Red Velvet Cream Cheese Loaf

Every occasion where it is appropriate to bring a gift of food is not necessarily an iced cake kind of situation. I created this bread to fill in on those occasions. It is a comforting bread that has a heady texture and a light bite. Not too sweet this bread works nicely at adult affairs as well as kids friendly ones.

As is true with all red velvet, the red food coloring is not necessary, it just makes it more fun!

Red Velvet Loaves

2 Cups All Purpose Flour (1 cup)**
1 Cup Evaporated Sugar Cane (1/2 cup)
1 TBLSP Molasses (1 ½ tsp)
4 TBLSP Unsweetened Cocoa Powder (2 TBLSP)
2 Tsp Baking Soda (1 tsp)
¼ Tsp Salt (1/8 tsp)
1 ½ Cups Buttermilk (3/4 cup buttermilk)
½ Cup Butter (1/4 cup)
4 Eggs (2 eggs)
1 TBLSP Apple Cider Vinegar (1 ½ tsp)
1 Tsp Vanilla (½ tsp)
1 oz Red Food Coloring

**1/2 recipe in parentheses

Filling:

1 Package Cream Cheese
¼ Cup Evaporated Sugar Cane
1/8 Tsp salt
½ Tsp Lemon juice
1 Egg
2 TBLSP All purpose flour

Preheat oven to 350F.

Cream together the cream cheese, sugar, salt and lemon juice. Mix in one egg until smooth. Whisk in the flour until smoothly combined and place in pastry piping bag; promptly refrigerate to firm up the mixture. This can, and ought to, be done ahead of time.

In a separate bowl cream together the butter, sugar, molasses and salt until smooth. Add eggs and then vanilla, mixing until smoothly combined. Mix in the butter milk and vinegar.

Sift together the cocoa powder, flour and baking soda.

Add dry mixture to the wet, stirring until completely combined.

Grease and cocoa a full size bread pan. Spoon or scoop slightly more than ½ of the batter into the pan.

Pipe 3 thick cords of the chilled cream cheese mixture onto the center of the batter in the pan.

Spoon the remaining ½ of the batter around and on top of the cream cheese, making certain to cover it completely.

Place in 350F oven and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Cool on a rack in pan. Do not remove it early, it will lose shape. Allow to cool completely.

You can drizzle the top with a cream and powdered sugar glaze, or just slice and eat. It is delicious and has a lovely texture.