Time for Autumn Baking (Pumpkin Bread)

The children each picked out a pumpkin.
We decided to not waste any of it.
So we made fresh pumpkin bread and roasted the seeds.

Here's George all happy with himself:

Getting the gunk out.





Yum...





I then proceeded to separate the seeds from the muck,
thinking it wouldn't be that difficult of a job.
After an hour and a half, I thought to myself,

"WHY, just WHY, am I doing this?!?
Why don't I just bite the bullet
and go BUY a can of pumpkin at the store
like every other normal human being??"

But those thoughts didn't deter me.

I wanted to try the bread with fresh flesh just once
to see if it was superior to canned pumpkin.
It was.











After the long separation period, I pureed the flesh in the food processor:






And I got this from only four small pumpkins
(12 cups, which is enough for 18 loaves!):







I was feeling mighty proud of myself by now.
I took more pictures as to get a lot of mileage out of it.

Looks nice, no?




I found a good recipe for pumpkin bread, then tweaked it a little for more flavor
(Pumpkin bread always tastes kind of bland to me).

It was absolutely HEAVENLY. Melted in our mouths.
Moist and delicious with a slightly crunchy crust.
But it's the flavor that really makes it.

It really was the best pumpkin bread we've ever eaten.
(See recipe at end of post).






And then we rinsed, dried, salted and roasted the seeds:





We were buying pumpkin seeds at the store before now.
Pumpkin seeds are full of Omega-3 fatty acids, magnesium, tryptophan
(which is a calming agent), iron, protein, and are
just one of the most nutrient-rich foods you can eat.
They also have anti-inflammatory benefits, they lower cholesterol,
and are a rich source of healthful minerals.
In case you didn't know.

Plus, they're wonderful to munch on.
And that's good, because we have 3 ziploc bagfuls of seeds
from the four pumpkins.

Here's my pumpkin bread recipe:

1 cup oil
3 cups brown sugar
4 eggs
2 cups pureed pumpkin
2/3 cup water
3 1/2 cups flour
3 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ginger
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp salt

Beat oil, sugar and eggs well. Add pumpkin and water (will be very runny). Sift together dry ingredients and stir into batter. Beat well and pour into greased and floured loaf pans. Bake approximately 50 to 60 minutes on 350 degrees. Makes 3 loaves. Best if eaten warm with melted butter on top!


For another yummy autumn treat (Black Bottom Mini Caramel Pumpkin Cheesecake Treats), click here.

For my Chocolate-Sesame cookies, click here.

~ Happy Autumn ~