pumpkin-bread-1

Pumpkin Spice Bread

Growing up, fall was ALWAYS my favorite season. I loved going back to school, the smell of the changing leaves, wearing sweaters (see every school photo I had taken in 1st-5th grade), and most importantly – hot cocoa and cider. Now that I’m an adult, I only have more things to love about fall like the start of football season, pumpkin spice everything and that drinking hard cider every weekend is more seasonally acceptable.

Some see Labor Day Weekend as the last big bang of summer, but with the remains of Hurricane Harvey giving us in the Northeast a rainy and cold weekend, I used it as a ‘first big bang of fall’ type of weekend. College football officially started and I spent all day Saturday whipping up taco dip, buffalo chicken dip, the world’s best burgers, corn muffins, a new brownie recipe and most importantly: PUMPKIN BREAD. You can just say snuggling up on the couch in my favorite hoodie, a nice hard cider and a slice of this bread while watching Penn State take an easy win is what my fall dreams are made of.

If money were no object, I think I would throw tailgating and dinner parties 2 to 3 times a week. As Zack can sometimes be a picky eater and we really only need small servings of meals, I LOVE having the opportunity to cook for others and try out new recipes. Although it was just a casual football Saturday with some friends, I took the opportunity to go a little wild and whip up all of my favorite fall football treats including this delicious pumpkin bread.

Now what I love the most about this pumpkin bread is that it is so diverse – I’ve been using it for years with tons of differentiations and it just never fails. Add chocolate chips, some cream cheese filling or just top it with a vanilla glaze and you’re good to go. Zack requested a very original pumpkin bread, so for this version, I just added some extra sparkly sanding sugar to give it a nice crisp crunch on top.

Seriously, just look at that sparkle – how can you resist? Now, it does make a particularly large loaf of bread so I highly recommend sharing, but I also promise not to judge you if you decide to eat this whole thing by yourself. It’s worth it. Looking to spice it up? Try this recipe with mini chocolate chips and cream cheese filling!

Pumpkin Spice Bread

Ingredients

  • 15 oz pumpkin puree
  • 4 eggs
  • 1/2 cup veggie oil
  • 1/2 cup applesauce
  • 1/3 cup milk
  • 2 tsp. vanilla
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 3 cups flour
  • 2 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 3 tsp. cinnamon
  • 2 tsp. nutmeg
  • 1 tsp. cloves
  • 1/2 tsp. ginger
  • 1/4 cup sanding sugar if desired

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease your loaf pan. Cut a small bit of parchment paper so that it hangs over the edges of your pan.

  2. In a large bowl, whisk together your pumpkin, eggs, veggie oil, applesauce, milk, vanilla, and sugar until well combined.

  3. Slowly sift in the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices. Stir with a wooden spoon until just combined being very careful not to overmix!

  4. Pour your batter into your prepared tin and smooth the top. If you want the crispy top that the sanding sugar gives you, lightly sprinkle it over the top.

  5. Baked for ~60 to 70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean. Let cool on a cooling rack for 45 minutes - 1 hour or until the pan feels cool. Enjoy!

Recipe Notes

To spice up the recipe, add in 1 1/2 cups mini chocolate chips or try this cream cheese filling.

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