My easy applesauce bread is super moist, lightly sweet, and bursting with autumnal apple flavor that can be enjoyed all year long--ready in under an hour! The crumb topping takes it over the top, but takes next to no time. Let's get into the deliciousness!
And if you enjoy this recipe, you'll love my applesauce crumb muffins, too!
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What does it taste like?
You'll taste delicate apple flavor made super cozy by sweet warming spices like ginger and cinnamon. The texture of the bread itself is soft and chewy while the crumb topping is crunchy with buttery, caramelized sweet flavor.
And if you enjoy this recipe, you'll love my Apple Pie Monkey Bread with Praline Sauce or my Pumpkin Apple Spice Cake!
Featured Reader Review
★★★★★
"Just delicious. I loved how moist this cake is. A real winner!"
-Jonathan
What You'll Need for this Recipe
Applesauce - I recommend unsweetened applesauce so that the bread doesn't turn out too sweet. Alternatively, you can adjust the maple syrup and sugar down. Use store-bought applesauce to make this recipe super simple or homemade applesauce if you want more control over the ingredients and flavor.
Brown Sugar adds caramelized sweetness and helps keep the texture of this bread soft. Use dark or light brown sugar here.
Warming Spices make this kind of applesauce snacking cake perfectly cozy for fall and complement the apple flavor. Use pure ground spices in this recipe for the best taste.
Check out the recipe card below for full ingredients list, measurements, nutrition facts, and step-by-step instructions!
Substitutions & Variations
Pear Sauce - Pears are popping during the fall and winter months and you can easily replace the applesauce in this recipe with pear sauce for a different kind of seasonal flavor.
Muffins - Instead of making spiced applesauce quick bread, you can make easy applesauce muffins just by changing the pan. This recipe makes about four jumbo muffins.
Topping - The brown sugar crumb topping is optional but highly recommended as it adds different layers of flavor and texture to the recipe. But you can make a solid loaf of applesauce bread without it, if need be.
Everybody who loves this simple applesauce loaf also goes bananas for my super easy Apple Cherry Crisp made in the slow cooker!
How to Make Easy Applesauce Quick Bread
Step One: Whisk together the dry apple bread ingredients.
Step Two: Mix together the applesauce and other wet ingredients until uniform.
Step Three: Add dry mixture to wet and stir until just combined and no dry pockets of flour remain. Batter will be a bit sticky.
Step Four: Mix up the ingredients to make the brown sugar crumble topping.
Pro Tip: Do not over mix the batter as this can make the batter and resulting bread too dense and tough. Look at the batter after each stir and stop when it's combined.
Step Five: Spread the batter into a loaf pan.
Step Six: Sprinkle the crumb topping mix evenly over top and gently press into batter.
Pro Tip: Line the loaf pan with parchment paper or spray with non-stick oil to prevent sticking.
Step Seven: Bake until topping is crisp and golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out dry.
Pro Tip: The texture of this bread is super moist and more like a pone or bread pudding so while the toothpick should come out dry, a few tender crumbs might cling to it and that's ok!
Fall baking projects aren't limited to apple flavors, boo. Check out my Sweet Potato Bread Pudding and Harvest Banana Bread with banana, carrot, and apple, too.
Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely. Omit the egg and use a plant-based butter instead of dairy butter.
When baking applesauce bread, the applesauce adds moisture, apple flavor, natural sweetness, and a bit of fiber.
Store leftover applesauce quick bread for up to two days at room temperature in an airtight container with a paper towel inside (to absorb extra moisture and prevent molding) or in the refrigerator wrapped in aluminum foil or plastic wrap for up to six days.
Yes, wrap it in plastic wrap or parchment paper then again in aluminum foil or a zip-top bag to freeze for up to one year!
More Favorite Loaf Cake Recipes
Looking for more recipes like this? Try these:
I hope you'll enjoy a thick slice of homemade apple quick bread soon and very soon. And sharing is caring so be sure to pin this apple cinnamon bread recipe for later and follow me over on Pinterest. Thanks for reading!
📖 Recipe
Moist Applesauce Quick Bread
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Spiced Applesauce Bread
- 1 ¾ cup unsweetened applesauce
- ½ cup butter melted
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 ½ cup flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ginger
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
For the Brown Sugar Crumb Topping
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup flour
- 3 tablespoons butter melted
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix together applesauce, butter, brown sugar, egg, and maple syrup until uniform.1 ¾ cup unsweetened applesauce, ½ cup butter, ⅓ cup brown sugar, 1 egg, 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, sea salt, and nutmeg.1 ½ cup flour, 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ginger, ½ teaspoon sea salt, ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- Add flour mixture to applesauce mixture and stir until just combined, scraping down sides of bowl, as necessary. Do not over mix batter.
- In another bowl, mix together brown sugar, flour, butter, cinnamon, and sea salt until crumble topping forms.¼ cup brown sugar, ¼ cup flour, 3 tablespoons butter, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- Spread applesauce bread batter evenly into prepared loaf pan then sprinkle crumb topping mixture over top and gently press into the batter.
- Bake loaf for about forty minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of loaf comes out clean. Cool in pan until comfortable to handle (about 20 minutes) and serve warm.
Debbie L says
Can I add walnuts and/or raisins? Do I need to adjust any ingredient amounts?
Jazzmine Woodard says
Hi, Debbie! Yes, you can add walnuts and/or raisins without adjusting any other ingredients. I recommend mixing them in with the dry ingredients in step three so that they will be coated in flour and less likely to cluster or sink to the bottom of the pan. Let me know how this turns out for you--I hope you enjoy it!
Sue says
I have made this recipe for the tt
Sue Simmons says
moist and tasty
Jazzmine Woodard says
So glad you enjoyed this cake, Sue!
Jody says
Have you made muffins rather than bread? If so how many muffins in regular muffin cups? Thanks!
Jazzmine Woodard says
Hi, Jody! I have created a dedicated applesauce crumb muffins post that transforms this recipe into 12 regular muffins. Hope you enjoy it.
Patty says
can you add small pieces of apples?
Jazzmine Woodard says
Hi, Patty. I don't recommend adding apple pieces to this recipe because they will introduce extra moisture. If you do try it, I would shred or grate the apple finely, then squeeze the pieces in a few layers of paper towel to get as much water as possible out. Alternatively, you can use dehydrated apple pieces or apple chips. They will become soft and tender while baking without adding moisture. Hope this helps!