Feeding the Family: Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Bread

My family LOVES this yummy quick bread and it doesn't last long in our house! I came across this recipe on www.allrecipes.com last fall when I was trying to figure out how to use up a seemingly bottomless Costco-sized box of instant oatmeal packets and fell in love with it! I generally make it with homemade applesauce but can't seem to find the time to do that anymore (wonder why- haha) so store-bought applesauce works just as well. The low-sugar oatmeal packets make this recipe ever so slightly healthier. Happy baking and enjoy!

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 cup chunky applesauce
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 packets of instant apple cinnamon oatmeal (single serving size)
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease and flour a 9X5 inch* loaf pan.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in applesauce, cinnamon and one packet of oatmeal. Stir in the eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition. Mix in the baking soda and flour. Pour batter into prepared pan and sprinkle with remaining packet of oatmeal.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean.

*If you want to make 4 mini-loaves instead of one big loaf then use mini-loaf pans and cut the baking time down to about 25 minutes.