Leftover canned pumpkin much? Then keep reading for a delicious way to use it up.
This is a sweet (but not too sweet) quick bread that is feather light & super spicy. The key is substituting olive oil for the usual butter and cooking it in a very low & slow oven.
Cooking at 325 degrees does two things. It allows you to retain all the nutrients in the extra virgin olive oil and it renders a sugar dusted crust that cracks beautifully but does not burn.
There aren’t many tips I can add other than those below, but, big but here, you must drain the canned pumpkin or you’ll end up with a soggy mess. Put it in a strainer as pictured below and let it drain for at least half an hour. You can even do this, leave it in the fridge overnight, and bake it the next day.
Now cover with plastic:
…and let drain.
This is what you don’t want in the mix:
When measured it came to a full third of a cup. Skipping this step can seriously waterlog your loaf so don’t skip it.
The other must do is grating the nutmeg. Fresh is always the way to go with nutmeg and ultimately cheaper when bought whole from the bulk bin at the grocery store.
And that’s it. Make this and you’ll use up your pumpkin, make your house smell wonderful and perfume it all over again when you toast the leftovers.
- 1 15 oz. can of pumpkin, drained
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil (or other neutral vegetable oil)
- 1⅓ cups sugar
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 3 large eggs
- 1⅔ cups all-purpose flour
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 3 teaspoons cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons freshly grated nutmeg
- 2 teaspoons ground cardamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 tablespoons sugar (for topping)
- Preheat the oven to 325°F.
- Line a standard size loaf pan with parchment paper (or you may also just grease it).
- Put the pumpkin in a strainer, cover with plastic, and let drain for awhile. Don't even think about skipping this step. The average can will yield ⅓ cup of watery residue which will gum up your final cake.
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom and cloves. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, add the oil, sugar, pumpkin puree, and salt. Whisk until combined. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each until completely incorporated. Sift the dry ingredients over this and stir with the spatula or a wooden spoon until just combined.
- Pour into the pan and smooth the surface. Sprinkle evenly with sugar. Bake until a cake tester comes out with few crumbs clinging. The cooking time will vary widely depending on the size of the loaf pan so continue to check. This standard sized loaf pan was in the oven for about an hour and fifteen.
- Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan before slicing.