Kefir Hazelnut Bread is a delicious, super-moist  & indulgent quick bread perfect for an afternoon tea or snacking.

Kefir Hazelnut Bread was born because of my recent obsession with The Great British Bake-Off and I needed some  calmness between all the chaos in my life. Naturally, I am not a baker but when I need a little pause, I bake as it takes my mind off everything else around me. Also, it never hurts to have an indulgent slice of bread  & coffee for an afternoon date with yourself (with Grey’s Anatomy or whatever tv show you are into lately)!

There is something exceptionally therapeutic about quick breads because you simply mix the ingredients & pour the batter in a loaf pan. The result bread is almost always perfect – golden browish crust, super moist, and subtly sweet & delicious! Unlike cakes or other intricate baked-goods, quick bread is forgiving & gives you little wiggle room to play with different ingredients & it’s quick!!

My go-to is banana bread (which I shared here) but this time I used kefir, a fermented milk similar to yogurt. Kefir is a wonderful source of probiotics but when heated, the live and active probiotic cultures die but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy other benefits from it.

Kefir works as a wonderful substitution for buttermilk as it lends a nice tart flavor & fluffiness to the baked goods. While dairy-based kefir isn’t lactose-free but due to the added lactase from fermentation, it is relatively easier to digest if you are lactose-intolerant.

I chose the Kefir Hazelnut Bread combination simply because these ingredients were in my pantry and needed to go. About hazelnut spread, I used two different types of hazelnut spread – the famous Nutella & an Italian hazelnut spread minus the cocoa, none of which are sponsored.

I shared the Kefir Hazelnut Bread with the boyfriend & my friend with extra Nutella to slather on and they both enjoyed it. It gives me so much joy when I am able to share delicious food with people around me, even better when they love it and go back for more!

Kefir Hazelnut Bread

Author: Dixya @Food, Pleasure, and Health
Serves: 1 loaf

Ingredients

• 2 cup all purpose flour
• scant 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup plain Kefir (I used full fat)
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon espresso power (or Instant coffee power)
• 3 Tbsp oil (may use melted butter or coconut oil)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup hazelnut spread + 2 tablespoon

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Line a standard loaf pan with parchment paper or lightly grease it with oil or spray.
3. Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium mixing bowl.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk the oil, egg, 1/2 cup hazelnut spread, espresso powder, kefir, and vanilla extract.
5. Pour wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients. Fold together gently until ingredients are just combined. The batter should be wet and shaggy.
6. Transfer the batter into loaf pan and shake the pan to make sure batter is evenly distributed.
7. Add 2 tablespoon on hazelnut spread on top and use a toothpick to swirl around the batter evenly.
8. Bake for 50-55 minutes, until a tooth pick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.
9. Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan for 15-20 minutes.
10. Remove the loaf from the pan to slice and serve with extra hazelnut spread if desired.
11. Store at room temperature.

I hope you will bake Kefir Hazelnut Bread pretty soon or pin for later!

If you have leftover kefir & want to enjoy all the probiotics, give this Mango Cardamom Kefir Lassi a try – it’s delicious!

Linking up with The Fit Foodie Mama, Confession of a Mother Runner, A Whisk and Two Wandsfor Meatless Monday!