Spiced Pumpkin Bread with Walnuts

This loaf bakes up with a soft, pumpkin-rich crumb, browned walnut pieces for texture, and enough spice to read clearly without overpowering the squash. It slices cleanly once cooled, making it suited to breakfast, snacking, or dessert.

By Julienne

Cook time: 55 minutes

Servings: 10

Ingredients

• 188 g All-purpose flour spooned and leveled
• 5 g Baking soda
• 3 g Fine salt
• 4 g Ground cinnamon
• 2 g Ground ginger
• 1 g Ground nutmeg
• 0.5 g Ground cloves
• 150 g Granulated sugar
• 100 g Light brown sugar packed
• 2 count Large eggs room temperature
• 425 g Pumpkin puree
• 120 ml Neutral oil
• 5 ml Vanilla extract
• 100 g Walnuts roughly chopped and lightly toasted
• 15 ml Water for adjusting batter if needed
• 12 g Turbinado sugar for topping

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 175°C. Line a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan with parchment, leaving overhang on the long sides for lifting. Oven is fully preheated and the pan is lined.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves until evenly combined. No streaks of spice remain in the dry mix.
3. In a large bowl, whisk the granulated sugar, brown sugar, eggs, pumpkin puree, oil, and vanilla until smooth and glossy. The mixture looks uniform and slightly thick.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and fold just until no dry flour remains. Fold in the chopped walnuts. If the batter seems unusually stiff, add up to 15 ml water. Batter is thick, evenly mixed, and walnuts are distributed throughout.
5. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. If using, sprinkle the turbinado sugar evenly over the surface. The batter fills the pan evenly and the top is level.
6. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until the top is deeply browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs, not wet batter. The center springs back lightly and the loaf tests done in the middle.
7. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then lift out and cool completely on a wire rack before slicing. The loaf is fully set and slices cleanly once cool.