Green Tea Classic Lemon Poppy Seed Loaf

Submitted by: Kellie Sanborn

This is a green-tea infused take on a classic favorite. Lemon and tea are a classic pair, so when deciding how to incorporate Green tea into a cooking or baking recipe, my thoughts quickly turned to this old favorite. The water is simply replaced by cold brewed Green tea which subtly imparts its mellow flavor on this citrusy treat. If you have a mortar and pestle, you can increase the green tea flavor by pulverizing the tea and adding the powder to the batter.

Prep Time: 15-20 mins. prep, 55 minutes bake time
Serving Size: 12

Ingredients:
Batter:
2 1/4 cups flour
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 tablespoons poppy seeds
1 large egg
1/4 cup cooking oil
1 1/4 cup cold green tea
2 tablespoons lemon juice
zest of one large lemon

Syrup:
1/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons lemon juice

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix dry ingredients in large bowl.
In a smaller bowl, whisk egg and stir in cooking oil water, and lemon juice and zest.
Add this mixture to the dry mixture and mix until moistened (don't worry if it is a little lumpy--you don't want to overmix it because it will make the bread tough).
Pour batter into well-greased loaf pan and spread evenly.
Bake for about 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the crack at the top comes clean when removed.
While the bread bakes, mix sugar and lemon juice for the syrup and microwave until warm.
Stir until sugar is dissolved.
When bread is ready, poke holes completely through the loaf with a skewer, about 1' apart and pour the syrup over the bread while it is still hot.
Allow the bread to rest 20 minutes before removing it and placing it on cooling rack.