Apple Bread

This is our fall favorite. Unfortunately our two apple trees are very early apples which cannot be stored for more than two or three weeks, so we have tons of apples which have to be eaten, canned, preserved or made into cake within a fortnight... I don't know where I got this recipe from, but I've made it for more then ten years now and no matter how many loaves I make, they vanish rapidly. Although I cannot eat this bread anyway, I make it gluten free, using gluten free cake flour mix. It works well with a mix of brown, white and sweet rice flour plus some arrowroot starch (just use your preferred gluten free cake flour mix), but making it gluten free means adding an egg or egg replacer, too, or it won't stick together. Prep time doesn't include overnight soaking time.

• Ready In: 1 hr 30 mins
• Serves: 12
• Yields: 1 loaf

Ingredients

• 1 1⁄2 lbs apples, peeled and chopped
• 1⁄2 lb raisins
• 5 1⁄4 ounces hazelnuts
• 1⁄2 lb brown sugar
• 1  teaspoon cinnamon
• 1⁄2 teaspoon clove
• 1  tablespoon  cocoa, unsweetened
• 1  cup rum, brown
• 1  lb all-purpose flour
• 1  tablespoon baking powder
• 1  pinch salt

Directions

1. In the evening, mix all ingredients except flour, baking powder and salt, combine thoroughly and let stand overnight.
2. In the morning, there will be a lot of liquid. Mix in flour, baking powder and salt, mix very well and pour into greased and floured loaf pan.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake the bread for one hour. As there a re so many apples in it, the wooden toothpick trick will not work, the bread is way too moist. So you have to watch and eyeball a bit after one hour whether it really is done or not. I've never baked it longer than one hour, though, and it always turned out done.
4. Remove pan from oven and cut around the rim of the pan to prevent bread from sticking. Let cool in the pan, then carefully remove it.
5. If using non stick baking paper to line the pan, you can also carefully lift the bread out of the pan immediately and eat it warm, which is delicious with some vanilla ice cream :).