Apple Spice Bread.

 Last week I definitely started baking in fall mode: apples, spices, golden toasty nuts.  Ironically I baked this on one of the warmest days of September (it went up to almost 80 degrees) but it still made my house smell like autumn.  This is a really fast and easy quick bread and it keeps well so if you don't eat it all within a couple of days, it's not a big deal.  My sister's boyfriend had two slices toasted in some butter three days after I made it and I heard no complaints :)

I used toasted walnuts instead of the pecans that the recipe calls for and I sprinkled some cinnamon sugar on top before baking.  This is a bread you can have some flexibility with as far as the spices go if you'd like - I stuck with the spices listed but I almost always increase the amount of cinnamon because I can't get enough of the stuff.  (If you're looking for more traditional "fall" spices, think cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, etc.)

Apple Spice Bread
Adapted from Baking Bites
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs
1 1/4 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 apples, shredded on the large holes on a grater
3/4 cup toasted, chopped walnuts (or pecans)

Preheat the oven to 350 degress F. and grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.

Sift or whisk together the dry ingredients.  Combine the butter, eggs, milk, and vanilla until well mixed.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until almost combined.  Add the apples and chopped nuts and stir until just mixed together.

Pour into the greased loaf pan and bake for an hour to an hour and 15 minutes.  The bread will be done when a long skewer or knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cool for a few minutes in the pan and then invert onto a rack to finish cooling completely.