This is the final in my autumn bread trio collection. I found all three recipes on the same page of our Betty Crocker cookbook. Each of the three recipes came out perfectly and I’m sure we’ll be making these far into the future. Truth be told, the banana version was my favorite. The pumpkin and zucchini both came in a close second. That’s just personal taste. I love bananas.
If you’re interested in reading through the recipes for the other two breads, you can check out the following links:
Walnut Banana Bread Recipe by Betty Crocker
Betty Crocker’s Famous Zucchini Bread Recipe
The Recipe
This is basically the same recipe as the one used to make zucchini bread, but with one big difference. Instead of shredded zucchini, you use one 16-ounce can of pumpkin. It’s a nice trade that truly brings in another dimension to virtually the same bread. It also changes the color quite substantially, so if you have a party coming up, you may want to make all three breads to mix things up. You can get away with having all three side by side.
In each recipe, the option is given to use two 8-inch pans or one 9-inch. I tried both variations and found that I prefer the one 9-inch. I think the bread comes out more moist and it just looks like a more substantial loaf. Splitting things in half gives two smaller loaves and that doesn’t really appeal to me.
Ingredients
Makes: 1 or 2 Loaves
Butter for Greasing Pans
1 16-Ounce Can Pumpkin
1 2/3 Cups Sugar
2/3 Cup Vegetable Oil
2 Teaspoons Vanilla
4 Large Eggs
3 Cups All-Purpose Flour
2 Teaspoons Baking Soda
1 Teaspoon Salt
1 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1 Teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 Cup Chopped Walnuts
Step-by-Step Instructions
For this recipe, I removed the optional raisins because I didn’t think they would be very good. If you’re a raisin lover, go ahead and add a half-cup. Also, I chose to substitute the ground cloves for nutmeg. Either are great, but I had more nutmeg on hand.
Pre-Heat the Oven
Before anything, pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. Then, arrange the racks so one of them is in the second to the lowest position. Finally, grease either two 8-inch deep pans or one 9-inch pan with butter.
Mix Eggs, Pumpkin & Sugar
In a large bowl, add the can of pumpkin, sugar, oil, vanilla and eggs. Mix the ingredients until they’re thoroughly combined.
Mix Walnuts & Flour
Once the wet ingredients have been combined, add in the dry. Add the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder and walnuts. Mix everything together thoroughly.
Add Mix to Pan
Now that the mix has been finished, go ahead and add it to your greased pan(s).
I want to give you a word of warning. Whatever the mix in the pan looks like, your final bread will look like. Please see the photos below for an idea of what I’m talking about. If you want a more smoothly topped bread, you should definitely smooth out the batter at this point. I left mine alone and the result is kind of wild. I like it.
Cook the Bread
When the oven is to temperature, go ahead and add the pan(s) to it. For two smaller pans, the total cook time should be about 50 minutes. I’d begin checking on it after 30. To see if the bread is finished baking, stick a toothpick into the center of it and pull it back out. If it’s done, the toothpick should emerge clean. If batter is sticking to it, keep on baking.
If you’re using one larger pan, I’d say to let it bake for 45 minutes and then start checking on it. The total cook time should be around an hour.
When the bread is finished baking, remove it from the oven and let it cool for about 10 minutes. Then, turn the pan over and give the bottom a few taps with your finger tips. The bread should fall right into your hand.
The Final Loaf
I told you it was wild. My loaf of pumpkin bread rose quite a bit and gave an interesting design on top. If you compare the next photo with the one directly above, you can see that the heat of the oven didn’t change anything. What you see when you put the pan in is what you get when it comes out – only bigger.
I also popped the bread out of the pan so you could see what the entire loaf looks like.
As I said above, I think this is a great recipe that has been going strong through the years. Good ol’ Betty Crocker has yet to fail me.
Natasha says
This looks really nice and cozy. I admit I’m not the hugest pumpkin fan out there, but I could definitely do with a slice of this 🙂
Jay Gaulard says
Hi Natasha,
I really like these breads. Give them a try. You may end up liking the pumpkin.
Jay