If you’ve ever had a glass of cherry limemade, you know what a good combination cherry and lime can be. I used that combination as inspiration for this Cherry Lime Bread. This quickbread is sweet, and zesty, with flavors that you don’t see too often together. It is moist and tender, with a texture that hints at that of a pound cake.
There are two keys to getting a good result from this bread. The first is to use fresh lime juice. Fresh limes are going to give you the most vibrant flavor. I find that a lot of their tartness is lost when you use bottled juice, so make sure to pick up some fresh fruit to juice to make this loaf. The second is to use a good cherry preserve for the filling. I used Orchard’s finest Michigan Red Tart Cherry Preserves, an all natural cherry preserve made by Smuckers. It’s not too sweet and has a lot of big chunks of cherries it in, adding both a nice cherry flavor and a good texture to the bread. This jam is so tasty that I was tempted just to eat the whole jar on toast (and I did eat a lot of it that way, don’t get me wrong), but I’m glad I ended up putting some of it in this loaf because it went so well with the bright, zesty lime.
This loaf is equally good for breakfast and for dessert. It will keep well for a couple of days, so you can bake it on the weekend and enjoy it during the week – at least, you can enjoy it for the few days that it will last in the kitchen – or bake it a day ahead and serve it during brunch on a Sunday morning.