Butterscotch Bread
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Get ready to tantalize your taste buds with a slice of pure delight – Butterscotch Quick Bread! Picture a moist loaf infused with sweet cinnamon swirls and studded with irresistible butterscotch chips. This butterscotch bread mixes up in 15 minutes or less. Topped with a butterscotch glaze, it’s bursting with butterscotch flavor!
Many times when I’m recipe testing, it takes a few rounds of tweaking and testing. But I knew after one bite of this butterscotch bread recipe I was in heaven. Imagine a golden loaf with a mesmerizing butterscotch cinnamon swirl, tempting you at every glance. It’s the kind of treat that makes your taste buds dance with joy. And dancing they were after just a bite.
This is one of my more unique quick breads! Like my mango bread or grape bread!
Believe me, this isn’t your every day quick bread like a simple banana bread. Now don’t get me wrong, nothing wrong with a delicious slice of warm banana bread, however this bread is a on another level.
This quick bread starts with a simple batter made with buttermilk and oil to make for a tender, moist crumb. I flavored it with a little bit of vanilla extract, and stirred in butterscotch chips to the batter.
It’s after the batter has been mixed up is when the magic happens. I stirred together some cinnamon sugar and sprinkled that in the middle of the loaf so you get a cinnamon swirl smack dab in the middle. But I didn’t stop there, because that’s not just how I roll.
Once all of the batter is in the loaf pan, I sprinkled on more cinnamon sugar so you get a crunchy topping once it’s baked. After one bite, as delicious as it was I knew a butterscotch glaze would send it over the edge.
I made a quick sweet buttery glaze made of butterscotch chips, vanilla, and powdered sugar to drizzle on after the bread has cooled. It’s finger licking good friends. You might just want a spoon for the glaze alone.
So cinnamon swirl. Butterscotch goodness. Crunchy topping. Sweet sticky glaze. Yes this bread has it all. Ok enough talking, let’s bake!
See Also:
- Oil vs butter in your quick breads..what’s better? Find out the difference and what I prefer!
- Confused on what the difference is between quick breads and coffeecakes – give this post a read!
- Want to know more about quick breads? Then read this article “What’s quick bread“? and learn more!
Why You Will Love This Butterscotch Bread Recipe
- No mixer needed โ I love being able to mix up a recipe without having to get out my stand mixer. You just need a whisk and a spatula and a couple mixing bowls!
- Quick Prep Time โ It only takes 15 minutes to prepare the Butterscotch bread batter.
- Great to freeze! โ If you canโt eat it all in one sitting, you can freeze this Butterscotch quick bread for up to 3 months!
Ingredients Needed
- All-Purpose Flour– Be sure to measure your flour correctly by spooning the flour into your measuring cups so you don’t end up with too much flour which can make for a dry bread.
- Baking Powder- This helps the butterscotch bread rise. Do not confuse baking powder with baking soda, which is not the same ingredient. To test your baking powder to make sure its fresh, I add a teaspoon to a small bowl of hot water to see if its bubbly.
- Salt– To help balance the sweetness.
- Oil – I used a neutral oil such as canola or vegetable. You can also replace the oil with melted butter but you might find your bread a bit more dense and drier. Or use olive oil, or melted coconut oil, but this can impart flavor.
- Brown sugar – I used brown sugar in the bread because it complemented the butterscotch flavor, but you could replace it with white sugar, or use ยฝ granulated sugar and ยฝ brown sugar. If you don’t have any, make your own homemade brown sugar.
- White Sugar – I used granulated sugar for the cinnamon swirl, but you could also use brown sugar for more flavor.
- Eggs– Use room temperature eggs so your bread rises tall
- Buttermilk– I use buttermilk tenderness, if you donโt have any you can make your own homemade buttermilk.
- Cinnamon- For the cinnamon swirl.
- Vegetable Oil- I used vegetable oil, but canola oil or other neutral-tasting oil also would work. You could try substituting with melted butter or coconut oil as well, but it might change the moistness and texture slightly.
- Vanilla- For flavor. I like to use pure vanilla but vanilla extract will also work.
- Butter- I recommend unsalted butter but salted butter can work for the glaze.
- Milk- Any type of milk will do. If you want to make this butterscotch bread dairy-free, use dairy-free milk.
- Butterscotch Chips – Combine the chips with 1 Tablespoon flour to help prevent the chips from sinking into the bottom of the bread.
How to Make Butterscotch Bread
Preheat and prepare pan.
Position a rack in the center of your oven and preheat the oven to 350ยฐF (177ยฐC). Spray a 9โx5โ loaf pan with cooking spray, or line with parchment paper and then spray with cooking spray.
Make the cinnamon swirl.
In a small mixing bowl, stir together the sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.
Combine dry ingredients.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
Combine wet ingredients.
In a second mixing bowl, whisk together brown sugar and eggs until smooth. Whisk in the buttermilk ,oil, and vanilla until combined.
Combine wet and dry ingredients.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix together with a spatula or wooden spoon just until just combined.
Fold in butterscotch chips. I toss them in a tablespoon of flour first so they donโt sink in the batter when baking.
Do not overmix. Stop mixing once the last of the flour has been incorporated (batter will not be completely smooth).
Bake the butterscotch bread.
Spoon ยฝ of the batter into prepared loaf pan.
Sprinkle on almost of all of the cinnamon sugar mixture, except 2 Tablespoons.
Spoon the rest of the batter on top.
Sprinkle on the remaining cinnamon sugar.
Bake in a preheated 350oF (177oC) oven for 55-65 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the middle of bread comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs clinging to it (no wet batter) and top springs back to the touch when lightly touched. Remove from the oven and cool completely in the pan on a wire cooling rack.
Make glaze.
The glaze made too early will harden so do not make until ready to drizzle over the bread. In a saucepan over low heat stir together the butter and butterscotch chips, until melted. Remove from the heat and Stir in vanilla, milk and powdered sugar until sugar is dissolved and mixture is smooth.
Drizzle over cooled bread immediately. If your glaze hardens, simply remelt over low heat until smooth and melted again.
Recipe Tips
- Measure your ingredients accurately. I used the scoop and level method for measuring the flour. Check it out at How To Measure Ingredients.
- Donโt overmix the batter. Stirring the butterscotch bread batter too much will make your quick bread tough and chewy. Mixing develops gluten and makes bread dense. When you combined your wet and dry ingredients, mix only until they are just combined.
- Use other pans. You can make mini loaves as well. Bake for about 30 minutes.
Recipe Variations
- Make a vanilla glaze – Instead of a butterscotch glaze, you can make a simple glaze by whisking together 1 cup confectioners sugar, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, and about 2-3 tablespoons of milk. Whisk it together and then drizzle the glaze on the cooled bread.
- Add nuts – Stir in some toasted nuts to the recipe for a little crunch, like almonds, pecans, or walnuts.
- Swap and use chocolate chips – Instead of butterscotch chips use semi-sweet chocolate chips to the batter instead. Try milk chocolate, semi-sweet, or white chocolate chips.
Recipe FAQs
This quick bread can be stored at room temperature for 4 days. For longer storage, it’s best to freeze the bread. Make sure the bread is cooled completely then wrap in plastic wrap or tinfoil.
Yes you can freeze this butterscotch cinnamon bread for up to 3 months. Let the bread cool completely and then wrap in plastic wrap or foil, several layers to prevent freezer burn. To thaw, you can let thaw at room temperature. Get my freezer baking guide to help with all your freezer baking needs!
If your quick bread sank in the middle, then it means it was underbaked. First make sure you are using the correct pan. I used a 9×5 loaf pan, so if you are using a smaller loaf pan then you will need to bake longer. Bake in the middle of the oven, and be sure to use the toothpick test to see if it’s baked through. You want moist crumbs but no wet batter. Every oven is different so be sure to test the bread for doneness, and not just rely on the timer.
More Recipes to Try
Butterscotch Cinnamon Swirl
Ingredients
For cinnamon swirl
- 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
For the butterscotch bread
- 2 cups (240 g) all-purpose flour *spooned and leveled
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ยฝ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (213 g) packed light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- โ cup (160 ml) buttermilk
- ยฝ cup (120 ml) vegetable oil (or canola oil)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup (170 g) butterscotch chips tossed in 1 tablespoon flour
For butterscotch glaze:
- 2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter
- ยผ cup (85 g) butterscotch chips
- 1 tablespoon milk
- 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat and prepare pan. Position a rack in the center of your oven and preheat the oven to 350ยฐF (177ยฐC). Spray a 9โx5โ loaf pan with cooking spray, or line with parchment paper and then spray with cooking spray.
- Make the cinnamon swirl. In a small mixing bowl, stir together the sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.
- Combine dry ingredients. In a mixing bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- Combine wet ingredients. In a second mixing bowl, whisk together brown sugar and eggs until smooth. Whisk in the buttermilk ,oil, and vanilla until combined.
- Combine wet and dry ingredients. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix together with a spatula or wooden spoon just until just combined. Fold in butterscotch chips(I toss them in a tablespoon of flour first so they donโt sink in the batter when baking). Do not overmix. Stop mixing once the last of the flour has been incorporated (batter will not be completely smooth).
- Assemble the bread. Spoon ยฝ of the batter into prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle on almost of all of the cinnamon sugar mixture, except 2 Tablespoons. Spoon the rest of the batter on top. Sprinkle on the remaining cinnamon sugar
- Bake. Bake in a preheated 350ยฐF (177ยฐC) oven for 55-65 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the middle of bread comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs clinging to it (no wet batter) and top springs back to the touch when lightly touched. Remove from the oven and cool completely in the pan on a wire cooling rack.
- Make glaze. The glaze made too early will harden so do not make until ready to drizzle over the bread. In a saucepan over low heat stir together the butter and butterscotch chips, until melted. Remove from the heat and Stir in vanilla, milk and powdered sugar until sugar is dissolved and mixture is smooth. Drizzle over cooled bread immediately. If your glaze hardens, simply remelt over low heat until smooth and melted again.
Notes
- Storage: This quick bread can be stored at room temperature for 4 days. For longer storage, it’s best to freeze the bread. Make sure the bread is cooled completely then wrap in plastic wrap or tinfoil.
- Freezing: You can freeze this butterscotch cinnamon bread for up to 3 months. Let the bread cool completely and then wrap in plastic wrap or foil, several layers to prevent freezer burn. To thaw, you can let thaw at room temperature.
- Oil – I used a neutral oil such as canola or vegetable. You can also replace with melted butter but you might find your bread a bit more dense and drier. Or use olive oil, or melted coconut oil, but this can impart flavor.