Weekend baking report: Chocolate Chai Tea Loaf and more

Photo from Taste of Home

This Sunday it was my turn to provide the snacks for our coffee break at church.  I made several baked items in addition to taking cheese and crackers and a large container of fresh strawberries.

All of the baked goods went over well, but this Chocolate Chai Tea Loaf was absolutely amazing.  Thankfully I had left one smaller loaf at home!

I made just a couple of tiny changes in this recipe which is linked above.  Instead of 2 ounces of chopped semisweet chocolate, I just used 2 ounces (1/3 cup) of semisweet chocolate chips because it was simpler.  Also -- the chai latte tea mix (Oregon Chai)  I used came in packets, so I measured it by the tablespoon right from the packet.  When it came to the frosting, the recipe called for only 1 tablespoon, but there was more than that left in the package -- nearly another tablespoon, I would say.  I just used it all in the frosting rather than have a small amount left in the packet.  No doubt it gave the frosting a more pronounced flavor of tea and spices, but it was delicious!  Also, I made this recipe gluten free by means of the Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 gluten free baking flour.

Although I carefully measured my loaf pans to be sure they were the size called for in the recipe, I still ended up with batter left over, so I used another, smaller loaf pan for the extras.  If you didn't have one, you could probably make a couple of muffins with the excess batter.

🍓🍓🍓

Since yesterday was St. Patrick's Day, I also took along a pan of Gluten Free Irish Soda Bread which also went over very well.  It goes over well at home, so I was pretty sure people at church would also enjoy it.  This recipe doesn't rise as high as traditional Irish soda bread, but it has a rugged rustic look.

🍓🍓🍓

And then lastly I made a pan of very simple Cheese Danish.  Here is what you need for this recipe:

SIMPLE CHEESE DANISH SQUARES
2 cans crescent roll dough
12 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup melted butter
Cinnamon-sugar for the top

Unroll 1 can of the crescent rolls and press into the bottom of an ungreased 13x9 pan.  Press carefully to seal all of the perforations.

In a bowl combine the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla.  A beater will work but using a wooden spoon works just as well.  Spread the cream cheese over the dough in the pan.

Open the second can of crescent rolls and arrange the dough over the top.  Seal perforations if you can, but you don't have to get too finicky about it.

Spread the melted butter over the top as evenly as you can, then sprinkle liberally with cinnamon-sugar.  Bake at 350º for 25 to 30 minutes.

These always go over well.  I have a perfectly wonderful recipe for traditional Cheese Danish pastries (find it here: Cheese Danish) but it is a lot of work.  I may make those for Easter, but for just an ordinary Sunday the quick recipe works fine.

And that was my weekend baking!  You might enjoy trying these recipes, too.