Its Almost Pumpkin Season!

I love fall.
The colors are so rich (orange leaves bring out my eyes).
The air is crisp (goodbye humidity, and goodbye frizzy hair)!
And PUMPKINS are everywhere... time for pumpkin bread (traditionally, not so good for the hips...)!



Here's is my famous pumpkin bread recipe (well, famous to me because I love to eat it). I've tweeked some basic recipes to make it a little healthier. NO taste was compromised in the making of this bread!

* 3 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
* 2 teaspoons baking soda
* 2 teaspoons salt
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
* 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
* 2 cups white sugar
* 1 cup brown sugar
* 1 cup unsweetened apple sauce
* 2 eggs
* 2 egg whites
* 2 cups pumpkin puree
* 2/3 cup water

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease two loaf pans.

2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon and cloves.

3. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, blend sugar, oil and eggs. Stir in pumpkin. Slowly blend the flour mixture into pumpkin mixture. While blending the mixture add water incrementally. Pour the batter into the two loaf pans.

4. Bake in a preheated 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) oven for 80-90 minutes - do the fork test to be sure they are done. Let cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pans.

Makes 2 loaves. This recipe is easily halved, but the pumpkin comes in a can of 16 oz. so I just covered it with plastic wrap and popped the rest in the fridge.