This recipe is part of my March 2023 TU story. Read it all here.

Now, on to the sweet part: I baked up a loaf of carrot bread, so we would have some sugary carbs to eat, both before and after a long run. Here’s the deal with this cake-disguised-as-bread recipe: it’s not quite as sweet as cake but it’s sweet enough to be a reward, a tasty little morsel you could tuck into, no matter what you did to deserve it. Folded the laundry? Eat a slice of carrot bread. Ran eight miles? Carrot bread! The crumb of this bread is tender and soft, yet stands up to a slather of butter. I simply wash and shred the carrots in the food processor, no peeling required. The topping is made from crushed ginger snaps, pressed into the batter. You could leave it off and still have a happy loaf of cake, er, bread.

Spiced Carrot Bread with Gingersnap Crumble
Makes one loaf

1 ½ cups flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ginger
¼ teaspoon each clove and nutmeg
½ cup mild olive oil
2 eggs
½ cup packed dark brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon bourbon
½ cup yogurt or applesauce
1 ½ cups grated carrots
For the topping: ¼ cup crumbled gingersnap cookies

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a standard-sized loaf pan.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices. In another bowl, combine the olive oil, eggs, sugars, bourbon, yogurt or applesauce and carrots. Stir until well combined, then mix the two batters. Scrape out into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top. 

Sprinkle the cookies evenly over the top and press down gently. Bake for 1 hour, or until the top is just spongy. Do not overbake. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.