A to Z Bread — The Bread That Holds the Year Together

Last week of 2024. New Year's Eve on a Tuesday. I made lentils. The superstition. The abundance. The usual.

Sofía came over Tuesday afternoon. She made the grapes — washing, drying, cutting the stems — and we watched the Puerto Rican Spanish-language New Year's countdown together at 11 PM. Eduardo made the coquito pour rounds. At midnight we ate twelve grapes each. Sofía said, "Ma, what did you wish for?" I said, "Mija, I cannot tell you or it does not come true." She said, "I wished for Mami to have a good 2025." I looked at her. She said, "I know you cannot tell me. So I told you mine." I hugged her.

At 12:10 I called Mami. Carmen the aide answered. She said, "Doña Carmen, Doña Luz María is asleep." I said, "Okay. Do not wake her. Tell her tomorrow I called." Carmen said, "Yes." I said, "Feliz año nuevo, Carmen." She said, "Feliz año, Doña Carmen." I hung up.

Sofía said, "Ma, Mami did not stay up?" I said, "Mija, she is tired. She told Carmen to let her sleep." Sofía hugged me. We ate lentils at 12:30. They were good.

Wednesday — New Year's Day, 2025 — I drove to Mami's at 10 AM. She was awake. She said, "Feliz año, Carmen." I said, "Feliz año, Mami." She said, "2025. I did not think I would see it." I said, "Mami, you did." She said, "Yes. A gift." She ate breakfast slowly — scrambled eggs, toast, café con leche — and she watched the Rose Parade on television. I sat with her for three hours. I came home. Eduardo had made lunch. He said, "How was she?" I said, "Present. Saying it is a gift." Eduardo said, "It is a gift." He said it without sentimentality. He said it as a fact.

Sunday I wrote in the notebook. I wrote a short entry at the back of volume two: "Year-end 2024. Milestones: Andrés born. Carmen starts food bank. Carmen starts La Cocina de Consuelo. Mami still here. David thriving in Brooklyn. Rosa recovering. Miguel Jr. and Jenny stable. Sofía in final stretch of nursing school. The family is whole. The year held. 2025 arrives."

Eduardo sat across from me at the kitchen table. He said, "Carmen, what are you writing?" I said, "The year-end summary." He said, "Read it to me." I read it. He said, "Good." He said, "Put in that Eduardo painted the porch trim." I laughed. I added it. "Eduardo painted the porch trim on a ladder without falling." The archive is the archive. Wepa.

We ate the lentils at 12:30, and they were good — but what I kept thinking about in the days after was bread. Something whole. Something that holds everything together the way that week held together: Sofía and the grapes, Eduardo and the porch trim and the coquito, Mami saying a gift like she meant it as a fact. A to Z bread is the bread I bake when I want the kitchen to feel like an archive — everything in it, nothing left out, A to Z. You make it at the turn of a year and it tastes like the whole of it.

A to Z Bread

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 55 min | Total Time: 1 hr 15 min | Servings: 12 slices

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup grated zucchini (about 1 medium), excess moisture squeezed out
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 ripe banana, mashed
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
• 1/2 cup raisins (optional)

Instructions

1. Heat the oven. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan and lightly dust with flour, tapping out any excess.
2. Mix dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt until evenly combined.
3. Mix wet ingredients. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract until smooth. Stir in the grated zucchini, applesauce, and mashed banana until combined.
4. Combine. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir gently with a spatula until just incorporated — do not overmix. A few streaks of flour are fine at this stage.
5. Fold in mix-ins. If using, fold in the walnuts and raisins with two or three strokes.
6. Bake. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top. Bake for 50–60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the top is deep golden brown.
7. Cool before slicing. Let the bread cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack. Allow to cool at least 20 minutes before slicing — it slices cleanest when fully cool.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 215 | Protein: 3g | Fat: 9g | Carbs: 32g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 165mg