Sometimes it’s hard to eat your daily serving of fruits and vegetables, either because you just forget to eat them or because you’d rather eat a pizza or cheeseburgers instead. I don’t blame you since I know just how tempting pizza can be.
However, getting your daily dose of fruits and veggies is important for your health, and if you prepare them the right way they can taste absolutely amazing. These fruit and veggie breads are the perfect way to incorporate them into your diet, using fresh produce and even some chocolate. And as a bonus, you still get to have your carbs.
1. Zucchini Bread
Photo by Natsuko Mazany
Zucchini has become a popular addition to a lot of carb-loaded dishes, including oats, pasta, and muffins. Now, zucchini’s making an appearance in bread, allowing you to get your daily greens in without even noticing. You don’t even need a spiralizer. Make it for breakfast as a replacement for toast, or enjoy as a healthy snack instead of greasy french fries.
2. Chocolate Raspberry Banana Bread
Photo by Lindsay Bralower
Add some pizazz to your typical banana bread by adding in raspberries and chocolate. This recipe also uses greek yogurt, adding in some extra protein. You can choose to use dark chocolate chips, semi-sweet, white, or, if you’re feeling a little impulsive, all three.
Any combination is sure to taste decadent along with the sweet raspberries and bananas in this bread. It’s best served warm, while the chocolate is still hot and melty, and topped with peanut butter, which in my opinion is banana and chocolate’s match made in heaven.
3. Cheesy Spinach and Artichoke Pull-Apart Bread
Photo by Paige Marie Rodgers
Spinach and artichoke dip is hands down one of the best dips ever invented. So why not make it into a hearty and satisfying bread? This recipe uses fresh spinach and artichokes, along with three different cheeses and Pillsbury biscuit dough. The combination results in a creamy, cheesy work of art that will have you feeling like Leonardo da Vinci.
4. Lemon Bread
Photo by Emily Stamp
When life gives you lemons, bake them into a loaf of bread. Lemons have been shown to provide a host of different benefits for your health, including balancing pH, fighting fatigue, and detoxifying your body. Meaning that instead of sugary cereal, this lemon bread is a better way to start out your day.
As a bonus, it’s vegan and only contains six ingredients, all of which you probably have on hand. Bake up a loaf at the beginning of the week and enjoy for breakfast with a little bit of icing to hit that sweet spot.
5. Spiced Sweet Potato Bread
Photo by Clarisse Callahan
While some breads can be sugary and full of simple carbs that don’t do your body any good, this sweet potato bread provides plenty of nutritional benefits, including a heaping source of vitamin A and beta-carotenes. It’s also loaded with sweet spices like nutmeg, ginger, all-spice, and cloves, which will make your kitchen smell heavenly. It’ll fit right in with fall picnics or parties, or as an additional sweet during your yearly Thanksgiving feast.
6. Cheesy Jalapeño Bread
Photo by Abby Wang
We could all use a little extra spice in our lives, and some cheese never hurt anyone either. Surprisingly, this bread is made in a rice cooker, so no worries if you don’t own a bread machine. Betcha didn’t think it was possible to cook bread in a rice cooker, huh? Well, know you know.
The result is a savory, slightly spicy, cheesy, and all around delicious bread that’s sure to impress all your friends. It goes great along with a light dinner, especially when it’s hot and fresh from the oven.
7. Peach-Coconut Banana Bread
Photo by Hailey Maher
Personally, peaches are my all-time favorite summer produce. There’s nothing like a fresh peach picked up at a produce stand enjoyed while on the way to a vacation spot. Make the most of all your fresh peaches before summer’s end by whipping up this excellent, sweet bread.
The shredded coconut provides you with a boost of energy, and subbing coconut milk for regular milk will add in electrolytes to help with dehydration. The resulting loaf is filled with juicy pieces of peach in every bite, fulfilling your sweet tooth and putting you in a fruity summer trance.
8. Blueberry Pancake Pull-Apart Bread
Photo by Clarisse Callahan
Breakfast is about to become your favorite part of the day with this hybrid pancake and bread masterpiece that’s full of plump blueberries you can pick up at your local produce stand or farmers market.
It’s made from pre-made biscuit dough, which when baked with blueberries and topped with maple syrup will taste like your favorite pancake, but is way easier to make. You could even add in chocolate chips to make it a little sweeter, because chocolate is always a good idea.
9. Apple Fritter Bread
Photo by Rachel Davis
Here’s yet another delectable bread recipe that utilizes Pillsbury refrigerated biscuits, your savior when it comes to whipping up fancy baked goods in a flash. This bread is chock full of granny smith apples, but can be substituted for any of your favorite varieties (mine is honey crisp).
If you don’t like apples you could even use strawberries, blueberries, or peaches as a filling instead. Or you can make one of each to take full advantage of fresh summer produce.