Pumpkin Bread 2010

As economic recovery stalls, largely due to fear and opposition to change and the pitfalls of how government can really ruin our lives, my new mantra is "use it up". I have too much.

These aren't, as my last husband used to say, the 'salad days'. But don't poo-poo the low-cost joy and healing power of fooling around with gourds.

peace and love,
jane

Pumpkin Bread

Blue Heron Kitchen

Don't let fall leave without pumpkin bread.   

This year’s updated Pumpkin Bread, like last year’s, doesn't leave that oily residue on your fingers because it has no oil. It's better that way because it uses a little butter.  And what I like about this most is that it doesn’t have that generic clove-heavy, “autumn spice” blend that guarantees to any other ingredient you might otherwise taste. It’s not cloyingly sweet; and the subtler spicing and ‘rougher’ texture renders a true quick bread.  This bread ain't no loaf.

Feel free to play around with combinations of nuts and dried fruit.  This year, I opted for dried Monterey cherries, and I added a smidge of orange oil.

I’ve used both home-cooked organic pumpkin as well as canned pumpkin. Either is great. Today, I used Whole Foods’ “365” brand. 

Never cut corners on butter. Give it the sniff test to make sure it’s fresh. You be the judge.  Here’s how I decide whether to use it or lose it: I ask myself (probably aloud): would I make plain butter cookies with this butter?  Try to find 83% fat European style butter.  Plugra (made by Hotel Bar) and Cabot’s are two American-made brands that are excellent.  If you only buy American, Land-o-Lakes is the best. Fairway markets carry the domestic 83% butters (and they’re less expensive than Land-o-Lakes, go figure).

Ingredients:

1 ¾ c. (15 oz. can) cooked pumpkin, fresh or canned

1 c. dark or light (or a combination of) brown sugars, firmly packed (what’s critical is that it’s fresh and moist)

½ c. granulated white sugar

4 oz. (1/2 cup or 1 stick) unsalted butter (European style is best), room temperature

3 eggs, size large, room temperature

2 ¼ c. unbleached all-purpose flour

2 ¼ c. whole wheat pastry flour (Bob’s Red Mill is a great choice and it’s available at Fairway Markets, online and through Amazon)

2 Tbsp. baking powder

1 tsp. cinnamon

½ tsp. ground cardamom (freshly ground is best)

½ tsp. ground nutmeg (freshly ground is best)

¾ tsp. kosher salt

1 ½ c. walnuts, toasted, cooled and chopped

½ c. dried Monterey (or other) cherries, chopped and sprinkled with 1/8 tsp. orange oil (available through King Arthur Flour and through Amazon). Or, you can soak them in a tsp. of Grand Marnier or Cointreau.

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 350º F. 

Butter or spray pans with release: two medium loaf pans, several smaller loaf pans of the same capacity, or a even smaller molds (you’ll work it out) If using paper molds, (great for gift giving/impressing friends and pretending you’re a professional baker.) you don’t need to do anything but set them on a flat cookie sheet.

In a large bowl, measure flours, baking powder, spices and salt and mix thoroughly with a whisk. Set aside.

Prepare nuts and dried fruit and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter and sugars.  When light and fluffy, add eggs and mix until blended well.  Add pumpkin (it will look curdled). Add dry ingredients, all at once. Don’t over-mix (interesting historical note: from this common but easily avoidable baker's boo-boo, the colloquialism, “tough pumpkins”). 

Remove from the mixer and using a spatula, fold in nuts and dried fruit until just incorporated.

Gently spoon (really ‘drop’) batter into prepared pans. Be sure there is batter in the corners.  But don’t press, push, flatten or mess around with this batter.  Think of plopping it, like cobbler batter, into the pans and ‘working it’ as little as possible.  This isn’t a fine-crumbed quick-bread.  It’s has more of a ‘spoon bread’ personality.  It’s a coarser crumb and more toothsome, (but it won’t be ‘dry’ if you don’t over-mix or over-anything the batter).

Bake until a metal tester comes out clean and dry. Be careful not to over-bake these loaves, or you’ll yell I should just stop this and stick to teaching Für Elise because you almost choked to death. As soon as they spring back and don’t feel ‘wet’ in the middle, they’re ‘done’. And depending on the size of the forms you use, they’ll bake for anywhere from 15 minutes (mini-muffins, anyone?) to ¾ of an hour! Your molds, your oven, your judgment. (Keep a thermometer in it until you’ve made friends.)

Remove from oven and let cool 10 minutes before turning the breads out of their pans.  (If you use paper molds, there is no need to release them.) When completely cooled, wrap well.

Like you, these grow more fabulous with age. Try to let them rest overnight.

Wrapped well, these will keep for a week or two.  I’ll be freezing mine until our annual Faux Thanksgiving this December.

Pumpkin Bread 2010