Ode to Pumpkin Bread

One of the things I love about this time of year is the innate hunger that is put in me for a good loaf of pumpkin bread. There is just something about the making, baking, and eating of it. I feel a certain sense of joy in stirring the thick orange mush that miraculously bakes into a wonderful, fluffy final product. This year I decided to manipulate my recipe around so that it was lower fat and more healthy (although one HAS to add chocolate chips). It was so delicious that I just decided that I had to share the recipe and pictures.

This recipe yielded 3 loaves but I decided to make 2 loaves, 1 pan of normal sized muffins, and 1 pan of mini muffins. What resulted was a beautiful cornucopia of bread sizes. I have never made mini muffins before but as I was making and consuming them, I decided that someone in France invented the mini-muffin pan. Surely that is what the book, "French women don't get fat" is about. Honestly I have not read the book although I have heard it's a good read. Anyhow, my hypothesis is that they must eat mini-muffins (only one or two a day) and that is how they stay trim. However, this is not the case with the Trenda's- no we are full sized muffin type people or -gasp- 2 piece pumpkin bread eating people. The mini muffins came in very handy for Ellie Bug. She quite enjoyed their size yet still ate a couple at each sitting.
So if you are interested in having the joy of pumpkin chocolate chip bread in your life, here is the recipe with a helpful hint on perfectly formed bread and my attempt at a very artistic look at the final product:
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

• 1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
  
• 2/3 cup water
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 cups whole wheat flour (I use Wheat Montana brand- bakes really nicely)
  
• 1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
  
• a handful or so of semi-sweet chocolate chips (however many you want)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease, flour, and **wax paper the bottom of three 7x3 inch loaf pans.
2. In a large bowl, mix together pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, applesauce water and sugars until well blended. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flours, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. Stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture until just blended. Fold in chocolate chips. Pour into the prepared pans.
3. Bake for about 50 minutes in the preheated oven. Loaves are done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean and edges are pulling away from the sides of the pan.

**From my cake decorating class I learned that a great way to keep baked goods from sticking on the bottom of pans is to cut a piece of wax paper the size of the bottom of your pan(s). You then spray your non-stick cooking spray all over the inside of the pan and then place the piece of wax paper only along the bottom. After baking, this is a completely fool-proof way to prevent the bottom of breads and cakes from sticking and being ugly. LOVE THIS! Simply take out the bread and un-peel the wax paper from the loaves.

Happy pumpkin bread making!