Pumpkin Bread
Now that it's almost November and it's finally beginning to feel like Fall in my neck of the woods, I'm able to get more use out of my oven and bake to my heart's content. It's one of the many things I love about this time of year. As much as I love to cook, I seem to have more of an affinity for baking. I think it's because baking appeals to my detailed, and meticulous nature. For those of you who know me well, you know how organized and detail-oriented I am. I've always been that way; it's just the way I'm wired. So naturally, I love the exactness of baking; how you have to measure everything and assemble the ingredients in a certain order to produce the delicious end result.
There is a certain leisurely quality to baking that I especially enjoy. I love the process of preparing and mixing together the dry ingredients, letting the butter and eggs come to room temperature for a few hours, allowing dough to rise, scooping evenly sized balls of cookie dough and lining them up just so on cookie sheets. The order of it all is very calming for me.
So putting this pumpkin bread together was like a relaxation exercise for me--measuring out the spices, packing the brown sugar, creaming the butter. This recipe is always on my yearly baking rotation; I've used it for several years and it never disappoints. Studded simply with plump golden raisins, and warmly scented with a heady blend of ginger, nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon, this quick bread tastes like Fall. One bite, and your kitchen will become your new favorite place to go and relax.
Pumpkin Bread
Adapted from The Joy of Cooking
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
6 T. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
? cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/3 cup milk
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/3 cup golden raisins (optional)
1/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional)Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a standard size loaf pan.
Whisk together thoroughly the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves. Set aside.
In a measuring cup, combine the milk and vanilla extract. Set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until it is creamy. Gradually add the granulated sugar and brown sugar and beat on high speed until lightened in color and texture. Lower the speed to medium and gradually add in the beaten eggs; mix until well incorporated. Reduce to low speed and add in the pumpkin puree; mix until it is distributed evenly into the batter. Note: At this point, the batter might have a somewhat "curdled" look to it--this is normal.
Continuing on low speed, alternate adding the flour mixture and milk mixture until a smooth batter forms. Stop the mixer periodically to scrape down the sides of the bowl when necessary. Add walnuts and raisins if using and fold into the batter by hand, using a rubber spatula.
Transfer the batter to the greased loaf pan and bake for about 1 hour, or until a skewer comes out clean.
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