If you want your house to smell like cake, without having to make a cake or burn a “cake” scented candle, this Paleo Pumpkin Bread will do the trick.
A Blank Canvas
Once all the dishes are clean and put away, and the counter tops are clear, for me, the kitchen is nothing but a blank canvas. At least that’s when I feel I can be the most creative in the kitchen.
Recently I walked past the magazine rack in our local library and spotted pumpkin bars on the cover of one of the food magazines. Which makes sense because it is still pumpkin season.
That then inspired me to pick up a pie pumpkin from the store and roast it.
The fresh pumpkin had been waiting patiently in the fridge, to be turned into something delicious, but having it sitting there was weighing me down because fresh pumpkin won’t stay fresh for long. I finally decided to use it to make pumpkin bread.
With cranberries also on my mind, because of Thanksgiving, I decided they would make a great mix-in ingredient.
Alternatives to Cranberries
If you don’t have dried cranberries on hand, you may have raisins. You can use any dried fruit such as cherries or currants even. They can be swapped 1:1 or you can just leave them out of this bread altogether.
The same goes for the raw walnuts. I had exactly one quarter cup of walnuts left in the pantry and that’s why I used such a small amount. If you have more walnuts, you can increase the amount to as much as 3/4 cup to guarantee a crunch in every bite.
Watch The Bake Time
Every oven works slightly differently and you want to make sure the center is cooked all the way through. I made the mistake of taking this out after 55 minutes and the center was still dough-like. It took another 20 minutes for me with my oven until it was solid in the center.
If you use a different cooking vessel aside from the glass loaf pan, your timing may differ so just keep an eye (and nose) on it and you’ll be good to go.
Store leftovers in the fridge and serve this bread warm or cold for breakfast or dessert.
