Well thankfully the heat has passed and the leaves are falling. It is beautiful outside, but I'm suddenly reminded of just how much fun it wasn't raking an acre of leaves last year. Oh well, my pumpkin bread makes up for it! I love pumpkin recipes. I have more than I can post on here, but I will start this week by posting my favorite pumpkin bread. I made it last night (2 loaves) and by late morning, we were down to one. I can't think of anything better to make my house smell wonderful. I have had this recipe for a long time. I can't remember if I got it in high school or college, but it's always been a hit. And thankfully, it's ridiculously easy (anyone who knows me well, knows I have an odd aversion to yeast).
Pumpkin Bread1 can pumpkin (16 oz)
1 2/3 C white sugar
2/3 C veg oil
2 tsp vanilla
4 eggs
3 C flour
2 t baking soda
1 t salt
1 T cinnamon
1/2 t nutmeg
1/2 t apple pie spice or ground cloves
1/2 t baking powder
Blend together the first five ingredients. In a separate bowl whisk together the dry ingredients to be sure there aren't any lumps. Then stir into the wet ingredients. Grease two loaf pans ( I use Pam with flour, it's awesome) and separate the batter. I use a measuring cup to be sure of even distribution.
Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes.
To make it a bit healthier, you can substitute in some whole wheat flour. As a general rule, you substitute a third without a big difference. I also suggest using Whole Wheat Pastry Flour. It's ground much finer and it's even less noticable.
