Feta cheese quick bread – fluffy, moist and buttery, this savory quick bread recipe is ideal for breakfast, snack or even dinner.
What do I make for dinner tonight? This is my every day dilemma, and not so much for lack of ideas, but for finding that tricky, elusive, ever-changing common ground where all picking eaters in the house can be satisfied. That’s the biggest problem for me – making that impossible dish, that has to conform to all these conditions – needs to be kid-friendly (meaning they will actually be willing to taste it), and adult-approved (meaning it has to be as healthy as they can take it), but also – quick and easy (because this question usually hits me at 5pm).
Does this imaginary dish even exist? In most cases, the closest thing to that holy grail of meals is some form of cooked eggs. But I often exhaust the idea of cooking eggs for breakfast, so I try not to push that too often for dinner as well.
You might think that by now, I have a few tried and true recipes up my sleeve, that never fail to please everyone. However, anyone living with young kids can attest that even their favorites, one day get old (not counting pizza and pasta, of course). You have to always keep it fresh, and interesting in the kitchen, but also, don’t go too ‘interesting’ on them, as they like things to be at the very least familiar and predictable. You also need to go easy with the ‘healthy’ food, so it doesn’t backfire at you. How far you push for healthy eating, and how much you retreat – finding that optimal balance is hard. And to complicate matters even more, the few dishes that one kid likes, the other – absolutely refuses to eat!
So whenever I get tired of thinking up dinner ideas, and my mind draws a complete blank, and I choose to close one eye, and give up on the healthy front, this is what I make: a feta cheese quick bread. Not for breakfast, but for dinner. Works like a charm. Everyone is happy because anything that has dough in it, is a hit with kids. And I am…just relieved.
This is a tried and true recipe that I often make for breakfast, brunch, dinner, snack, and sometimes for camping trips, in the form of muffins. It’s a savory feta cheese quick bread, that literally takes a few minutes to mix, and about 40 minutes to bake. It comes out soft and moist and buttery, with salty feta cheese bits scattered throughout. It’s like a savory cake, and rather than using it for sandwiches, eat it as is, maybe with a bit of butter spread on top, and a cup of yogurt on the side.
The best thing about this bread, apart from being so quick and easy, is that it’s one of those forgiving recipes, which always turns out great. Even if your batter is a little more stiff, or a little more shaggy – it will all be good in the end!
The feta gives this bread a nice cheesy saltiness, that I love. Feel free to increase the amount if you are a fan. The use of good quality mayonnaise (without sugar) is essential. As for yogurt, I’ve made it with regular plain yogurt, and Greek yogurt. Make it in muffin tins for a different look (because we all know kids eat with their eyes).
Do you have a favorite go-to recipe that pleases all, but is still relatively healthy? Do tell!
Hi BJ,
I haven’t tried substituting coconut or sorghum flour here, only whole wheat, and when I do this, the taste is almost the same – just a tad denser and drier. Coconut is quite tricky, as it absorbs a lot of liquid, and the resulting texture (when I’ve used it in other recipes) is quite different, plus it adds coconut flavor, which I’m not sure how it would work in combination with the feta cheese… So, I would not suggest using it here. I’d say sorghum is a better choice, but you might need to add another egg, or a little more oil if the mixture is too dry. Since this is a quick bread, the consistency should be more like cake batter, rather than bread dough, so it should feel more liquid. If you end up experimenting, please let me know if it works! May I also suggest this book, for baking with alternative flours, it’s called Alternative Baker, by Alanna Taylor-Tobin – she uses all sorts of alternative flours in baked good, and her recipes are amazing. Thanks for stopping by, and reading!! 🙂
Love your photos – they are beautiful and make me wanna make everything you cook or bake! 🙂 Love Feta so definitely trying this bread! 🙂
THanks so much Julia! I hope you like it 🙂
Your bread looks wonderful!
I am wondering if you thought this recipe would work using a substitute flour, such as Sorghum flour or coconut flour?
Hi BJ,
I haven’t tried substituting coconut or sorghum flour here, only whole wheat, and when I do this, the taste is almost the same – just a tad denser and drier. Coconut is quite tricky, as it absorbs a lot of liquid, and the resulting texture (when I’ve used it in other recipes) is quite different, plus it adds coconut flavor, which I’m not sure how it would work in combination with the feta cheese… So, I would not suggest using it here. I’d say sorghum is a better choice, but you might need to add another egg, or a little more oil if the mixture is too dry. Since this is a quick bread, the consistency should be more like cake batter, rather than bread dough, so it should feel more liquid. If you end up experimenting, please let me know if it works! May I also suggest this book, for baking with alternative flours, it’s called Alternative Baker, by Alanna Taylor-Tobin – she uses all sorts of alternative flours in baked good, and her recipes are amazing. Thanks for stopping by, and reading!! 🙂