Hot Buttered Rum Raisin Snack Bread

This is a quick bread, mixed like a cake and baked in an 8-inch square pan, with raisins folded through a sour-cream batter.

The sauce is dark rum simmered with butter, brown sugar and cream for 3 to 4 minutes, then spooned over each warm square. It contains alcohol.

Ingredient Notes

Raisins

Three quarters of a cup, folded in with the dry ingredients.

Dark rum

Three tablespoons, simmered briefly in the sauce; the sauce is not alcohol-free.

Brown sugar

Three quarters of a cup in the batter and a third of a cup in the sauce.

How to Make It

1. Pan lined

   Heat oven to 350°F and line an 8-inch square pan with parchment.

2. Dry mix

   Whisk all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, and fine salt.

3. Wet mix

   Beat softened unsalted butter with 3/4 cup packed brown sugar. Beat in large eggs, sour cream, whole milk, and vanilla extract.

4. Folded and baked

   Fold the dry ingredients and raisins into the batter. Spread in the pan and bake 32 to 38 minutes, until a tester comes out with a few moist crumbs and the center reaches about 200°F.

5. Butter-rum sauce

   For the sauce, simmer dark rum, 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, 1/3 cup packed brown sugar, and heavy cream for 3 to 4 minutes.

6. Cut and sauced

   Cut the warm snack bread into squares and spoon the butter-rum sauce over each serving.

Success Tips

• Fold just until no dry flour shows so the squares stay tender.
• Line the pan with parchment overhanging two sides to lift the bread out.
• Keep the sauce at a gentle simmer so the cream does not boil over.

Why This Recipe Works

• Sour cream keeps the crumb moist.
• Brown sugar in the batter gives the top its caramel colour.
• A tester with a few moist crumbs, or about 200°F in the center, shows the bread is set.
• Serving the sauce separately lets each square be sauced as it is cut.

Storage and Reheating

Serving Ideas

Cut the warm bread into nine squares and spoon the sauce over each one at the table.