CHOCOLATE CHERRY QUICK BREAD

Chocolate Cherry Quick Bread is moist, sweet and full of chocolate and fresh cherries! This easy quick bread recipe is so simple to make and absolutely delicious!

I love cherries. And chocolate. Combine the two and I’m in. I’ve combined chocolate and cherries in tons of different ways, but I’ve never tried it in bread before now. Why haven’t I done this before?! The chocolate glaze on top is absolutely optional, but who is going to say no to more chocolate?

What is the easiest way to pit cherries?

I love cherries, but for years I avoided using fresh cherries in recipes because I hated pitting them. And then I found this magic little cherry pitter and our cherry consumption has gone up exponentially. My kids love pitting cherries with this handy little gadget and we use it all the time, not just in baking but in regular cherry eating too! (P.S. While I was looking up the link for my cherry pitter, I also found this one! I’ve never tried it but it pits 6 cherries at once!) 

Ingredients in Chocolate Cherry Quick Bread

-2 cups flour

-2 tsp baking powder

-1/2 tsp salt

-1/3 cup unsweetened baking cocoa

-2 sticks butter, softened to room temperature

-3/4 cup sugar

-2 eggs

-1 tsp almond extract

-1 cup milk

-1 1/2 cups sweet cherries, pitted and quartered

-1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (mini or regular)

Chocolate Glaze:

-1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

-1/4 cup half-and-half cream

-1/2 cup powdered sugar

-1-2 Tbsp. hot water

How to make Chocolate Cherry Quick Bread

Preheat the oven to 350°.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and cocoa and set aside.

In another large bowl, use an electric mixer (or stand mixer) and cream together the butter and sugar for about 2-3 minutes. Add the eggs and almond extract and beat for another 1-2 minutes.

Add the flour mixture and milk and mix just until combined – don’t overmix! Use a large spoon to fold in the cherries and chocolate chips.

Pour the batter into a well-greased bread pan and bake for about 60-70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (or until internal temp reaches about 200°). Let the bread cool in the pan for about 20-30 minutes and then remove from pan and cool on a wire rack until completely cooled. Drizzle the glaze on top of the cooled bread.

GLAZE: Pour the half-and-half in a small glass bowl and microwave for about 45 seconds. Add the chocolate chips and stir until smooth and completely melted. Add the powdered sugar and continue to stir until smooth. Add 1-2 Tbsp of hot water and mix well to desired consistency.

Chocolate Cherry Quick Bread

Chocolate Cherry Quick Bread is moist, sweet and full of chocolate and fresh cherries! This easy quick bread recipe is so simple to make and absolutely delicious!

4.75 from 4 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Quick Bread

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Chocolate Cherry Quick Bread

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 10 minutes

Servings: 1 loaf

Author: Jessica & Nellie

Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/3 cup unsweetened baking cocoa
• 2 sticks butter softened to room temperature
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 1 cup milk
• 1 1/2 cups sweet cherries pitted and quartered
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips mini or regular

Chocolate Glaze:

• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup half-and-half cream
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1-2 Tbsp. hot water

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350°.
• In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and cocoa and set aside.
• In another large bowl, use an electric mixer (or stand mixer) and cream together the butter and sugar for about 2-3 minutes. Add the eggs and almond extract and beat for another 1-2 minutes.
• Add the flour mixture and milk and mix just until combined - don't overmix! Use a large spoon to fold in the cherries and chocolate chips.
• Pour the batter into a well-greased bread pan and bake for about 60-70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (or until internal temp reaches about 200°). Let the bread cool in the pan for about 20-30 minutes and then remove from pan and cool on a wire rack until completely cooled. Drizzle the glaze on top of the cooled bread.
• GLAZE: Pour the half-and-half in a small glass bowl and microwave for about 45 seconds. Add the chocolate chips and stir until smooth and completely melted. Add the powdered sugar and continue to stir until smooth. Add 1-2 Tbsp of hot water and mix well to desired consistency.

Tried this recipe?Mention @jessicalovesbutter or tag #jessicalovesbutter!

AVOID SUNKEN BREAD

The easiest and best way to avoid sunken bread is to use a cooking thermometer to check the inside of the loaf. Fully cooked bread will register 200°F on a thermometer. My all-time favorite thermometer is the Thermapen. It’s super fast and incredibly durable. Another great cooking thermometer is the ThermoPop which is a more basic version that works just as well!

DID YOUR BREAD SINK IN THE MIDDLE?

Here’s how to help your quick bread not sink in the middle after it’s baked. This happens to me occasionally too! Often it’s because I’ve over mixed the batter. Quick bread (referring to a bread recipe that doesn’t use yeast) does not like to be stirred too much, so try to just barely mix all the ingredients together. Another culprit could be overfilling the pan. The bread pan should be only about half full each time. The recipe below makes 1 large loaf of bread, and your pan may be a bit over half full. If you’d rather, you can divide it into 2 bread pans and they just won’t be quite as thick. Or pour the batter into 3-4 mini pans – the bread cooks faster that way too! As always, make sure your baking powder isn’t too old or expired!

HOW TO MAKE THE BEST QUICK BREADS

There are a couple of tips that will help you to get the perfect pineapple quick bread every time!

1. Make sure to use the right bread pans! The recipe for this quick bread is written for a regular sized bread pan which is 9.5″X5″. You can use two smaller pans if you’d like, just adjust the cooking time to about 40-45 minutes.
2. If you use non-stick pans, you won’t want to use any cooking spray, but if you are not using non-stick pans, make sure to use a baking spray like this one or line the pans with parchment paper so your bread doesn’t get stuck to the pan! There is nothing worse than making a beautiful loaf of bread and having the whole thing fall apart when you try to get it neatly out of the pan!
3. Make sure to test the middle of the bread at the end of the cooking time – I like to use one of these for that! If your bread is still gooey in the middle, bake for a few more minutes. If the edges and the top are starting to look too brown and the middle isn’t done yet, go ahead and put some foil over the bread for the last few minutes of baking until the bread is done in the center. This will prevent the outside from burning, but still allow the middle to cook all the way through.

Can you turn a quick bread into muffins?

Quick bread recipes generally convert to muffins very easily. Turn the heat up to 400° and then bake for about 20-25 minutes. This recipe will make about 12 large muffins.

MORE AMAZING QUICK BREAD RECIPES THAT WE LOVE:

• Orange Juice Bread
• Pineapple Quick Bread
• Sweet Coconut Quick Bread
• Best Zucchini Bread recipe
• Easy Lemon Quick Bread
• Yogurt Banana Bread recipe
• Dutch Apple Quick Bread
• Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Quick Bread
• Caramel Banana Nut Bread
• Best Ever Pumpkin Bread
• Lemon Buttermilk Quick Bread
• Caramel Apple Quick Bread
• Cinnamon Raisin Quick Bread
• Peppermint Chocolate Quick Bread
• Cranberry Orange Quick Bread
• Cinnamon Roll Quick Bread
• Glazed Strawberry Quick Bread 

Chocolate Cherry Quick Bread is moist, sweet and full of chocolate and fresh cherries! This easy quick bread recipe is so simple to make and absolutely delicious!