10/15/11

Baking on Friday (Saturday edition): Pumpkin-Maple Hazelnut Bread


As I've said before, I love having something mildly sweet around for breakfast on the weekends.  My usual pumpkin bread recipe (the one I've been making for approximately 300 years) is from my Betty Crocker cookbook.  It uses raisins and walnuts.  While I've never minded the raisins in the recipe, I will admit to avoiding most recipes with cooked raisins.  It's not that I have anything against raisins, but when they're cooked into things, they tend to take on the texture and appearance of something I'd rather not mention . . . or eat.  But I love pumpkin bread, and so I've tolerated the raisins all these years.

That's why I was intrigued when I found this recipe on Mel's Kitchen Cafe.  I could have my beloved pumpkin bread without the raisins.  And, this being Oregon, hazelnuts happen to be in abundance.  Also, I liked the idea of the flour being 50% whole wheat since it at least gives me the illusion that I'm not eating junk food.  Oh yes, and I can't forget the maple syrup replacing the granulated sugar.  I always like having the illusion that I'm eating something healthy, even when I'm not.  It always makes the food taste so much better, and it gives me an excuse to eat it until it's all gone.

Here's the recipe.  See what you think!

Pumpkin-Maple Hazelnut Bread

1 cup  whole wheat flour
1 cup  all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon  ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons  baking powder
1/2 teaspoon  baking soda
1/2 teaspoon  salt
1 cup  pure maple syrup (or honey, agave, or mild molasses)
1 cup  solid pack unsweetened pumpkin puree
1/2 cup  vegetable or canola oil
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon  vanilla extract
1/2 cup  chopped hazelnuts -- toasted

Preheat oven to 350°F.  Lightly grease and flour a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan.  Set aside.  In a large bowl, whisk the flours, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together.  Add the maple syrup, pumpkin, oil, eggs, and vanilla, stirring until just blended.  Do not overmix.  Gently fold in the hazelnuts.

Spread into prepared loaf pan.  Bake 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of loaf comes out clean.  Cool in the pan for five minutes, then turn out the bread onto a wire rack and let cook completely.

I like recipes that don't require that I break out the mixer.  This one is nice because it's all made in one bowl.  I think it would be possible to make it into three 3 x 5 loaf pans for Christmas gift-giving, but then you'd have to watch your baking time.  I might give it a try on another day.

4 comments:

Lynda Halliger Otvos (Lynda M O) said...

Sounds delish. My daughter and I made banana bread earlier in the week and it turned out just great. Same basic recipe-barely even measure anymore and it comes steaming out of the oven and onto our plates. Yummy. Pumpkin is one of my fave flavors-this time of year rocks for me.

Unknown said...

This sounds so good, expecially with my special blend of coffee! LOL. I've had to cook other dishes for hubster, but I have bread on the list for next week. Oh, I forgot to say how pretty your bread is! Have a good day!

quiltzyx said...

As usual, looks yummy. :D

Why don't you just leave the raisins out of the other recipe?

I like raisins, but not necessarily cooked into things.

ElfRenee said...

Yum! You can't go wrong with pumpkin, maple and hazelnuts.