Meyer Lemon Quick Bread with Lavender Lemon Icing

This post comes courtesy of Jenn Yee, a member of the Williams-Sonoma culinary team.

 

Lemon and lavender is one of my favorite pairings when baking. While prepping for an in-store demo of the Meyer Lemon Poppy Seed Quick Bread, we were looking for ways to give the recipe an extra boost of flavor and came across our Lavender-Lemon Simple Syrup. The syrup was used twice — soaked into the bread itself and incorporated again in the icing, for maximum flavor.

 

The great thing about our quick bread mixes is the ability to be creative, making the end result truly your own. You can fold in fresh berries (blueberries would be great with the lemon) or toasted nuts, or as in our case, infuse flavor with syrup. The Lavender Lemon Simple Syrup is from our simple syrup collection by Royal Rose, a husband and wife duo that hand makes small batches out of Brooklyn, NY.

 

Meyer Lemon Quick Bread with Lavender Lemon Icing

 

You will need:

1 package Williams-Sonoma Meyer Lemon Poppy Seed Quick Bread Mix*
1 bottle Royal Rose Lavender-Lemon Simple Syrup
1 recipe Lavender Lemon Icing (see below)
1 non-stick loaf pan (we used the 1 lb. size, 8.5″ x 4.5″)

 

*NOTE: The quick bread package has instructions for additional, perishable ingredients needed to complete the recipe.

 

Follow the instructions on the back of the mix to make the quick bread.

 

After the bread has baked, let it rest in the pan on a cooling rack for 5 minutes to allow the bread to release from the sides of the pan. In the meantime, prepare the icing (see below).

 

Invert the bread directly onto the cooling rack with a sheet pan underneath. While still warm, spoon the simple syrup over the top and down the sides. I actually flipped the loaf on its sides; that way, the syrup would soak in thoroughly rather than run down into the cooling rack/sheet pan. It is a bit sticky for your hands but worth the effort. Makes 1 loaf.

 

Lavender Lemon Icing

 

1 cup confectioners’ sugar
4 tsp. water
1 Tbs. Royal Rose Lavender-Lemon Simple Syrup

 

Combine the sugar, water and syrup until all ingredients are fully blended together.

 

Check to see if the icing is the right consistency to appear opaque on the cake, rather than translucent. I do the ribbon test: hold a spoonful of icing above the bowl and as the ribbon falls back down, it should hold its shape on the surface for a moment before disappearing. If it is too runny, add a bit more confectioners’ sugar.

 

 

MAKE A GIFT: Feel like giving this to a baker for Easter or Mother’s Day? You can use the loaf pan as a vessel for the other ingredients and tools. Enclose the entire gift in cellophane and finish with a bow. Better yet, ask one of our store associates to wrap for you with our complimentary gift wrap.

 

SHOP THE PHOTO:

 

Meyer Lemon Poppy Seed Quick Bread Mix

Royal Rose Lavender-Lemon Simple Syrup

Non-Stick Loaf Pan, 1 lb. size

Spoonula in Citron Yellow

Contrast Stripe Towel Set in Yellow/Green

 

About the author: Jenn Yee is a part of the Williams-Sonoma Union Square culinary team. The store is her dream kitchen. The Food Hall is her favorite section and can talk endlessly about baking mixes and bakeware. When not at work her every moment, not surprisingly, is still very much about food. She’s honing her skills at pastry school, attending food events, meeting chefs and vendors and out in search of the best pastries and desserts. She dreams of Pierre Herme macarons and Gerard Mulot croissants. www.deliciouslynoted.com.