Well, it was autumn for that quick moment between snow falls. What in the world was that?! Hope y’all faired well, but if winter could just wait its turn instead of jumping in line that’d be great. However, this weather is perfect baking weather! I just love having a warm kitchen from my oven churning out all kinds of yumminess! So for this confused autumn I made one of my family’s favorite fall treats. I don’t turn my oven on all summer unless it’s an emergency so I like starting the season off with this favorite:
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread
Prep: Preheat your oven to 375 (if your oven runs hot, dial it down but not lower than 350). Grease up a 2 8×4 (mid size) loaf pans, you can also line bottom with parchment (I do as I hate stuck bottoms). You can use a full size loaf pan and make just one but you will need to bake it at 350 degrees for a lot longer….I’m impatient. Plus, 2 loaves means one to give away.
Tools: whisk, spatula, wooden spoon, liquid and dry measuring cups, measuring spoons, medium mixing bowl, large mixing bowl
Ingredients:
- 1 Cup Canned Pumpkin Puree (not pumpkin pie filing)
- 2 Eggs
- 1 1/4 Cup Sugar (can adjust up or down by 1/4 cup depending on personal taste)
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla (omit if you are using white chips)
- 1/2 Cup Canola Oil (can substitute 1:1 unsweetened apple sauce or your go-to oil)
- 1 2/3 Cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
- Scant teaspoon Table Salt (keep your kosher and pink Himalayan in the pantry)
- 2 Heaping teaspoons of Pumpkin Pie Spice OR 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon and 1/2 teaspoon each of ground nutmeg and ground cloves
- 1 Cup of your favorite chocolate chips (I love mixing a half cup white chips and a half cup semi sweet chips)
- Generous 1/2 Cup of chopped pecans or not, you don’t have to do nuts
- Alternative Mix-ins to try: cranberries, walnuts, pumpkin seeds
Mix it up dry!
In that medium bowl mix together all the dry ingredients with the exception of the sugar, that’s gotta dissolve in your wet ingredients or you’re going to run into some problems. Whisk those dry ingredients all up and set that aside.
Now the wet goes in the BIG bowl! Start with adding the sugar, eggs, pumpkin puree, and vanilla (optional) whisk that up and then, slowly whisk in the oil (or apple sauce) Go slow or you are going to end up with an oil splatter on your shirt and that’s the pits. Don’t worry about over mixing this, you can’t.
STOP: Check that your oven is preheated and make sure your pans are prepared. If you can check these off it’s time to get to work!
Incorporate: Dump those dry ingredients into your wet ingredients and fold with a wooden spoon until you see just a bit of flour, do not fully mix. Next, add the chips and nuts (optional) and fold in with a spatula or scraper until incorporated. Go slow as to not activate that gluten.
Add to Bread Pans and Bake: Scrape half the batter equally (or as equally as possible) into your 2 loaf pans and pop them immediately into your preheated oven. Set the timer for 40 minutes, if your oven has hot spots, check at 30 minutes and rotate for the last 10 minutes if you notice browning on one side more than the other.
DO NOT OVER BAKE: Insert a skewer, knife, or toothpick and if wet put them back in and check again in 5-7 minutes. You are looking for a moist crumble not a clean insert. Trust me it will continue to cook as soon as you remove it from the oven.
Cooling: This is the hardest part for me because I really want to taste test. But let your pans cool on a wire rack for at least 10 minutes. Slide the back of a butter knife around the edge of the bread and flip the pans over. If you used parchment remove it from the bottom. Continue to cool for at least 15 more minutes.
Serving: Turn your loaves upside down and cut from underneath, this makes for fantastic slices without compromising the integrity of the crest of the loaf. Measure those slices with your heart. I usually eat half a piece while I’m waiting for a cup of tea to finish brewing and then I eat the last half with my tea, there’s really no wrong way to eat it. You can have it for a treat, dessert, breakfast with a little butter, a midnight snack…you get the picture.
Drop us a line and let us know how this worked out for you! [email protected]. Thanks to Ag Swag for the t-shirt and sticker, purchased and featured in the video. I found Ag-Swag because of the Huckleberry Press and I love your style!
Upcoming Features: Thanksgiving Dinner recipes including sweet potato pie, Christmas dinner with family pleasing sides, how to feed all those out of town guests an easy and yummy make ahead breakfast and so much more coming at ya.
Would you like to contribute a recipe for me to feature? Can you recommend local ingredients from area ranchers, producers, etc., that are your go-to’s and would like to see featured in an upcoming recipe….drop us a line and let us know!
