Pumpkin Bread

I've never had or made pumpkin bread before so I was taking a chance, but this season I seem to be in a pumpkin mood, and this recipe caught my eye, first because it seemed so easy with simple and readily available ingredients, and secondly because of the good amount of spices it called for and it didn't call for rainsins or nuts. I needed something special to bring to a bake sale fundraiser for our local library. I got up early this morning, and sleepy-eyed put this together and doubled the recipe. It wasn't until I went to put the batter in the pan that I realized that the original recipe made two loaves. What a serindipitous oversight! The house was redolent with the heady aroma of spices and pumpkin. My car two smelled divine from the two still hot loaves I was taking to the bake table. A gentleman eyed my offerings somewhat suspiciously and demanded to know if there were any nuts in the bread. I assured him there were none, and just about that time a slight breeze carried and lifted the aroma to the air. The bread did not even hit the table! The gentleman gave me a huge smile, and then the loaves were gone, just like that! They didn't even hit the bake table. I came home sliced into one of the loaves I saved for myself, shared a bite with my sweetie (who doesn't like a broad range of foods), who said "I hope those two loaves are for us, because I can tell you right now, they're not going to last long around me!" What more can I say? Wonderful!

This recipe is to die for! I made a few modifications to the original recipe. I added a teaspoon of Vanilla Extract, reduced the ground Cloves to 1 teaspoon and added 1 teaspoon of ground Allspice. I also added a cup of chopped, glazed walnuts to the batter. I didn't have 2 loaf pans so I poured the batter into a Bundt pan. I had to bake it at 350 for an hour and twenty minutes. I dusted the top with a mix of powdered sugar and cinnamon for a little pizazz! Not many recipes pass the test and go into my Family Favorite file, but this one will for sure. Oh, did I mention, the whole house smells absolutely devine while this is baking!

I made this bread and took it to share at work. It was devoured in minutes, and several people told me it was the best pumpkin bread they'd ever had! I should mention that I grated my own nutmeg, I used a 15-ounce can of pumpkin (as opposed the the 16-ounce can called for in the recipe), I added about a tablespoon of vanilla, and I dusted the bread with confectioner's sugar after it was cooled. Thank you for such a wonderful recipe!