The other day I was working on a recipe and I Googled the words "pumpkin dumplings" and among the results that came up was a recipe for pumpkin gingerbread. Hmmm, I don't know if Google needs a cooking lesson, but I immediately thought that pumpkin gingerbread sounded really good. Now is the season for winter squash gluttony, everything from pumpkin soup, pumpkin cannelloni, pumpkin butter, pumpkin pancakes, but somehow the idea of a pumpkin gingerbread had never crossed my mind before (I usually make this pumpkin loaf). So later that week after I had made the dumplings, there was leftover pumpkin puree sitting in the fridge and I saw my opportunity.
It's been horribly rainy and cold here, I've come home with soaking wet shoes and pants every day this week, and telling myself it's good for the plants does not make my toes feel any warmer. And after arriving home I get to go back outside and stand in the rain some more with our new little puppy saying, "please, please just pee so we can go back inside now." She, apparently, would rather roll in fronds of wet loriape than go inside and make gingerbread. I need to work on that.
Back inside, I turned the space heater directly towards my wet toes, warmed fingers over the heating oven, and stirred together the batter. As it baked, the house filled with its sumptuous smell, soothing frazzled weekday nerves and melding with the patter of rain outside. Judging by how fast it was devoured (less than 48 hours?) and the fact that it comes together in mere minutes, I'd say this recipe is a keeper. I'd even withstand a few more rainy days, and look forward to the coming cold nights, if this gingerbread is on order.
Pumpkin Gingerbread
Moist with pumpkin and warm with spices, this autumn quick bread comes together in minutes. We like it sliced and spread with cream cheese.
2 cups flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tsp each cinnamon, allspice
1/4 tsp each cloves, nutmeg, ginger
1 cup pureed pumpkin (homemade or canned)
1/2 cup molasses
2 eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup milk
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease a 9" loaf pan. Combine dry ingredients (flour, sugar, leavening, spices) in a large bowl. Combine the wet ingredients (pumpkin, molasses, egg, oil milk) in another bowl. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir with about 10 vigorous strokes to combine.
2. Pour into prepared pan. Bake ~45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center emerges clean. Cool on a rack.
18 comments:
hey! this looks delicious! i made your brownies yesterday and they were great-they were very rich and chocolatey- and took just a few minutes to make! thanks so much for the inspiration! hope youre nice and warm in the shelter of your home.... i live in israel and its not yet too cold here... but ill be thinking of this pumkin gingerbread on the next rainy day....
hey again! i have a few questions- how did you puree the pumkin? just cubed pumkin in a blender or did you add water? (i have never cooked with pumkin puree before...) and it would be so nice if you could have a "printable" version of your recipes....
thanks :)
Perfect for a Fall rainy day here in Indiana!
Hello,
It sounds so good that I want to make tomorrow! However, I live on a caribbean island and I have never seen molasses here. Anything I can use instead? Would it still turn out okay without it?
Hi Charlotte-
First, I'm so glad you enjoyed the brownies, yay.
Pumpkin puree is cooked pureed pumpkin, in the US all the groceries carry a canned version (very easy), but you can make your own. I've put a link in the recipe, but basically here's what you do:
Cut your pumpkin (or other winter squash) in half and roast it cut-side down at 400F until completely tender. Then scoop out the flesh and puree it until smooth. Then (important!) set the squash puree in a cheesecloth lined colander and let drain for several hours, until the squash is no longer watery.
It all depends a bit on the kind of squash you use, but I hope this helps!
JEP- yes, perfect for a rainy day!
Kahroba- Do you have treacle or dark treacle in the caribbean? Dark treacle would work really well. You could also try maple syrup or dark corn syrup, if you have that. You can't just omit it because the liquid and sugar contribute to the loaf's moistness. Hope that helps.
hi! im so sorry- i didnt notice the link to the homemade pumkin puree... thanks for your response though ;)
I love pumpkin bread but you've added a good spin to it with the gingerbread flavors! Looks delicious.
This was great! I made a gluten free version for a dinner party yesterday, using a commercial gf flour mix. It turned out moist and really flavorful. I doubled the ginger because I like my gingerbread really spicy. Thaks for posting this.
This was DELICIOUS! I made it last night, and my boyfriend and I had a hard time not wolfing down the whole pan. I love all the spices-- it was really different from a lot of other pumpkin breads I've had. Thanks so much for the recipe.
This is a fantastic receipe! The taste and texture (v. moist) is perfect. I made a homemade glaze and it worked well, too. The only change I might make next time is actually the quantity of ginger, say to 1.8th tsp. A little ginger goes a long way...
It was delicious! Thank you for sharing!!
Hello!
I just found your blog and it's just great! I meant to be in bed 1/2 hour ago, but I keep saying to myself one more page, one more page!!
Quick question...can I sub butter or magerine for veg oil? Same amounts? Is there a sub for molasses?
Thank you and I look fwd to the rest of your posts!
Cheers!
Duh! Just noticed someone asked the same q about the molases! Will try maple syrup!
Hi Yosha- if you want to substitute butter for the maple syrup, you'll want to use 7 tablespoons melted butter. This accounts for the difference in water volume between butter and oil (I don't ever recommend using margarine for anything).
Can I use honey instead of molasses? We don't have it in my country.
Hi Ena, I'm sure you can use honey, the flavor will be different, but I'm sure still tasty and it shouldn't change the texture much.
I made this last night not waiting for your answer. I figured honey couldn't make that much difference. This bread is so good! Well, correction, not good - amazing! I loved it and everyone in my family who tried it.
Hi there, I know you posted this recipe 5 years ago, but I've only recently discovered your blog. I made this recipe just the other day and it was SO FANTASTIC. Definitely a keeper. I bookmarked a ton of your recipes I want to try. You have excellent taste! Thank you. :)
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