This Strawberry Bread Recipe is one of our favorite ways to make the most of fresh strawberries! With a simple vanilla batter and chopped strawberries, the cake loaf turns out fluffy, moist, and full of fruity flavor in every bite. And the fresh strawberry glaze adds the perfect finishing touch! Sweet without being overpowering, this recipe is like a cross between strawberry cake and a quick bread. It’s perfect for breakfast, brunch, or dessert! We make it every year in the summer when berries are in season, but it’s also fantastic for Valentine’s Day or any kind of gathering throughout the year.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Strawberry Bread Recipe
If you have an abundance of strawberries on hand, this quick bread is the BEST way to use them up! Here’s why you’ll love it:
- Fresh Strawberry Flavor – Fresh strawberries are folded right into the batter, meaning you get juicy strawberry flavor in every bite. The whole thing is topped off with an easy three-ingredient strawberry glaze that’s pretty, sweet, and SO good!
- Super Easy – The batter comes together in one bowl with just 25 minutes of prep before the oven does the rest of the work.
- Simple Ingredients – Made with baking staples like flour, sugar, eggs, milk, and vanilla, there’s no need for complicated ingredients or techniques.
- Perfect for Sharing – This recipe makes enough for 12 servings and stores super well. It’s great for hosting or giving as gifts!
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Ingredients
For the Strawberry Bread
- Flour – All-purpose flour forms the base of the bread. If you need to keep the recipe gluten-free, feel free to use a 1:1 all-purpose gluten-free flour instead.
- Leaveners – We use both baking powder and baking soda to help the bread rise, creating a soft, slightly fluffy texture.
- Salt – Just a pinch helps enhance the rest of the ingredients.
- Sugar – Granulated sugar helps sweeten the bread and gives it a bit of structure.
- Oil – We use canola oil to give the bread moisture, but any neutral oil such as vegetable oil will work.
- Milk – This helps combine the ingredients and adds moisture to the batter. We recommend using whole milk for the best taste and texture!
- Eggs – These act as a binder, helping the bread hold its shape.
- Vanilla – A generous splash adds depth to the bread and enhances the flavor of the strawberries.
- Fresh Strawberries – The star of the show! You’ll need one pound of fresh strawberries. We don’t recommend using frozen strawberries for this recipe. Their flavor won’t be quite as strong, and the excess moisture may make the bread mushy.
For the Strawberry Glaze
- Confectioners’ Sugar – Also known as powdered sugar, this forms the base of the glaze, melting into a smooth texture.
- Milk – A small amount helps thin the glaze, creating a drizzly consistency. We recommend whole milk, but any milk you have on hand will work.
- Fresh Strawberry – Mashed until smooth, this mixes into the glaze, giving it a fresh strawberry flavor that pairs perfectly with the bread.
How to Make Strawberry Bread
This bread is almost too pretty to eat and looks like something from a professional bakery, but it’s actually so easy to make! All you need is a large bowl, a loaf pan, and another small bowl for the glaze. Here’s how to make this Strawberry Bread Recipe:
- Combine ingredients – Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Then, add the wet ingredients, and whisk just until smooth. Fold in the chopped strawberries, distributing them evenly throughout the batter.
- Bake – Pour the bread batter into a loaf pan lined with parchment paper. Bake until the bread has risen and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool – Let the bread cool slightly in the pan on a wire rack. Then, remove it from the pan, and let it cool completely.
- Make the glaze – In the meantime, whisk all the glaze ingredients in a bowl until smooth. Start with a teaspoon of milk, and add more as needed to achieve your desired consistency!
- Serve – Drizzle the glaze over the cooled bread, slice, and enjoy!
Tips
- Use a parchment paper sling. To make it easy to remove the bread after baking, we line our loaf pan with parchment paper, letting it hang over both ends to create a sling. Then, we just lift the ends to remove the bread, and it comes out in one piece!
- Measure the flour correctly. Spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level it off rather than scooping directly from the bag. Too much flour can make the bread dense!
- Chop the strawberries into small, equal-sized pieces. Smaller pieces distribute more evenly throughout the batter, giving you fresh strawberry flavor in every bite.
- Don’t overmix. Whisk the batter just until everything is combined. Overmixing can result in dense strawberry bread.
- Check for doneness. Baking times can vary slightly depending on your oven. To prevent overbaking, start checking for doneness around 50-55 minutes. You’ll know your bread is finished baking when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean!
- Let the bread cool completely. Allow the bread to cool in the pan for 15 minutes before transferring it to a wire rack so that it holds its shape. Then, make sure the loaf is completely cool before adding the glaze so it doesn’t melt or soak into the bread!
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Variations
- Add Chocolate Chips – Fold mini or regular chocolate chips into the batter for a chocolate-covered-strawberry-inspired twist.
- Swap the Glaze – Omit the strawberry glaze, and sprinkle coarse sugar over the batter to give it a sweet, slightly crunchy finish. Or just use a buttercream icing instead!
- Add Toppings – For even more flavor and texture, try sprinkling chopped nuts, crushed freeze-dried strawberries, chocolate chips, or coconut flakes over the glaze before it sets.
How to Store
Once cool, store any leftover strawberry bread in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the fridge for up to 5 days. Bring the bread to room temperature for the best taste and texture before serving.
You can also freeze this recipe without the glaze for up to 3 months! To freeze, wrap the entire loaf or individual slices in plastic wrap, and transfer the bread to a freezer-safe bag or container. Thaw frozen bread at room temperature, and add the glaze just before serving.
More Easy Strawberry Dessert Recipes
- French Strawberry Cake
- Strawberry Icebox Cake
- Strawberry Tres Leches Cake
- Strawberry Pretzel Dessert
- Chocolate Strawberry Upside Down Cupcakes
- Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake Ice Cream
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Strawberry Bread
Equipment
Ingredients
Cake
- 2 cups all-purpose flour spooned and leveled
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup canola oil vegetable oil, or other flavorless oil
- 1/3 cup whole milk
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 pound fresh strawberries stems removed and chopped small
Strawberry Glaze
- 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 2 teaspoons milk
- 1 strawberry mashed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a 9”x5” loaf pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang for easy removal.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- Add the sugar, oil, milk, eggs, and vanilla extract. Whisk everything together just until combined. Don’t overmix; otherwise, the batter can become dense.
- Mix in the chopped strawberries.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake in the center rack of the oven for 55-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- When the cake is ready, remove from the oven and place the pan on a wire cooling rack for 15 minutes before lifting the cake out of the pan to cool completely, about 1 hour.
- Place the strawberry glaze ingredients in a bowl and whisk until smooth.
- Drizzle the strawberry glaze over the fully cooled cake.
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