Downeast "Maine" Pumpkin Bread with Chocolate Chips

Day5 of BM#10: This has been sitting in the draft for months..I think I made it sometime in March when we had just bid adios to winter but not yet to the chill weather. The flowers had just begun to bloom and I was raring to pack off my thick winter jackets and snow boots. One weekend I had gone to my sister's place to meet her and my parents. I didn't want to go empty handed. So I made two of this wonderful loaves. I had taken plenty of pictures and had completely forgotten about it. Since Pumpkin is available in abundance during the Fall and Winter seasons, this can be made in the Winter too. The fact that this had a generous addition of Pumpkin Spice and All-spice makes it winter-appropriate!.

Oh, I simply adore the color of this quick bread. Don't you? The taste was out of this world! My sister took half a loaf to her workplace and they were suggesting to her that I should open a bake shop. I swear I am not making this up. While I accepted their compliments(via my sister) gracefully, I felt that was a bit of an exaggeration. He He..I love to bake but my baking skills have a long long way to go if I am to think along those lines. But thankfully I don't envision opening a baking shop anytime in the future. I will leave that to the serious and passionate bakers. The only time I would think of stepping into a bakeshop is when I would want my sweet-tooth addressed with some seriously fancy desserts. (Base recipe was from Yummly).


Sprintime at my Sister's place-

Way5 To Maintain A Healthy Level of Insanity: Put Mosquito Netting Around Your Work Area And Play Tropical Sounds All Day. ;-)

Ingredients (For TWO 9X5 inch Loaves):

• 3-1/2 Cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 1-3/4 Cups Pumpkin Puree (made from scratch)
• 1-1/4 Cups Nestle Toll-house Semi-sweet Chocolate morsels (mini chocolate chips)
• 1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil
• 1 Stick Butter, melted and cooled
• 1/3 Cup Water
• 2-1/2 Cups Granulated Sugar
• 2 Tsp Baking Soda
• 4 Large Eggs
• 1 Tsp Salt
• 1 Tsp Pumpkin Spice
• 1/2 Tsp All-spice

Procedure:

• Cut and cook/pressure cook the pumpkin with very little water until they are fork tender.

• Important: Drain the water and then puree the cooked chunks until it is smooth and chunk-free.

• Combine the sugar and the eggs in a wide bowl.

• Pour the melted butter,oil, water,both the spice powders and salt. Beat it on medium speed until well combined.

• Pour the  pumpkin puree and mix until combined.

• Sift the flour along with baking soda. Add this sifted flour in batches to the bowl and gently mix. Throw in mini chocolate chips.

• Stir the chocolate morsels into the batter.

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two 9 X 5" loaf pans with aluminum foil and lightly grease it with oil..

• Bake for 45- 50 minutes or until the toothpick inserted into the center comes clean..

• Cool and cut the loaf into thick slices. Have it with a warm cup of coffee or tea.

Makes TWO 9 X 5 inch Loaves

Note:

• If you have some leftover pumpkin puree, you can freeze it for a few months. Else you can substitute this puree for the Squash Puree in making Pumpkin Pancakes. The picture below is a Butternut Squash Pancake recipe I posted sometime ago.

Enjoy!