry delicious strawberries- roughly sliced

*some honey for drizzling over

My method:

1. In a measuring cup, mix the vanilla, lemon juice, maple syrup and milk together. This makes a vegan buttermilk with the lemon juice and milk. Let sit for 10-15 minutes or until it starts to curdle. 

2. Mix all of the ingredients together. Let this sit for approx. 10-15 minutes longer. 

3. Pour the bread batter into tiny bread loaves and drizzle with lots of honey/agave nectar. In a pre-heated toaster oven @425 degrees, bake for 16-18 minutes and ENJOY!!