Pumpkin & Nut Spice Bread

This is a yeasted pumpkin bread, not the muffin-loaf hybrid most pumpkin breads turn out to be. The dough rises in a bread machine on the basic setting, which means you measure ingredients into the pan, walk away, and come back to a tall, soft loaf with a fine crumb and a crust the color of toasted pecans.

The pumpkin puree softens the dough and tints it a warm autumn orange, while orange juice brings just enough acidity to keep the yeast happy and the spice profile bright. A teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice does the seasonal heavy work, and chopped pecans add crunch in every slice.

It makes excellent toast with butter, fantastic French toast, and a particularly good base for a turkey or cream cheese sandwich.

Pro Tips

• Use canned pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling. Pie filling is pre-sweetened and pre-spiced, and it’ll throw off the bread.
• Add ingredients in the order your bread machine manual specifies. Most want liquids first, dry ingredients next, yeast last and not touching the liquid.
• Bring eggs, milk, and butter to room temperature before adding. Cold ingredients can shock the yeast and slow the rise.
• Add the nuts at the beep (when the bread machine signals add-ins) so they don’t get pulverized by the kneading paddle.
• Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing, otherwise the inside will be gummy.

Variations

• Stir in ½ cup of dried cranberries or raisins with the nuts for a fruit-and-nut version.
• Replace pumpkin pie spice with 1 teaspoon cinnamon, ½ teaspoon nutmeg, and ¼ teaspoon ginger for a custom spice blend.
• Top the cooled loaf with a thin maple-cream cheese glaze to push it toward dessert.