my favorite pumpkin bread

pumpkin bread - the quintessential fall treat. pumpkin bread is my go-to bake the first time the air gets a little crisp each year. with all its pumpkin and spice smells filling the air, it makes the house smell amazing and then you get a delicious treat when you pull it out of the oven. and so a few weeks ago when the the air woke up with a hint of crispness, i knew it was time.

this was the pumpkin bread my mom always made growing up. i have a vivid memory of coming home on a cold night and eating a hearty piece of this. it warmed my very soul.

the original recipe comes from an old cookbook called “a taste of georgia” that was published well before the internet was born. see exhibit a below as proof:

in this spiral-bound book from a bunch of different contributors lies this gem of a recipe. i make no claims that it is the best pumpkin bread, but it is my favorite because it perfectly combines fall and nostalgia - two of my favorite things. food nostalgia is crazy, dude. do you ever just take a bite of something and are instantly transported back to a specific time and place when you had that food (or something similar)? i could literally write a whole blog just about that - and i might, so watch out.

but anyway, back to the bread: the recipe says that men love it, but i think it’s more apt to say that everyone loves it! thanks, mrs. colbert.

my favorite pumpkin bread

• 1 (15 oz) can of pumpkin

• 1 cup oil

• 4 eggs

• 3.5 cups flour

• 3 cups sugar

• 0.5 teaspoon baking soda

• 1.5 teaspoons salt

• 1.5 teaspoons ground allspice

• 1.5 teaspoons nutmeg

• 2 teaspoons cinnamon

Directions:

1. preheat oven to 300°*

2. combine pumpkin, oil, and eggs in a large bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer.

3. mix together the dry ingredients (everything else) and add to your pumpkin mixture.

4. pour into 2 greased 9x5x3-inch loaf pans** and bake for 1 hour.

notes:

*300° is a really freaking low temperature. i am an impatient person. you know how this ends. i usually bake it at 300° for maybe 45 minutes and then bump up until 325° for the last 10-15 minutes. it always depends on your oven, but you could always bake it at 325° for 40-ish minutes. just keep an eye on it. : )

**or you could do one loaf pan and some muffins or mini bread loaves! however the Spirit leads.

do you have a go-to bake in the fall? i'd love to know what it is!