Pumpkin Walnut Bread

I am not an ardent lover of pumpkins, but I do enjoy them once in a while. I have mostly relished them only in form of Indian curries. Coming to think of pumpkins in bread or desserts was beyond my imagination. This is primarily because of me thinking of pumpkins only as another vegetable.

As I peeped into my fridge yesterday, I saw half a pumpkin lying pale and dreary, as if it was almost nearing it's end of life. I sympathized with them. So I had to be quick to decide how I could use them effectively. I knew that these would make no justice if I were to use them in a curry. Probably a soup, but no, I was not in a mood.

My mum has often suggested me to try Banana Walnut bread/cake, but honestly I couldn't get a chance. So when I brought out this pumpkin from the fridge, the first thing that crossed my mind was to make a bread or cake out of it. The recipe for Pumpkin Walnut bread was not any different. Just that the eggs were added in for the texture and rise. This also has mild spices which mellow well with the gently sweetness of the pumpkins while the walnuts add the required nuttiness to the cake.

As the bread was baking, it filled the entire house with the aroma. We could see our neighbors' poke their noses out just to smell the fresh bake... just kidding ;) ! As my parents visited us that day, the moment they stepped in, they were too tempted to have this even while it was baking. That's the power of baking!

When the warm bread came out of the oven, I handed a slice of it to my hubby for taste. His expressions spoke a thousand words. "Wow! wow! wow! is what he had to say! Soon the other pieces were also grabbed and these disappeared real soon. They were really good indeed.

Pumpkin Walnut Bread

Dry Ingredients:

1 cup grated pumpkin
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 nutmeg
1/4 tsp ginger powder
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar

Wet Ingredients:

1/2 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil/butter

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat a loaf pan with melted butter. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg powders and baking soda. Keep this dry mixture aside.

In another bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugars till they turn pale yellow. Add the buttermilk and then the grated pumpkin. Next, add the vegetable oil and vanilla extract. Blend these well.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Blend them gently. Stir in the walnuts. Transfer the prepared batter into a greased loaf pan and even the top. Bake for about 55 to 60 mins till a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove and set it on the rack to cool. Slice the bread as required.

Mine tasted great, it was perfect. The sweet and spice complimented each other very well. The ginger hinted an earthy flavor, not overpowering at all. The vanilla was at it's best as it blended well with all the spices and gave out really well. I would definitely go back to making this one again and again in future. This one turned a bit moist. But the next time, I would probably increase the quantity of flour a little to make this a little denser. I want to be sure it's slightly dry and crumbly in texture than moist.

Good for breakfast, amazing as desserts and fabulous as tea time snack too. This is sure to be a crowd pleaser!