Prep: Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a 9x5 inch loaf pan with parchment paper.
Combine dry ingredients: Add all dry ingredients to a large bowl and mix well.
Warm wet ingredients: Place wet ingredients in a small saucepan and gently warm over medium heat.
Make batter: Add the warmed wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix using a rubber spatula until a sticky batter forms.
Finish and bake: Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and flatten the surface. Lightly brush the top with milk. Bake for 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool in the pan and serve warm or cold with butter.
Notes
when you warm the wet ingredients, please really do just gently warm them until they're completely runny. Do not boil them.
do not use blackstrap molasses, they are too bitter. Regular dark molasses like the ones used for gingerbread are the right kind.
if you don't have all the individual spices the recipe calls for, use 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon and 1.5 teaspoons of either pumpkin pie or apple pie spice mix.
unlike American-style quick breads, this one is meant to be sliced into fairly thin slices. And since the bread is baked without any added fat... most definitely serve it slathered with butter ?