It’s almost summer and you know what that means: CANOBIE LAKE PARK! I hadn’t been in forever, but I met up with a few friends this past weekend to kick off the season. Naturally we pre-partied in the parking lot and I surprised everyone with an awesome loaf of fresh homemade vegan bread!

Zest from 1 orange
Juice from 1 orange
1 1/2 tbs. poppy seeds
2 c. flour
1/4 c. (or 1 single serving package) applesauce
1/4 c. oil (canola or vegetable)
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. soy milk
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, poppy seeds, baking soda and salt. Mix together remaining wet ingredients in a separate bowl, then pour into flour mixture. Once completely combined (with no lumps!) pour into a buttered loaf pan and bake for 40-50 minutes, or until golden brown and a toothpick comes clean.

Note for making the best bread: This was a pretty big hit! It definitely got us ready for the big day… The trick to vegan breads is adding lots of binders, such as apple sauce, oil and milk. You could always use an egg substitute but I’d only do that if I had to. Also, it would be really easy to work this into different flavors by holding the orange/poppy seeds and adding whatever you want!