Making Pumpkin Bread
I should do more pumpkin recipes, they match so well with my overall color scheme. As with most tea breads, the only trick to this is avoiding over-beating. Otherwise it’s a snap. Begin by preheating your oven to 350 (or 375 if you’re using small 1-pound pans). Apply butter or cooking spray to your pans.
Sift your flour, spices, leaveners and salt together in a bowl.
Combine the pumpkin and eggs in a bowl…
…and stir.
Next combine the oil and sugar in the bowl of a mixer.
Beat for about 30 seconds on medium, then add the pumpkin mixture.
Beat for another 30 seconds, then add half the flour mixture.
Stir on low for about 20 seconds until you can see only a little remaining flour. Scrape the bowl down.
Add the remaining flour mixture.
Stir and scrape.
Scrape the batter into the prepared pans. If you’re using larger pans, divide the batter evenly. For small 1-pound pans, which I’m using here, it’s easier to weigh the batter out. Put the pans on a scale and add about 1 lb. 4 ounces to each.
Bake them 40 minutes, rotate the pans in the oven and bake another 10 minutes or so until a skewer or sharp knife inserted into the bread comes out clean. For bigger loaves, bake about an hour, rotate and bake another 10 minutes. The finished loaves look about like so:
Once they’ve cooled about half an hour, loosen the loaves with a butter knife…
…and knock them out by tapping the corners of the pans on the counter.
Cool completely, slice and serve!
Every year I say I will never make another pumpkin loaf, and every year there’s another recipe that makes me say, okay, one more try. Your recipe is this year’s “one more try.”
The problem for me: pumpkin is just so bland!! It needs so much help in the flavor department. I always increase the spices in the recipe (I’ve been known to double them), which helps a lot. Do others find themselves automatically increasing the spices in any pumpkin recipe they see? (Adding fresh cranberries also helps. If I throw a cup or so into your recipe, will it mess up the works?) Of course, I’ve never had any leftovers. I dunno … maybe I just don’t like pumpkin!
Very possible, Chana. Nuts might help. You can add a cup of chopped walnuts to this recipe if you like!
– Joe
hi Joe, i made this the moment i saw the post. Only thing i added lots of cayenne pepper powder and chicken masala powder for the extra kick. It came out wonderfully. There were none left to be photographed.. thank you so much for the recipe.
Geetha, that is inspired! I wish I could have tasted some!
– Joe
Funnily enough, I always find most pumpkin desserts far too spicy, and I miss the true flavours of pumpkin! The quiet, unadulterated sweetness of squash.
I can understand that, Henry. Pumpkin preparations here in the States usually draw on old English/Continental sweet baking traditions, and that means lots of spice!
– Joe
Okay, since I spied it in the corner of one of your photos I’ll ask – how do you keep your Baker’s Joy nozzle from clogging up? I bought some and was so impressed with how well it worked…until the next time I tried to use it, and the nozzle was completely clogged. Even removing it and rinsing didn’t save it. Any tips?
Wow, Nicole, I wish I could say I had a trick for you…but I’ve never had that problem. No lie! What about a soak in warm water? Soaking usually dissolves starch. It’s worth a try!
– Joe
Our family tradition is to toss in a handful of chocolate chips. Also great in banana bread. And we leave out the nuts.
Funny you should say that. I’d have never thought to combine chocolate and pumpkin before about five years ago. Then I tasted some pumpkin-chocolate muffins made by a Ugandan baker here in Louisville. She made a believer out of me! Thanks, Lynn!
– Joe