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Thursday, September 17, 2015

RECIPE! Pumpkin Apple Bread



Endorse me on LinkedIn for recipe development folks because I made my own pumpkin bread yesterday. I ideated it, if you will. And what better place to share it with the world than on my invisible blog?!

I won't turn into one of those food bloggers who takes forever to get to the recipe (the only one who pulls this off is The Pioneer Woman) but I will give you a bit of background as to how the bread came to be. I was experimenting with a granola recipe a couple weeks ago that called for pumpkin puree, and yes yes, I know it's too early to start brewing up edibles of the pumpkin spice variety but the key to a good recipe is care so I was simply taking care to make sure my pumpkin spice granola is ready to debut with a bang come fall (four days, people). Anyway, v1 of the granola was horrendous. One of the taste testers compared it to an Anthropologie candle, and not in a goody way. I can't tell if the problem is the pumpkin or the fact that my taste testers came to America via Iran Air and not the Mayflower, and as such their tastebuds aren't partial to pumpkin (I can say this because they're my family). Instead of using the rest of the pumpkin puree can to make more granola, I let it sit in the refrigerator for two weeks, and in a bored stupor yesterday, I decided to play Top Chef with myself and voila: my pumpkin APPLE bread. 

Since there wasn't very much pumpkin puree to use and the members of my dining room had previously made clear their lack of enthusiasm for pumpkin-flavored food, I decided to supplement the recipe with pureed apples. The problem with baking is that my mouth intercepts most of the batter on its way from mixing bowl to pan, and I eat most of the final product, so I like to make recipes low-fat by either cutting sugar or oil. Based on recent experiences in making non-rising breads with banana/zucchini/pumpkin etc, I've found that for the sake of moistness, it's best not to cut the oil. I made a low-oil zucchini bread a few weeks ago and it was so dry that it lodged itself in my throat for five too many seconds. It was still good and despite almost dying, I persevered and ate an entire loaf. I learned from my mistakes but not from my overeating, so this recipe skimps on sugar and not oil. It calls for 3/4 cup of sugar, but TBH the modern tastebud might want to add a little more. The apple makes up for loss sugar by adding an ince ince of sweet and tangy. 

Recipe for Pumpkin Apple Bread 

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons butter, softened
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup pumpkin puree
2 small apples (or 1 medium)
2 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350. Grease one nine-inch pan.

Peel apples and cut into one-inch slices. Combine with 3/4 cup water in a microwaveable bowl. Microwave for four minutes, or until apples are soft and soggy. Stir until mixture resembles apple sauce. Set aside.

Whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon in a small bowl.

In a standing mixer, mix sugar with butter and oil on low speed until fluffy. Should take about 1-2 minutes.

Add the pumpkin puree and apple sauce, mix until combined.

Add in the eggs one at a time, mixing just until combined.

Gradually add the flour mixture and mix until well-combined.

Spread in the pan. Cook for about an hour at 350, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool for 15 minutes in pan, then remove and let cool completely on a wire rack.

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