Pillsbury Quick Bread & Muffin Mix - Why Bake From Scratch?

I’m not able to cook and bake as much as I used to, so I’m always on the lookout for an acceptable substitute for home-baked items. I've given up on the grocery store bakeries -- they're too expensive, the baked goods are getting smaller for the price and most irems are not as good as they used to be.

I'm not a big breakfast person. Give me a slice of quick bread, a cup of coffee, my recliner, the morning news; and I'm good to go.

When I discovered Pillsbury Quick Bread & Muffin Mix, I was a little leery. They have a banana bread variety; and I can make a killer banana bread from scratch, if I do say so myself. It would take quite a contender to make the grade. Quite honestly, Pillsbury Quick Bread – Banana comes close enough that I never have to mash another banana again.

Made with real bananas, the mix has the little telltale black flecks that you would normally see in a scratch-made banana bread mixture. The texture is not quite as dense or as moist as the "scratch" counterpart; but it's quite delicious. Be sure not to over-bake.

Preparation couldn’t be simpler (Directions are for the Banana variety):

Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease or spray the bottom only of an 8"x4", 9"x5" or 3 (3"x5") loaf pans.with cooking spray. Combine 1 cup water, 1/4 cup oil and 2 eggs in a bowl and stir 50 to 75 strokes until well blended. Pour into the pan(s). Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. I don't take it out of the pan; but if you do, cool 20 minutes, loosen the edges with a knife or spatula; and remove the bread from the pan.

Baking times will vary from 35-60 minutes depending on the size of the pan(s) -- See baking times on the back of the box. Directions for making muffins are also included. The box will usually have suggestions for variations using the basic mix.

Serving size on the box is stated as 1/14. I have yet to stand there and measure 1/14 -- I just cut a big old slice. I think 1/14 is a bit unrealistic for a portion size.

Pillsbury was unable to give me Nutritional Information on the baked quick bread because the Calories, etc. would be based on the type of oil the consumer uses. Information follows for the unbaked mix only. Based on a 1/14 slice. there are 110 Calories and 1g of Fat (be sure to use a polyunsaturated oil). There is no Saturated Fat or Trans Fat in the mix. 0mg of Cholesterol, 160 mg of Sodium, 22g of Carbohydrates (including less than 1g of Dietary Fiber and 11g of Sugar) and 2g of Protein.

Based on the mix only, there are the following percentages of the Daily Nutritional Requirements based on a 2,000 calorie diet: Iron 4%, Thiamin 6%, Riboflavin 4%, Niacin 4%, Vitamin B-6 2% and Folic Acid 4%.

Ingredients (Banana variety-mix): Enriched Bleached Flour (Wheat Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Niacin, Iron, Thiamin Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Sugar, Dried Banana, Wheat Starch, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Dextrose, Contains 2% or Less of Baking Powder (Baking Soda, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate, Monocalcium Phosphate), Defatted Wheat Germ, Corn Starch, Propylene Glycol Monoesters, Salt, Cellulose, Natural and Artificial Flavor, Mono- and Diglycerides, Polysorbate 60, Nonfat Milk, TBHQ and Citric Acid (Antioxidants).

• Contains Milk and Wheat Ingredients. May contain Egg and Soybean Ingredients.

The Quick Bread comes in the following varieties: Banana, Cranberry, Blueberry, Apple Cinnamon, Pumpkin, Cinnamon Swirl, Nut, Date, Lemon Poppy Seed, Pecan Swirl, Carrot and Chocolate Chip Swirl. I have found prices in my area ranging from $1.50 to $2.99 per box.

I am in the small percentage of Americans that loves Fruit Cake. I was extremely pleased to find a Fruit Cake recipe on the box of the Date Quick Bread. You can follow the recipe; or do what I did -- add your preferred amount of Fruit Cake Mix (I like a lot of fruit), Raisins and/or Chopped Nuts (optional). Yum! The Fruitcake I had been buying locally was expensive and dry. The Date Quick Bread mix makes a delicious, moist Fruit Cake

• Note - Fruit Cake Mix is usually available at your local grocery store, or you can order it from amazon.com (see below). Amazon carries several different brands and sizes of the mix.
• Cons - There are only a few varieties of Pillsbury Quick Bread & Muffin Mix available in our area. You can order several varieties from Amazon.com (see below) or direct from Pillsbury.

No more scratch baking for me!