This no-yeast, no-knead spinach bread is made using fresh spinach, buttermilk for a light, fluffy texture and a moderate amount of cheese for a savoury finish. Perfect for breakfast/brunch, with soup/stew or as a snack.
You might also like this quick and easy sun dried tomato soda bread.
This savoury spinach bread is a fantastic way to add more vegetables into your diet. It’s also a great way of adding colour to your savoury bakes. Apart from the spinach, which needs a little preparation, all the other ingredients are simply whisked and stirred together so this bread comes together very quickly.
Spinach bread ingredients
I used a generous amount of fresh spinach which only needs to be chopped roughly and then briefly blitzed to a finer consistency before being stirred into the batter. It is important to use fresh rather than frozen spinach in this recipe as you are likely to get different results using frozen.
I used buttermilk which is my go-to ingredient when it comes to creating light and fluffy textures in bakes and pancakes (see for instance healthy blueberry pancakes with buttermilk). It worked really well in this marzipan cake recipe as well as moist chocolate banana cake. And it works equally well in this spinach bread recipe.
Why this recipe works
- It’s nutritious and low in fat.
- It takes minutes to put together.
- This recipe is an easy and delicious way to make the whole family eat more veggies.
- It’s perfect for breakfast/brunch, lunch with soup or stew, or as a snack
Step-by-step recipe instructions
1.Start by preheating the oven to 350 F/ 180 C/ gas mark 4. Lightly grease and line a 23 cm (9 inch) loaf pan with parchment paper and set aside.
Roughly chop the spinach and place in the food processor.
2. Pulse until finely chopped but not pureed.
3. In a large bowl combine the flour, baking powder, soda, salt and onion granules and stir thoroughly using a whisk.
4. In another large bowl whisk together the eggs, oil and buttermilk until smooth.
5. Add most of the grated cheese (leave some for sprinkling on top) and spinach and stir until thoroughly mixed.
6. Combine the dry and wet mixtures and stir only until the dry ingredients are no longer visible. The batter will be thick.
7. Pour into the prepared pan, smooth out the top with a spatula or spoon and scatter the remaining cheese over the top. Bake in the centre of the oven for 1 hour.
8. Remove from the oven and set aside for 10 minutes then lift out of the pan with the paper and place on a rack.
Top tips and FAQs
- Ensure your spinach is dry before placing in the food processor. Pat dry using paper towel if necessary. I do not recommend using frozen spinach in this recipe. (I used spinach in a similar way in this quinoa egg muffins recipe).
- You can use either regular of reduced fat cheese.
- I used onion granules for added flavour but you can also add half a teaspoonful of garlic granules especially if you want to serve this bread with soup or stew.
- Do NOT overstir the batter or your bread might be a little dense.
- Serving suggestions: Delicious on its own, with cottage cheese, salmon spread, smashed avocado or a drizzle of sun dried tomato pesto.
- Store wrapped in paper for up to 3 days.
- Freeze entire loaf or individual slices by placing them on top of a tray in a single layer and freezing for 2 hours then transferring the slices into an airtight container to freeze for up to 3 months.
You might also like
- Easy Whole Wheat Breadsticks with Cheese
- Beetroot Bread with Walnuts
- Whole Wheat Banana Date Bread
- Cauliflower Muffins with Cheese, Kefir & Chives
Check out also this collection of healthy breakfast recipes as well as easy tips for eating more veggies for breakfast.
Keep in touch!
If you make this quick bread with spinach I'd love to know how it turned out for you. What toppings did you use? Let me know in the comments below, thanks:)
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Recipe
Fresh Spinach Quick Bread with Buttermilk
Equipment
- Food processor
- 23 cm/9.5'' loaf pan
Ingredients
- 4.23 ounces (120 g) fresh spinach roughly chopped
- ⅔ cup+2tsp (170 ml) buttermilk
- 3½ tablespoons (50 ml) vegetable oil
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- ½ cup (70 g) mature cheddar heaped, coarsely grated
- 2 cups less 2tsp (240 g) all-purpose/plain flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ⅓ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
- ½ teaspoon onion granules and fine sea salt each
Instructions
- Start by preheating the oven to 350 F/ 180 C/ gas mark 4. Lightly grease and line a 23 cm (9.5'') loaf pan with parchment paper and set aside.Roughly chop the spinach and place in the food processor. Pulse until finely chopped but not pureed.
- In a large bowl combine the flour, baking powder, soda, salt and onion granules and stir thoroughly using a whisk.
- In another large bowl whisk together the eggs, oil and buttermilk until smooth. Add most of the grated cheese (leave some for sprinkling on top) and spinach and stir until thoroughly mixed.
- Combine the dry and wet mixtures and stir only until the dry ingredients are no longer visible. The batter will be thick.
- Pour into the prepared pan, smooth out the top with a spatula or spoon and scatter the remaining cheese over the top. Bake in the centre of the oven for 1 hour (or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean).
- Remove from the oven and set aside for 10 minutes then lift out of the pan with the paper and place on a rack.
Notes
- Ensure your spinach is dry before placing in the food processor. Pat dry using paper towel if necessary. I do not recommend using frozen spinach in this recipe.
- (I used spinach in a similar way in this quinoa egg muffins recipe).
- You can use either regular of reduced fat cheese.
- I used onion granules for added flavour but you can also add half a teaspoonful of garlic granules especially if you want to serve this bread with soup or stew.
- Do NOT overstir the batter or your bread might be a little dense.
- Serving suggestions: Delicious on its own, with cottage cheese, salmon spread, smashed avocado or a drizzle of sun dried tomato pesto.
- Store wrapped in paper for up to 3 days.
- Freeze entire loaf or individual slices by placing them on top of a tray in a single layer and freezing for 2 hours then transferring the slices into an airtight container to freeze for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
*Nutritional information is automatically generated and should be considered as an estimate.
**A note about baking: If using a fan-assisted oven refer to your appliance's instructions and adjust the temperature accordingly.
Brenda Cromwell says
I made this today. Instead of buttermilk, aged cheddar cheese and onion granules, I used sour cream, grated Parmesean and garlic powder. I used a tad less of the measurement for the garlic powder, because mine is really strong. For the spinach, I used a left over take out container of spinach sauted in garlic and olive oil that was hanging out in the fridge. It all came together very well. The only concern I had is the way the last ingredient, sea salt, is written in the recipe. It's tacked on at the end of the measurement for onion granules, and I almost missed it. My bread would have tasted pretty flat without it. It would be more helpful if the recipe were written 1/2 tsp onion granules, 1/2 tsp sea salt.
Very delicious recipe. Thank you, Monika!
Monika says
I am glad the recipe worked even with the swaps, so thank you for letting me know. Regarding the way I've listed the ingredients I know that people don't like long lists so sometimes I take little shortcuts. But you are right, salt is pretty crucial in this recipe and I am glad you didn't miss it:)
Molly says
Delicious bread! I like to substitute the spinach for foraged greens, like dandilion or nettle. Yummy!
Monika says
Sounds interesting:)
Valerie says
We LOVE this recipe. ( see my comment above). We bake it regularly - I’m wondering if anyone as tried using baby kale or baby arugula in lieu of the spinach? Or in addition to?
Curious -
Thanks again for a fabulous recipe!
Monika says
Thanks again for your feedback, Valerie! I haven't tried it with kale or arugula, but I don't see why it couldn't work. Perhaps next time you make it use half spinach half kale or arugula. If the combination works try using more kale/arugula than spinach the following time.
Valerie says
This recipe is AMAZING - this is my 5th time baking this! My apologies for not commenting sooner -
I’ve taken to baking two smaller/shorter loaves- and making biscotti type slices - drizzled with olive oil and light toasted to accompany bowls of soup ( which we have most evenings) or a hearty stew!
We love this - as do the family and friends I’ve shared some with !
Thank you!
Monika says
Hi Valerie, thank you for letting me know, I am glad you made this recipe your own. I love the way you serve it! Must try that myself:)
Veronica says
This is a very good bread. I did not use cheese and I did use frozen spinach that I defrosted and left out to drain. It worked out just fine, the bread is very soft and fluffy however. I enjoyed the texture for what I was serving, but if you are expecting something more like a dense loaf you wouldn't want to use this recipe. I've made this twice, the second time I added curry powder and it was a welcome addition.
Monika says
You make a good point about the texture of this bread being quite fluffy - it would be denser if this was a yeast-based bread. I like the idea of adding curry powder into the batter! Thanks very much for the feedback:)
Julie Whitaker says
Do you have to use buttermilk? Will other milk products work like whole milk?
Monika says
I haven't tried using regular milk so I am not sure about the results, but I am guessing the bread wouldn't be as fluffy. Besides you'd need to use less milk but since I haven't tried it I am not sure about the exact amount. What you can try, however, is use kefir or pourable yogurt instead of the buttermilk.
Amber Da Ponte says
You can make a buttermilk by using milk and lemon juice. And let it set. I'm not sure of the measurements but I'm sure you can find it online :).
Amber says
This bread looks great! Am I able to substitute the oil for something else maybe Greek yogurt?
Monika says
The only substitute I would recommend is olive instead of vegetable oil. There is already buttermilk in it so I do not recommend adding yogurt.
Chandre Luther says
Thank you, absolutely stunning bread😁
Monika says
Glad you liked it and thank you for the feedback:)