During the holidays, I like to put my regular bread pans in storage and pull out my mini-loaf pans.  That way, anytime I make bread I have instant gifts and I’m less inclined to personally over-indulge.  And believe me… I am very good at overeating during the holidays.  Sometimes, I’ll wake up and see open Tupperware on the kitchen counter.  What magic elves have been eating my food?  Alas, sometime around 5AM – half-aware and partially dreaming, I stood in the kitchen and finished the Thanksgiving stuffing or drank most of the Christmas eggnog.  Holiday food in reasonably-sized, single-serving portions is a good idea for many reasons.

The loaves you see here are Raspberry Grapefruit Mini Breads.  They have a vanilla cake base that’s loaded with fresh raspberries and brushed with a grapefruit syrup after baking.  Brushing them with a simple syrup helps keep in the moisture so these breads will still be moist and at their best for a couple days after baking.

Almost any quick bread recipe (those not using yeast) can be made into mini-loaves.  It’s just a matter of having the right pans and keeping your eye on the cooking time.  I used raspberries for these loaves, but you could just as easily use blueberries or chopped strawberries.

The ingredients are pretty basic: flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, half and half, grapefruit juice, lemon zest, vanilla, eggs, butter and raspberries.

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