JFI: Meyer Lemon Bread with Candied Ginger

I had heard of Meyer Lemons in the blog world and when I chanced upon it at the local market a few weeks ago, I grabbed just ONE to try. Meyer lemons according to wiki are a cross between a regular lemon and mandarin orange originating in China. They have a slightly less tart flavor and can be used in most lemon recipes that doesn't need the intense pucker of a regular lemon. Amy over at Cooking with Amy has some nice recommendations on how to use Meyer Lemons. Since I had only one lemon to work with after scouring the Internet for good options, I decided that I wanted to bake some kind of bread or muffin with the lemon. I found a yummy sounding recipe for making a lemon with candied ginger muffin over at Nicole's BakingSheet Blog and decided to morph her muffins into a bread recipe using instead of regular lemons my Meyer lemon. I love candied ginger and I eat plain candied ginger with my cups of tea so the recipe really called out to me. Plus it was simple and easy to make, that's exactly what a mom baking during nap time needs! This recipe uses only uses the zest of the lemon in the cake and almost all of the lemon juice in the glaze.

Meyer Lemon & Candied Ginger Bread Recipe

• 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup butter, soft
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• Zest of 1 Meyer lemon (about 1 tbsp zest)
• 3/4 cup milk (I used 2%)
• 1/2 cup candied ginger, in small pieces
  Meyer Lemon Glaze
• 2 to 3 tablespoons Meyer lemon juice (~1 Meyer lemon)
• 1 cup confectioners sugar

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 400F. Zest the rind of the lemon and set aside. Mix flour, salt and baking powder in a large mixing bowl. In another large bowl, beat sugar and butter till whipped. Add eggs to the sugar/butter mix and whip together till incorporated. Add lemon zest and vanilla extract to the egg mixture and mix. Alternate adding flour and milk to the sugar/egg/butter mixture and slowly blend together. Finally add chopped ginger to the batter and mix in. Pour the batter into two greased 4x2" bread pans and bake in 400F oven for approximately 30 to 40 minutes or a tester comes out clean. The bread should be lightly browned and springy to touch.

Cool the bread on a wire rack. Prepare the glaze by mixing lemon juice with the sugar. Take a fork and mix together lemon juice and sugar till you have a drizzle-able consistency. Once the bread is not hot, move them to a platter and gently drizzle the lemon glaze all over the bread. Cut into slices and serve warm with tea.

Verdict? The Meyer lemon is definitely more subtle than a regular lemon. For this recipe, I would double the amount of zest used in the future if I used a Meyer lemon again for a more lemony flavor. The bread had more ginger tones to it than the lemon and it will be a huge hit with any ginger lover. If you love the taste of lemon, I would increase it to 2 tablespoons of Meyer lemon zest to balance off the ginger. I really liked this recipe and will probably do it again for a nice tea time snack.

This recipe is going to Coffee for this month's JFI started by Indira of Mahanandi. Coffee has chosen lemon/lime as the flavor of the month and I think a fantastic choice.

Source: BakingSheet