Pumpkin Loaf aka a close Starbuck's version

There are many benefits to what I call living in God's country. Two lane highways; no stop lights; no street lights so one can see the stars perfectly at night; beautiful beaches; a lighthouse; farm and roadside stands selling fresh produce, eggs, and flowers; miles of stone walls surrounding homes and farms; blue hydrangeas dominating the summer landscape; a blueberry farm; an apple orchard; two Christmas tree farms, okay you get the picture. While it is a most picturesque environment, there are a few things that are at least a 20 to 30 minute drive away. The movie theatre; the grocery store; the bookstore; and yes, Starbucks. And even though I live in Dunkin' Donuts country, the closest one is also a 20 minute drive away. Not that 20 minutes is long, but a 40 minute round trip for an iced coffee and piece of pumpkin loaf is pushing it, even for me (little miss willing to drive long distances without packing a lunch).

Not having access to Starbucks would have been no big deal a couple of years ago because I was not a coffee drinker. Probably one of a handful of people in the universe who aren't. But then I discovered iced coffee and what a memorable day that was. Such deliciousness finally came into my life. As an added benefit, my daily caffeine intake changed from the drinking of diet soda to the drinking of iced coffee. In my quest to find the best iced coffee, I tried the ones from Starbucks, Dunkin' Donuts and my local coffee shop Coastal Roasters. I liked them all but if I had to choose a favorite, I would first choose the iced coffee from Starbucks, then the one from Coastal Roasters, and last but not least, the iced coffee from Dunkin' Donuts. Living on the east coast in DD country, I would be probably be considered a heretic for this opinion.

In spite of my iced coffee preferences, no one else but Starbucks sells slices of pumpkin loaf. If I was ever to indulge myself in something 'sweet' when ordering an iced coffee, I would always order a slice of the pumpkin loaf. Their pumpkin loaf is moist, not too sweet, and just one piece is enough to satisfy my craving for pumpkin. It is probably a good thing that the closest Starbucks is a 20 minute drive away because I have been able to severely limit my intake of their pumpkin loaf. Until now that is. No, there is not a Starbucks coming closer to where I live. But I recently found (on the internet of all places) a recipe that closely resembles the Starbuck's pumpkin loaf. It isn't exactly the same, but it is pretty gosh darn close as well as pretty gosh darn delicious.

Before making this recipe I must have looked at dozens and dozens of pumpkin bread and pumpkin loaf recipes. Expectedly the proportions of ingredients varied amongst the recipes, however, it was the type and combination of spices that were the most different. Some recipes called for only cinnamon, some included nutmeg, some had a combination of several spices, and some even said they left out spices when the making the bread (yikes). But it was the combination of cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and allspice in the Starbuck's like pumpkin loaf version that appealed to my taste preferences. After making this pumpkin loaf for the first time, I loved this spice combination but might even experiment with slightly increasing the amount of spices next time. Maybe.

All of the dry ingredients are blended together in a medium sized bowl and set aside. No sifting is required, but the use of a whisk helps to evenly distribute the dry ingredients.

This pumpkin loaf only takes 3/4 of a cup of pumpkin puree. I didn't think this was going to give it enough pumpkin flavor, but after tasting it, 3/4 of cup was the perfect amount. There is more granulated sugar than brown sugar in this recipe, but it is important to note that the recipe calls for dark brown sugar which adds an ever so slight molasses flavor to the bread.

The moistness for this loaf comes from two ingredients: eggs and vegetable oil. Four large eggs and 3/4 cup of vegetable oil are two of the wet ingredients. The eggs are combined with the sugars and vanilla before the dry ingredients are added. The vegetable oil and pumpkin puree are mixed in last.

This recipe makes one 9x5 inch pumpkin loaf. Even though recipes always say to prepare a loaf pan with butter/flour, I always, always use parchment paper. It makes one's baking life so much easier. My variation to the recipe was adding the sugar and the optional pumpkin seeds to the top of the loaf for added crunch as well as doubling the amount of vanilla. The loaf bakes in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for 65-70 minutes. It is a dense loaf and checking for doneness is really, really important. If it takes longer than 70 minutes in your oven, don't worry as it is a really moist loaf. And you definitely don't want an undone moist center.

Recipe
Pumpkin Loaf aka a close Starbuck's version (slight variation to a Starbuck's like version of the recipe found on the internet)

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon Saigon cinnamon 
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
4 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup granulated sugar plus additional for sprinkling top of loaf
1/4 cup dark brown sugar firmly packed
3/4 cup canned pumpkin puree
3/4 cup vegetable oil (I used Crisco)
Optional: about a 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a medium sized bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, spices, and salt using a whisk. Set aside.
3. Beat eggs, sugars and vanilla on high speed in a standing mixer (or in a bowl using a hand mixer) for at least 30 seconds.
4. Add dry ingredients to the eggs/sugar mixture and mix until combined.
5. Add pumpkin puree and vegetable oil. Mix until combined.
6. Pour batter into a parchment paper lined 9x5 loaf pan. Bake for 65 to 70+ minutes or until top of loaf is brown and a cake tester is crumb or batter free.
7. Allow the bread to cool.
8. Cut into slices using a serrated knife and enjoy.

I love the taste of pumpkin year round, not only in the fall. Because it is a little harder to find pumpkin puree in the grocery stores in the spring and summer, I have a tendency to stock up on a few cans so I make pumpkin muffins, pumpkin pie or even pumpkin bread whenever I have a pumpkin craving. Thankfully the expiration date on the canned pumpkin is about a year out from the date of purchase. I have been known to put canned goods in places where I don't always look so I have thrown out more than my share of pumpkin puree over the years. That's what happens when you sometimes buy 'too' much of any one thing. Or when you can't remember if you did or did not have some in the house. But then in my very active imagination I sometimes think there will be a run on pumpkin puree at the holiday time and if I don't buy a few more cans than I need, well I might be forced to drive 40 minutes round trip to satisfy an off season pumpkin craving.