I was thrilled with this bread and so were my non-vegan friends! I took the little mini-loaves on a fall road trip and there well lots of mmms, music to a baker’s ears. I hope you experience the same when you decide to make this!
It’s relatively low fat, and you can make it even lower fat if you like. To make it lower fat substitute more or all of the oil for apple sauce. I was lucky enough to have some fresh pumpkin lying around that I had roasted. I peeled away the skin and pureèd it with an immersion blender and it was simple as ever. I even used a Jack-o-lantern, or big ‘ol carving pumpkin, the ones you find in the pumpkin patches, and the results were great. The ideal pumpkin to use, though, is a medium sized sugar pumpkin. Because the Jack-o-lantern pumpkin was roasted, the flavor was able to concentrate and some of the excess water was able to evaporate. If you don’t have the time or energy to roast your own pumpkin, buy a can of pumpkin puree with no additives.
I used an immersion blender several times in this recipe. If you don’t have one and want to get into vegan baking, making soups, or purées, I recommend investing in this little, revolutionary kitchen gadget. A blender will do the job, but it will not yield that same, smooth consistency. Its like going on a walk with a CD walkman, or an Ipod. There is no comparison! Smaller, smarter, and better.
Pumpkin Spice Bread (yields 4 mini loaves or two large)
- 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour*
- 1 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 Tablespoons ground flaxseed (flaxseed meal) ♥
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 + 3/4 cups sugar
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup Mott’s original applesauce**
- 1 (14 oz or 392g) pumpkin puree
- 1/4 – 1/2 cup walnuts or raisins (optional)
Get the Ingredients for My Recipe from Swanson Health Products:
*Use a blend of 1 cup whole wheat flour to 2 cups white flour for added nutrition. The taste will still be just as good. Or you can do a half and half blend.
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease or spray the baking trays or muffin tins. You can also skip the spray and use muffin liners instead.
1. Whisk together the flour, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
2. Using an immersion blender or blender, blend the flaxseed and water for about 1 minute, or until it looks very smooth and same throughout. Use a small, tall cup, for best results with the immersion blender.
2. In an immersions blender cup or blender, blend flaxseed and water. It should turn into a very thick, gel-like consistency. This takes a couple minutes with the immersion blender. This acts as your « egg ».
3. Then, add the sugar, vegetable oil, applesauce, and pumpkin puree into the water-flaxseed mixture. Blend for about 30 seconds.
Pureeing the fresh roasted pumpkin. You can find instructions on how to roast pumpkin in the quinoa post.
This is the immersion blender I recommend. I do receive a small commission for this purchase at no additional charge to you.
5. Stir in walnuts or raisins, or combination. Pour into baking trays or muffin tins.
6. Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when tested. Important: after baking, let the bread cool for 20 minutes to coalesce in the pan. This is undeniably the hardest part while the aromas of cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg fill your home.
More healthy fall recipes:
