Pumpkin Nut Bread

Last fall I purchased several gorgeously sweet winter squash from Sunbow Farms in Philomath. I baked them down and froze the cooked pumpkin in 2 cup portions. Zoom ahead to duck egg abundance season and I’m baking lovely breakfast breads that taste a bit like fall and are perfect for chilly spring mornings.

I have been tweaking this recipe each time i bake it and will include my notes so that you can make adjustments to your liking as well. Include nuts, or not. Make it sweeter, or not. But most important: use some home baked sweet squash vs the canned stuff (really, it is so easy to do and tastes so much better, especially if you can find some really gorgeous pie pumpkins at market) and bake with duck eggs. You’ll appreciate their extra poof!

Enjoy toasted with butter for breakfast, or bake it up a bit sweeter and enjoy like a cake for dessert.

Print Recipe

Pumpkin Nut Bread

As written, this pumpkin bread is just sweet, perfect for breakfast and excellent toasted with butter. I love using pumpkin from a local farm and pecans from my husband's parents' home in Texas. This loaf is definitely the 'taste of home.'

Course

Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine

Comfort food

Prep Time

10 minutes

Cook Time

1.5 hours

Servings

loaves

Ingredients

• 2 Cups sugar Use 3 cups for a sweeter loaf. I would not use less than 2 cups.
• 1 Cup/Stick Oil/Butter Use 1 cup oil OR 1 stick melted butter OR half and half
• 1 Cup Cool tap water
• 4 Duck Eggs
• 15 oz cooked pumpkin ~ 2 cups or 1 can pumpkin NOT pumpkin pie filling. I use home-baked winter squash.
• 3 1/3 cup flour all purpose
• 1 T pumpkin pie spice
• 1 t cinnamon
• 1/2 t cloves
• 1.5 t salt
• 1.5 t baking powder
• 2 t baking soda
• 1/2 cups chopped nuts pecans or walnuts are best

Course Breakfast, Dessert Cuisine Comfort food Prep Time 10 minutes Cook Time 1.5 hours Servings loaves Ingredients 2 Cups sugar Use 3 cups for a sweeter loaf. I would not use less than 2 cups. 1 Cup/Stick Oil/Butter Use 1 cup oil OR 1 stick melted butter OR half and half 1 Cup Cool tap water 4 Duck Eggs 15 oz cooked pumpkin ~ 2 cups or 1 can pumpkin NOT pumpkin pie filling. I use home-baked winter squash. 3 1/3 cup flour all purpose 1 T pumpkin pie spice 1 t cinnamon 1/2 t cloves 1.5 t salt 1.5 t baking powder 2 t baking soda 1/2 cups chopped nuts pecans or walnuts are best

Instructions

Mix the wet ingredients.

1. Melt butter and combine with sugar.

   
2. Add duck eggs and mix

   
3. Add pumpkin and mix, add water. You'll have a wet, orange batter.

   

Mix dry ingredients and combine

1. In the same bowl, on top of wet OR in a separate bowl, combine all dry ingredients. Mix together well so there are no pockets of baking soda to get stuck in the back of your mouth (yes, i may have under mixed once 😉 )

   
2. Combine

   

Fill loaf pans and bake

1. Line your loaf pans with a sheet of parchment paper for easy removal. Using a spatula, pour equal amounts of batter into 2 loaf pans. Pans will not appear filled.
2. Bake at 325 for one hour 30 minutes. I turn my loaves halfway through baking as my oven is not evenly heated. Test the center of each loaf with a toothpick or skewer to be sure it comes out clean.

   
3. Cool loaves on a rack. You can leave the parchment around the loaf as a wrapper, or remove.

   

Recipe Notes

I bake this bread up 'not so sweet' making it perfect for breakfast. Nuts add a little extra heartiness and a touch of earthy sweetness, but can be omitted. Cook this recipe with oil for a moisture loaf, butter for a denser loaf or a mix of each. The original recipe for this loaf calls for 3 cups sugar, which is definitely delicious. I would not reduce the amount of sugar to less than 2 cups.