cinnamon crunch pumpkin bread
Hurricane Punkin Bread.
I created this recipe while stuffed in my house waiting for Hurricane Helene to pass – just two weeks before this monstrosity called Milton roared into the area. The afternoon prior to Helene’s greatest impact, I busied myself baking this loaf between moments of prep, checking radars, contacting friends, and waiting, waiting, waiting.
When you’re in limbo mode before a hurricane arrives, so long as your dwelling is ready and your plan is mobilized, there isn’t much to do. You keep the news running all day (then eventually switch it off when the doomsday talk starts to obliterate your brainspace), you start prematurely nibbling hurricane snacks, you take stock of everything in your house and hope that the scene remains exactly the same when you return home.
And, if you’re me, you throw down some Cinnamon Crunch Pumpkin Bread, infusing the house with a cozy aroma that for a minute makes you forget that things aren’t exactly okay.
Classic spiced quick bread swirled and topped with a cinnamon crunch blend. A fabulous snack, brunch, or dessert to enjoy at any point of the season. Food for squirreling away, too, during storms of all sorts – hurricanes, winter weather phenomena, you name it.
Crunch Time
Quick breads like banana and pumpkin are very simple to mix up. The difficult part is waiting for them to bake – the smells around the kitchen tease you with what’s to come, but you can’t touch it for at least an hour and a half. Resist, friends, resist!
First, the bread batter. Combine vegetable oil and brown sugar, then mix in a couple eggs. Vanilla extract and pumpkin puree follow – I kinda use vanilla like many folk use garlic, enjoying plenty of it in baked goods.
Then, add in flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves, as well as a little salt. Beat until just combined.
The cinnamon crunch filling/topping is very simple. Throw together some brown sugar, regular sugar, cinnamon, flour, and melted butter.
Pour half of the batter into a greased loaf pan. Sprinkle half of the crunch blend, then finish with the remaining batter and top with the rest of the crunch. Bake for 55-65 minutes: as the bread firms up, the crunch kind of caramelizes on top of the bread. Just fabulous.
Yup, after that long bake time, you gotta wait until you slice, son. Cool the bread for 10 minutes in the pan, then loosen with a knife and flip onto a wire rack. Invert upright, and cool for at least 30 minutes. I’d recommend closer to 40-45, however, for prime cutting quality. Trust me, the center will still be nice and warm even after that duration.
Enjoy with a pat of butter, a cup of coffee, or just on its own. Great any way you serve it. Leftovers freeze great, up to a month, but keep in mind the crunch topping will react with any moisture in the air and will turn more viscous. Tasty, perfectly suitable to nosh, but not crunchy.
Later today I’ll be driving home to assess the surroundings post-Milton. Perhaps I’ll pause for a slice of pumpkin bread, if given the opportunity. Wishing all impacted, and everyone else, well. And as always, FMG is a safe space to go if you feel anything but.
Tried this recipe out? Leave a rating and comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!
Pumpkin brunch:
Pumpkin Butter Chocolate Chip Pancakes
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
Baked Pumpkin Pie Crunch French Toast
cinnamon crunch pumpkin bread
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp ginger
- 1/2 tsp cloves
cinnamon crunch
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- 1 tbsp all purpose flour
- 4 tbsp butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a loaf pan with butter or oil.
- In a bowl, beat the vegetable oil and both sugars until combined. Whip in the eggs, one at a time, then the vanilla and pumpkin puree. Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. Mix until just combined.
- In a separate bowl, combine the brown sugar, sugar, cinnamon, flour, and butter.
- Pour half of the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle half of the crunch mixture overtop. Finish with the remaining batter and top wit the rest of the crunch.
- Bake the loaf for 55-65 minutes. Start checking with a toothpick after 50 minutes. When an inserted toothpick emerges with just a few moist crumbs, the bread is ready! Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edges of the loaf and invert onto a wire rack, then flip back upright. Cool at least 30 minutes before slicing.
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