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This peach quick bread recipe is sweetly spiced and aromatic with brown sugar, sweet peaches, and warm spices, and balanced with tangy sourdough discard or starter. It has a soft, tender crumb with a slight chewiness thanks to sourdough.
One of my favorite things about summer is fresh peaches. Intensely honey-sweet, aromatic, a little floral, and so ripe their juices drip down your hand as you eat them – either standing over the sink or outside in the yard so you don’t end up with a sticky, peachy mess – there is nothing better! And I don’t know why, but when August rolls around, I suddenly get the itch to start baking. It’s way too early for fall baking (unless I’m developing a recipe for the blog), but baking with summer produce like zucchini and peach is fair game.
As of late we’ve been a little peach-crazed at the grocery store over here (because who can resist?!). With more fresh peaches on hand than we could eat out-of-hand, I decided to do some baking with them. I wanted a cakey bread, something that’s perfect to nibble while sipping your morning coffee or as dessert topped with a dollop of vanilla-laced whipped cream and fresh sliced peaches (almost like a peach shortcake situation). I shared this loaf with a neighbor and he blew my mind when he told me it’s the best bread he’s ever had. Wow, what a compliment!
Why Add Sourdough Discard to Quick Bread?
In two words, flavor and texture. Tangy sourdough adds another dimension of flavor to balance the bread’s sweetness. Additionally, it creates an ever-so-slightly chewy texture that regular quick breads with a cake-like crumb don’t have. And of course if you keep sourdough starter on hand, this is yet another great way to use discard!
Ingredients
Breaking It Down
Ingredients Explained
In this section I explain the ingredients and give substitution ideas where applicable. For the full recipe (including the ingredient amounts), see the recipe card below.
- Flour – Use regular all-purpose unbleached flour here.
- Baking powder and baking soda – The leavening agents in this quick bread recipe.
- Cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves – This warm spice blend accentuates the flavor of peach.
- Salt – To season the bread so it isn’t bland.
- Full-fat buttermilk – Enhances the flavor and acts as a tenderizer, helping create a soft, tender crumb.
- Peach – You need about 2/3 cup of mashed very ripe, sweet, soft peach for this recipe, which is about 140 to 145 grams or 1 large peach.
- Unsalted butter – Adds rich flavor.
- Egg – Helps create the perfect texture.
- Sourdough discard – Aka unfed sourdough starter. (Active starter will also work, but I prefer discard here for its tangier, more complex flavor.) In this quick bread recipe, we’re using sourdough discard to create a well-balanced and nuanced flavor profile and to lend slight chewiness, not as a leavening agent. As a bonus, there’s no fermentation time!
- Vanilla extract – Vanilla enhances the flavor of peach and adds deep flavor and aroma.
- Pecans – I sprinkle 1/4 cup pecans on top for nutty crunch, but feel free to stir 3/4 cup into the batter if you like.
- Turbinado sugar – This adds sweet crunch to the top, but is completely optional.
How to Make Fresh Peach Bread With Sourdough Discard
- Prep. Preheat the oven to 350F. Line an 8.5 by 4.5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper so it hangs over all 4 sides, or butter and flour the inside of the pan.
- Make the batter. Add the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, nutmeg, and cloves to a medium bowl and whisk to combine. Whisk together the brown sugar, buttermilk, melted butter, egg, sourdough discard, and vanilla extract in a large bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients all at once and stir to incorporate, being careful not to over-mix (a few streaks of flour are fine). If you’re adding pecans (or other nuts), gently fold them in now. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and spread it out evenly. Sprinkle 1/4 cup pecans and 2 teaspoons turbinado sugar on top.
- Bake and cool. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a couple crumbs, about 45 to 50 minutes. Cool completely before slicing.
Peach Bread Recipe Variations
- If you don’t have peaches, nectarines will also work well here. Make sure they’re ripe, soft, and sweet.
- Nuts (especially pecans and walnuts) pair beautifully with the flavor of peach in this recipe. Sometimes I only add nuts on top, and other times I stir about 3/4 cup of chopped nuts to the quick bread batter.
- Skip the raw sugar on top and make this extra decadent with a simple glaze drizzled on top after the bread is baked and cooled. You’ll need about 1/2 cup of powdered sugar + 1 to 3 teaspoons of milk, mixed together until lump-free (start with less milk and add more until it reaches your desired consistency).
Storage
Let the bread cool to room temperature. After that, wrap it well or pop it into an airtight container and store it at room temperature for up to 3 days, in the fridge for up to 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 1 month. (TIP: If freezing, slice the bread first so you can thaw as many servings at a time as you want. Also after freezing, I like to lightly toast the bread to refresh it before eating.)
Tips For the Best Quick Bread With Fresh Peaches
- If there’s one sure-fire way to wreck a quick bread (i.e., a bread leavened with chemical leavening agents like baking powder and/or baking soda), it’s to over-mix the batter. The resulting bread is likely to be heavy, dense, and/or gummy instead of light, tender, and a little chewy. A few streaks of flour in the batter are better than over-mixing!
- For an even more moist and tender loaf, swap out the melted butter for 1/4 cup avocado oil (or any neutral or mild-flavored oil you like).
- If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, for this recipe you can use an easy substitute made of 3 tablespoons whole milk + 1 tablespoon heavy whipping cream + 1 1/2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar. Mix the milk and cream together in a small bowl, drizzle the vinegar on top, and let it sit for 1 minute without stirring to curdle.
- Make sure you use the right size loaf pan for this recipe. Here we use an 8.5 by 4.5-inch loaf pan, instead of a larger 9 by 5-inch pan. If you don’t have an 8.5 by 4.5-inch loaf pan, you can bake this batter as muffins instead. (TIP: Don’t use a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan here; I developed this recipe as a smaller loaf and it won’t have enough volume to rise properly in a larger pan.)
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Drain the liquid and use a potato masher to mash them. You’ll need the same amount (about 2/3 cup).
No worries if you don’t keep sourdough starter on hand! Instead of sourdough discard, in this recipe you can simply increase the buttermilk to 1/2 cup and increase the eggs to 2.
In a pinch, yes, bread flour will work fine instead of all-purpose flour (just reduce the amount by 2 tablespoons for this recipe). Note that because of bread flour’s higher protein content, your bread will be a bit denser and chewier, so it’s even more important not to over-mix.
More Fresh Peach Recipes
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Sourdough Peach Quick Bread Recipe (Starter or Discard)
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Equipment
- 8.5 by 4.5-inch loaf pan (see Notes)
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves (optional)
- 1 cup light brown sugar (lightly packed)
- 1/4 cup full-fat buttermilk
- 2/3 cup mashed very ripe peach (about 140 to 145 grams or 1 large peach, washed and mashed with a potato masher; see Notes)
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter (melted and cooled slightly)
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup sourdough discard (or active starter)
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup pecans (for the top; plus up to 3/4 cup more for stirring into the batter if desired)
- 2 teaspoons turbinado sugar (for the top; optional)
Instructions
- Prep. Preheat the oven to 350F. Line an 8.5 by 4.5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper so it hangs over all 4 sides, or butter and flour the inside of the pan.
- Make the batter. Add the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, nutmeg, and cloves to a medium bowl and whisk to combine.Whisk together the brown sugar, buttermilk, melted butter, egg, sourdough discard, and vanilla extract in a large bowl.Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients all at once and stir to incorporate, being careful not to over-mix (a few streaks of flour are fine). If you're adding pecans (or other nuts), gently fold them in now.Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and spread it out evenly. Sprinkle 1/4 cup pecans and 2 teaspoons turbinado sugar on top.
- Bake and cool. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a couple crumbs, about 45 to 50 minutes. Cool completely before slicing.
Notes
- Mashed Peach: Your peach should be very ripe and soft so it mashes easily. I don’t bother peeling it because the skin bumps up the nutrition and I don’t mind the little bits of it. However, if you prefer, you can peel the peach before mashing.
- Storage: Let the bread cool to room temperature. After that, wrap it well or pop it into an airtight container and store it at room temperature for up to 3 days, in the fridge for up to 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 1 month. (TIP: If freezing, slice the bread first so you can thaw as many servings at a time as you want. Also after freezing, I like to lightly toast the bread to refresh it before eating.)
- Recipe Yield and Serving Size: This recipe makes 1 (8.5 by 4.5-inch) loaf of bread. I cut it into 10 slices for 10 servings.
- The Pan: Don’t use a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan here; I developed this recipe as a smaller loaf and it won’t have enough volume to rise properly in a larger pan. If you don’t have an 8.5 by 4.5-inch loaf pan, you can bake this batter as muffins instead.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is automatically calculated and should be used as an approximate.
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I’m the writer, recipe developer, photographer, and food stylist behind this blog. I love finding the human connection through something we all do every day: eat! Food is a common ground that we can all relate to, and our tables tell a story. It’s my goal to inspire you to get in the kitchen, try something new, and find a favorite you didn’t know you had.
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