How to Make Easy, Fruit-Sweetened Sourdough Apple-Raisin-Nut Ripple Bread (Diabetic Friendly)

This sourdough bread is moist and full of chopped apples. It's also easy to make. The bread gets its sweetness primarily from fruit--the apples, dates, and raisins--not refined sugar or artificial sweeteners. A cream cheese ripple runs through the bread, adding extra moisture, complementing the sourdough tang, and providing a bit of contrast to the apples. Pecans add a bit of crunch to the bread. With plenty of whole-grains, fiber, protein, and no refined sugar, a slice of the bread is acceptable if you're on a diabetic diet or want to "eat healthy." We like the bread for breakfast, and it also makes a nice snack with a cup of tea or coffee. Slices reheat well in the air fryer at 320 degrees for a couple of minutes. Enjoy!

How to Make Easy, Fruit-Sweetened Sourdough Apple-Raisin-Nut Ripple Bread (Diabetic Friendly)

Sourdough Apple-Raisin-Nut Ripple Bread (Diabetic Friendly) -- Makes 2 Loaves

1 cup of sourdough starter/discard

1/3 cup of canola oil

1/2 cup of milk

2 tablespoons of milled flax seeds

1/4 cup of date puree (barely cover 1/4 cup of dates with boiling water, let the mixture

cool, and mash or process the water and dates together)

2 cups of chopped, peeled apples

1/4 cup of raisins (I use golden)

1/2-3/4 cup of chopped pecans

1 cup of white whole-wheat flour

In a large bowl combine the starter/discard, oil, milk, flax seeds, and date puree until well blended. Stir in the apples, raisins, pecans, and white-whole wheat flour until combined. Let the mixture sit on the counter, loosely covered with plastic wrap, for at least an hour. I routinely let my mixture sit on the counter for 3-5 hours, and it's fine. When you're ready, add to the mixture:

1 1/2 cups of white whole-wheat flour

1 1/2 teaspoons of salt

1 1/2 teaspoons of apple pie spice (or a mixture of cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice)

Stir the flour, salt, and apple pie spice into the original mixture, then knead the mixture for 3-5 minutes, adding an additional 1/4-1/2 cup of white whole-wheat flour to prevent the mixture from being too sticky to knead. Divide the mixture into two equal parts. Roll or pat each half out, on a floured surface, to about 6- X 10-inches. Divide the cream cheese filling (see below) equally between the two halves and spread it out on top of the dough to within an inch or so of the edges. Roll each portion of dough up, jelly-roll-style, starting from the short edges, forming two loaves. Spritz two medium loaf pans with non-stick cooking spray or line the pans with aluminum foil and spritz the foil with the spray. Put one dough loaf in each pan. Spritz the tops of the dough loaves with non-stick cooking spray or canola oil. Loosely cover the loaves with plastic wrap and let them rise until they increase in volume by about one-third.

Air Fryer: Air fry the loaves at 320 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until an instant read thermometer registers 190-200 degrees.

Oven: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake the loaves for 35-45 minutes or until an instant read thermometer registers 190-200 degrees.

Let the loaves cool completely before slicing them.

Cream Cheese Filling

8 ounces of light cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup of date puree (barely cover 1/4 cup of dates with boiling water, let the mixture

    cool, and mash or process the water and dates together)

1 teaspoon of vanilla

1/2 teaspoon of apple pie spice

In a medium bowl beat all the ingredients together until smooth. Spread the filling out evenly on each of the portions of rolled/patted out dough before rolling the dough.

How to Make Easy, Fruit-Sweetened Sourdough Apple-Raisin-Nut Ripple Bread (Diabetic Friendly)

How to Make Easy, Fruit-Sweetened Sourdough Apple-Raisin-Nut Ripple Bread (Diabetic Friendly)