Festive little loaves of quick breads or fruitcake

 The very first kitchen gifts I ever gave, even before I had a kitchen of my own, were little loaves of a holiday gift cake.  Ever since, I've always loved giving little loaves of bread or cake as kitchen gifts and have tried many recipes over the years.   At one point I discovered a formula to know how many little loaves could be made from a recipe that makes a standard 9x5x3-inch loaf.  It's so comforting to have that information so as not to grease more pans than will be needed, or to realize at the last minute that there aren't enough pans and have to find a substitute. 

So I wrote it down in one of my handwritten cookbooks: "To make small nut breads from a recipe that makes a 9x5x3-inch loaf, you can use six 4x2x1 1/2-inch pans.  Bake the little loaves for 25 to 30 minutes or until a wooden pick comes out clean." 

I just now realized that another place I should put this information is my Christmas notebook, the place where most of my kitchen gift recipes reside.

I thought I would share with you links to some of the good recipes I've used for gift loaves over the years.
Little Apricot Fruitcakes have been a favorite of many people.

Christmas Fruit Bread and Last Minute Fruitcakes, which use  homemade candied cherries and pineapple, are other ideas.  I will look on my other blog and see what else I can add.

And then there are fun ideas for packaging gift breads.  Happy baking and gifting!