Kid-Friendly Recipe: Pumpkin Bread

Hi! Cori of Peace, Baby! Batiks here. As soon as fall hits, I am ready to bake. My tastes tend toward cookies (whose doesn’t?!?) and sweet breads. This pumpkin bread is one of my favorites. I’m going to bake another batch before Thanksgiving.

I always buy at least one baking pumpkin each fall. And, like I said in my butternut squash soup post recently, I rarely peel raw winter squashes. Rather, I bake them. Cut the pumpkin in half, scoop out the seeds and bake for 30-60 (or more) minutes at 350 degrees. Let the pumpkin cool long enough, and you should be able to lift the shell off the pulp. If not, it’s really easy to scoop it out with a spoon. I freeze it in 1 cup portions so it’s ready for recipes.

If that’s not your cup of tea, plain canned pumpkin also works in this recipe. I think this recipe is nearly perfect; the next time I make it, though, I might add chocolate chips because in my opinion, everything is better with chocolate! It makes two loaves. They freeze great, or if your friends are like mine, they wouldn’t mind if you shared a loaf with them.

Want to get your kids involved? Give them a wooden spoon and a baggie of walnuts and set them to chopping! Mine had a great time “bamming” the nuts.


Pumpkin Bread
(Source: A Taste of the North Country by Wendy Harrington)
Yield: Two loaves

2c mashed pumpkin
3 1/2c flour
2t baking soda
1/2t salt
1t cinnamon
1t nutmeg
3c sugar
1c vegetable oil
4 eggs
2/3c water
1c chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease two 9x5-inch loaf pans.

Mix the dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Add the pumpkin, oil, eggs, and water, mixing until well blended. Fold in nuts (and/or chocolate chips!), and divide the batter evenly between the two pans.

Bake for 1 hour, until the bread tests clean. Cool in pans for 10 minutes; then let cool completely on wire racks.

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