Paleo Morning Glory Quick bread made grain-free, refined sugar-free, and dairy-free. This flavorful, healthful bread includes all the flavors of morning glory muffins, and is easily prepared in your blender. A marvelous go-to treat.
The older I get, the more importance I attach to life’s little comforts…
Whether it be relishing my steamy morning beverage, sweating it out in a hot yoga class, or setting aside a moment to enjoy a slice of quick bread alongside a good read, these are the little “me” sessions that, while small and seemingly insignificant, make waves in helping me stay relaxed and focused.
Everyone has their own approach to treating him or herself, but the key for me is to keep my daily comforts well-conceived, uplifting, strengthening, or healthful…
Wise indulgences, as I like to think of them.
In my late twenties, I would have needed to justify or earn any of these little pleasures before slowing down and taking a breather.
You know, because: guilt, self-loathing, self-imposed pressure to embody perfection while still remaining cool, but not displaying any of the effort that goes into it.
Ohhh momma has that changed.
Being human is challenging enough as it is…we deserve to throw ourselves a bone.
Enter: Dis bone.
All the trappings of a morning glory muffin, but in the form of a loaf.
What is “Morning Glory” Quick Bread?:
What exactly is a Morning Glory Muffin (or in this case, Morning Glory Quickbread)? It’s a sweet baked treat filled with grated carrots, applesauce, walnuts, shredded coconut, sometimes raisins, and sometimes pineapple?
Quite honestly, morning glory baked goods are very similar to carrot cake!
Depending on your approach to either, the two can be one and the same. Which quite honestly is fine by me, because I love both so dearly. Way I see it, whatever adventure you choose, you’re bound to end up with a comforting result.
You’ll observe the recipe here is similar to the Paleo Carrot Cake I showed you last week.
Same awesome concept, just a few minor tweaks, and in the form of a quick bread rather than a tiered cake.
Psst! If you want to frost this loaf to give it an extra pizzaz, I 200% recommend my Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting!
What Does This Bread Taste Like?:
This bread is everything a good quick bread should be: tender and moist, dense, but airy, sweet but not too sweet, fluffy, full of flavor, the perfect accompaniment to your mug of coffee or tea.
Just like carrot cake, there are plenty of ways you can make this recipe your own by customizing the recipe.
For me, breads like this are that slow morning or afternoon experience, where you cut off a thick slice, pair it with your favorite hot drink, and slowly savor each bite while surfing the internet for quality information or reading a great book, researching getaways, etc.
I’ve also been known to down a huge hunk lickety split after a sweaty hot yoga class, so there’s always that option, too.
Recipe Adaptations:
- Add applesauce, subtract oil
- Incorporate up to 1/2 cup of crushed pineapple, subtract oil
- Add 1 large ripe banana, subtract pure maple syrup
- Hazelnut flour in place of almond flour? Sure, we can dig!
- Pecans in place of walnuts, or go nut-free
- Add raisins
- Whip up that Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting I showed you last week and frost the dang thing!
- Easily turn this bread into muffins by baking the batter in a muffin tray.
Looking for more healthy grain-free quick breads? Here are some reader favorites.
More Quick Bread Recipes:
- Paleo Double Chocolate Banana Bread
- Paleo Strawberry Banana Bread
- Paleo Carrot Cake Banana Bread
- Paleo Cranberry Orange Bread
Throw yourself a loaf of morning glory quick bread!
Paleo Morning Glory Quick Bread
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 large eggs
- 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
- 1/4 cup avocado oil see note*
- 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 2 tsp orange zest
- 1 1/2 cups finely ground almond flour
- 1/2 cup tapioca flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1 1/2 cups grated carrot
- 1/2 cup grated apple about 1/2 an apple
- 1/3 cup raw walnuts chopped
- 2/3 cup unsweetened shredded coconut plus more for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and line a 9" x 5" loaf pan with parchment paper. You can also oil or spray the pan if you don't have parchment paper.
- Add the first 11 ingredients (eggs through salt) to a blender and blend until smooth. Stir in the remaining ingredients until the batter is well-combined. Note: if you don't have a high-powered blender, use one large mixing bowl to mix all of the ingredients together.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared loaf pan and cover it with aluminum foil. Bake for 40 to 60 minutes, or until the bread is firm in the center. The best way to tell if quick bread is fully baked is by taking its internal temperature. To do so, insert a digital thermometer into the center of the bread and wait until the numbers stop moving. The ideal temperature is 190 to 205 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Remove the bread from the oven and allow it to cool for 1 hour before cutting. When you're ready to slice the bread, pull the loaf out of the pan using the edges of the parchment paper (or if you sprayed the pan with oil, run a knife along the edge of the bread and turn it out onto a cutting board). Use a sharp knife to cut thick slices and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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I love this bread. It has become a staple in my freezer! Question… I was about to make another load when I realized I was out of apples but have applesauce. How much solace should I use to replace the fresh grated apple?
Thank you 😋
Hi Deborah! I would try 1/4 cup of applesauce to replace the grated apple. I haven’t tested this myself yet, but that’s where I’d start 🙂 You can always add 1/4 cup more if the batter seems too thick!
Another amazing recipe! I made this with the ingredients exactly according to the recipe, except I made them as muffins. It made 12 regular sized muffins and five mini muffins. I cooked the regular muffins for 8 minutes then added the mini muffins for another 12 minutes. Then I turned the oven off and let them sit for three minutes in the oven. They came out beautifully, slightly crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. They are so good! Now I just have to restrain myself from eating all of them in one go 🙂 (And I didn’t let them cool at all before eating them LOL)
Love it! I’m so happy you made them into muffins…sounds amazing! Thanks so much for swinging back to let me know 😀 xoxo
I’ve made this bread a few times and it’s delicious. My favorite version has been to add dried cranberries, 1 tsp+ ginger & subbing applesauce for both maple syrup & oil since I sweeten with just a packet of Stevia. I always end up adding more shredded coconut since I love the texture. I do find I need to bake a little longer with my mods. Thanks Julia!
Oooh, I love it! Thanks so much for sharing all of that, Anna! xoxoxo
Could you use gluten free flour blends?
Hi Chelsea,
I haven’t tested the recipe using a GF flour blend, but I bet it would work great! Try using 1.5 cups and see where that lands you. If the batter seems thin, add 1/4 to 1/2 cup more 🙂 Hope you enjoy! xoxo
Can i use 2 cups whole wheat flour instead of almond and tapioca flour?
Hi Ashwini,
That’s a great question! I haven’t tested the recipe using whole wheat flour, so I can’t be too sure how it would turn out. My guess is you would need a little less wheat flour, as it is more absorbent than almond and tapioca. I would start with 1 2/3 cups of whole wheat flour and add more if the batter seems too thin. Let me know what you end up doing! xo
Thanks for sharing! Does it keep long?
Hi Vanessa! The bread will stay fresh in a sealed container (or bag) in the refrigerator for 10 days. If you need longer, you can always freeze it! I do this all the time 🙂 xoxo
This looks so good! What a satisfying and nutrient dense breakfast to start the day with!
So happy you like it! xoxo
Looks good!! What can I replace the baking powder with?
Hi Katerina,
I haven’t tested the recipe without baking powder yet, but I imagine you can add just 1/4 tsp additional baking soda. If you have tapioca flour on hand, use 1 tablespoon tapioca flour. Let me know how it goes! xoxo
Any tweaks to suggest to replace almond flour with cassava? Can’t do nuts.
Hi Marie! I’ve never tried the recipe using cassava, but I’m willing to bet it would work really well! I would use the same amount as the almond flour. Let me know if you try it!
This looks great! Can I replace maple syrup with raw honey?
Absolutely! Just keep a watchful eye on the bread, as honey burns quicker than pure maple syrup. xo
This looks so yummy! I am drooling 🙂
I just made this over the weekend for my kids. It was delicious!
I’m so psyched to hear it! Thanks for the sweet note!
I just made this recipe as mini muffins & they are delicious! Did you ever post nutritional information for this recipe?
wow I love the fabulous combo in morning glory muffins, what a great way to sneak in extra fruit and veggies! I’m sure these muffins make mornings that much more glorious..
Thank you!! This recipe was fantastic!
I made it, replacing the maple syrup with Monkfruit Sweetened Maple Flavored Syrup and no one in my family noticed! They loved it too!
I’m so thrilled to hear it, Wendie!! I’ll have to try it with monk fruit syrup, as many of the folks in my family are sugar-free. Love it!! xo
ThIs sounds delicious and I think I have everything already to make it! Pinning so I can make it this weekend:)
Awesome! I’m psyched to hear it, Shelby! Let me know how you like it! 😀