The other day, I roasted some honeynut squash, a slightly sweeter version of butternut squash, and incorporated it into one of the lightest, fluffiest quick breads I’ve ever tasted, adapted from a pumpkin chocolate chip bread recipe on one of my favorite baking blogs, Tutti Dolci. I subtracted the chocolate chips, sweetened the bread with maple syrup, and swapped milk for yogurt, among other changes. Flavored with cinnamon, walnuts, and nutmeg, this bread is similar to carrot cake, only less dense and perfect for autumn baking.
Pumpkin Walnut Bread
Adapted from Tutti Dolci’s Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated or ground nutmeg
1 1/4 cups pumpkin, honeynut squash, or other winter squash (or a combination of different squashes,) roasted and mashed with a fork until smooth
1 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup yogurt
2 large eggs
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¾ cup walnuts, finely chopped
Dark chocolate (either pieces of a chocolate bar or chocolate chips,) melted, for drizzling (optional)
- Preheat oven to 350°F and grease or line a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- In a medium bowl, whisk pumpkin and/or other winter squash, sugar, yogurt, eggs, oil, and vanilla. Add to flour mixture and fold in with a spoon or spatula until just combined. Stir in walnuts.
- Spoon into prepared pan and smooth with an offset spatula. To reduce air bubbles, tap the pan.
- Bake for 60 minutes or until bread is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out mostly clean (it’s okay if there are a few crumbs.) Cool in pan for 15 minutes, then remove and continue to cool on a wire rack.
- Drizzle the top with melted dark chocolate, if desired. Store leftovers in tinfoil or airtight container at room temperature.
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