Sugar, spice, pumpkin – oh my my!!!!

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For my dear friend Huntie, at Chasing Rabbitholes,  here is the pumpkin bread. It is the time of year for everything, and I mean everything flavored pumpkin spice. This is a dark, spicy, moist pumpkin bread I have been making for years. It was given to me years ago while I was at university by a Yankee classmate. Lord bless her down east, Maine heart for her goodness in sharing this. The only things I have changed about this recipe is adding chopped English walnuts, increasing the ginger, and by reducing the oil noted in the original.

If you like Starbucks pumpkin bread, you are going to love this and wonder how in the world you paid all that money for something not as good?

Pumpkin Bread
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
4 eggs beaten
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup applesauce
2/3 cup water
2 cups white sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
3 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
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 cup chopped nuts
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour two 9×5 inch loaf pans. If making muffins, add liners to muffin cups. In a large bowl, mix together pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, applesauce, water and sugar until well blended. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. Stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture until just blended. Pour into the prepared pans. Bake for about 60 minutes in the preheated oven Use toothpick test to determine doneness). Loaves are done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. You can bake as muffins – One loaf and 12 muffins. Adjust cooking times.

You can add a dab of cream cheese icing to bread/muffins. I melt 1/2 stick butter and stir in a couple of tablespoons of brown sugar until well blended. Poke holes in bread with a toothpick and slowly drizzle butter mixture over both loaves. It doesn’t take much!!

 

 

Memories…Spanish Bar Cake

When I was a young ‘un, it was a treat for my Ninny to bring home from the A&P store, the occasional Spanish Bar cake. It was a rich, dark, spicy bar cake with buttercream icing and a “fork” lined design on top. The extravagant sum of 39 cents was the cost for the cake. I can say, it was worth every penny! The recipe is long – full of spices but no preservatives, artificial flavorings, and things you can’t pronounce. It’s the perfect time of year for something spicy in your tummy. Grab a glass of milk, cup of coffee or tea and sit back with good novel and a piece of this cake.

Spanish Bar Cake with Nutmeg Icing
Makes: 16 to 20 servings

For cake:
4 cups water
2 cups raisins
1 cup shortening
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 cup chopped walnuts

For icing:
4 cups confectioners’ sugar (sifted)
4 tablespoons butter, melted
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 tablespoons heavy cream
2 dashes ground nutmeg

For cake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 13×9 inch cake pan.
Cook raisins in the water for 10 minutes over medium heat. Stir in shortening. Stir until shortening is dissolved. Remove from heat and allow mixture to cool. In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, spices and salt. Add raisin water shortening mixture. Blend well. Beat eggs lightly and stir into batter. Stir in chopped nuts. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until tester comes out clean. When cake is cool, frost with nutmeg icing.

For icing, combine confectioners sugar, butter, vanilla and heavy cream in a bowl and beat until smooth. Add nutmeg to taste.