Doesn't that just look stunning? That slab of pumpkin loaf was the last piece, and let me tell you: that makes it taste all the more gorgeous. This loaf has to be one of the easiest pumpkin loaves in existence, and also one of the tastiest: it has a moist, dense, and delightfully squidgy interior flavoured with rich pumpkin and autumnal spices, all contained within a crisp crust. And one of the best things? It's also healthy. For one slice (12th of the loaf) you get 122kcal, 1.6g fat, 0.2g saturated fat, 25g carbohydrates, 3.4g fibre, 8.2g of all natural non-refined sugar, 3.9g protein, and 50.5% of your vitamin A requirement. So good that I may have just eaten two slices in one go with the above picture.
Before I get into the recipe I want to tell you all where the recipe I adapted to make this came from. I used the amazing Scola Dondo's banana bread recipe as the basis for this and then gave it a good few tweaks to perfect my pumpkin loaf. You can check out Scola's blog, and find her banana bread recipe, right here:
http://thatfitnesslife.blogspot.co.uk/ . Now, on to my slightly more autumnal feeling pumpkin version...
Ingredients (Serves 10- 12)
1/3 cup runny honey
1 cup pumpkin puree (make sure it is 100% pumpkin puree; I used Libby's)
1 egg
3/4 cup plant based milk (I used Alpro coconut)
1 1/2 cups wholemeal self raising flour
1 cup oats (proper oats, not the sachets)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/4 tsp salt
2tsp cinnamon
3tsp ginger
1 large pinch nutmeg
Method
Preheat the oven to 180*c, 170*c if it's a fan oven. Grease and line a 2lb loaf tin: to do this rub the bottom and the sides of the tin with a little butter, oil, or cooking spray, and also place baking parchment on the bottom of the tin.
In one bowl whisk together all of the wet ingredients (the pumpkin, the honey, the egg, and the milk).
In a separate bowl mix the dry ingredients (the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and all of the spices).
Pour the wet ingredients in to the dry ingredients and mix everything together until well incorporated. Pour this into the loaf tin, smooth out, and then place the loaf tin into the oven for 35-40 minutes.
Once a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean you can remove your loaf from the oven, and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Then loosen it from the loaf tin, and allow to cool completely on a wire rack- if you can wait that long...
Labels: autumn food, autumnal, baking, cake, easy, Food, healthy, low calorie, low fat, pumpkin, pumpkin loaf, spiced, student, student food