French Spiced Bread

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp. melted unsalted butter
• ½ cup (71g) whole almonds
• ½ cup (85g) store-bought or homemade candied orange peel
• ½ cup (64g) dried apricots
• ½ cup (92g) dried plums
• 2 cups (168g) honey
• 1¼ cups (283g) whole milk
• 2 tsp. kosher salt
• Six 3-inch cinnamon sticks
• 3 star anise pods
• 3 cups (360g) all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp. Reims N.39 spice mix
• 2 tsp. baking soda
• 2 large eggs
• 2 (9×5") loaf pans

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Grease loaf pans with melted butter.
2. Toast almonds on a rimmed baking sheet, tossing once or twice, until golden brown and fragrant, 6–8 minutes. Coarsely chop zest, apricots, plums, and toasted almonds. Transfer to a small bowl.
3. Bring honey, milk, salt, cinnamon, and star anise to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Meanwhile, whisk flour, baking powder, spice mix, and baking soda in a large bowl.
4. Strain honey mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into dry ingredients and whisk to combine. Add eggs and whisk until incorporated. Using a spatula, quickly fold in zest mixture.
5. Divide dough between prepared pans, filling each about three-quarters full. Bake bread until tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean, 35–40 minutes.
6. Let bread cool 10 minutes in pan, then carefully remove from pan and transfer to a wire rack.
7. Bread can be made 5 days ahead. Tightly wrap and store at room temperature, or freeze up to 1 month.