Awesome Nettie's Peach Nut Bread

This peach bread is a clever quick bread that uses canned peaches AND their syrup, getting double mileage from a single can. The fruit goes into the batter chopped, while the heavy syrup contributes liquid and an extra punch of peach flavor. The result is a moist, fragrant loaf with chunks of peach and nut throughout, lightly spiced with cloves.

A quarter teaspoon of ground cloves sounds like a lot but it’s exactly right. Cloves and stone fruit are an old-fashioned pairing (think peach pie, peach jam) and the warm, almost medicinal note grounds the sweet peach character. Less and the bread tastes flat; more turns it into mulling spice territory.

The 2-minute beat at medium speed is the workhorse step. It develops just enough gluten for structure while creaming the eggs and sugar with the fruit. Don’t shortcut it; under-beating gives you a dense, gummy loaf.

Fold the nuts and raisins in by hand at the end. Aggressive mixing here breaks them down and stains the batter. Use a rubber spatula and stop the moment they’re distributed.

The “remove from pan immediately” step is unusual but important. Letting the bread cool in the pan creates condensation on the bottom and softens the crust. Pull it out hot, set it on a rack, and let it cool with air circulation underneath.

Pro Tips

• Use peaches in light syrup or juice, not heavy syrup. Heavy syrup makes the bread overly sweet and gummy.
• Toast the walnuts or pecans at 350°F (175°C) for 6 minutes before chopping for noticeably deeper flavor.
• This bread freezes beautifully wrapped in plastic and foil for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature.

Variations

• Substitute canned apricots or pears for the peaches (the recipe note suggests apricots).
• Add ½ teaspoon of cinnamon and ¼ teaspoon of nutmeg for a warmer spice profile.
• Drizzle the cooled loaf with a simple powdered sugar glaze for breakfast bread or coffee cake duty.