Eggnog Bread

I don't know about you but I love eggnog.  Its probably a good thing its only sold during the holidays, otherwise it would be a staple in my fridge.  I've had really good eggnog bread, but finding a good recipe is tricky.  And I'm a hostage to food.com.  When the Internet goes down like it did today, and all my favorite recipes are online, I'm lost.  Here's to writing them down and keeping a copy somewhere.

So I went to my Joy of Cooking cookbook that I've had since time began and searched for a recipe.  Nothing for eggnog.  I can improvise.  I found a poppy seed bread recipe.  That's sort of close.  It wants me to use the Irish American Soda Bread recipe, but use a little more buttermilk and sugar.  I can use eggnog instead of buttermilk...

3 1/3 cup flour
1/2 c sugar (instead of 1/4 cup)
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon nutmeg (instead of the caraway seeds)
1 cup chopped candied cherries (instead of the raisins)

Blend the dry ingredients and in a separate bowl whisk together:
2 large eggs
2 cups eggnog (instead of the buttermilk)
1 teaspoon rum extract (because I wanted to)
1/2 cup melted butter (Crap!  I left out the butter.  No wonder its a little dry.  I'll bet its awesome with butter)

Add to the dry ingredients and stir just until the dry ingredients are moistened.  Spoon into greased pans - either 2 loaf pans or 5 small foil pans (the kind you use to give as Christmas gifts) and bake 30-40 minutes.  The small pans took 30 minutes.

They're really good!  Except for the fact that there isn't any butter..........................grrr.

I would add a little more sugar next time.  I think I'd like the loafs a little sweeter.

I'm excited to make more treats for Christmas.  I've got an Apple Ladder Loaf from Taste of Home thats wonderful.  And I'll try cinnamon rolls from thepioneerwoman.com.  My friend Rebecca Taylor gave it to me and I'm dying to try it.