I love, love, love having a number of muffins and quick bread recipes in my arsenal to make for quick and easy brunch entertaining. Pumpkin Loaf is no exception! Pumpkin is such a perfect ingredients for these types of recipes because the puree keeps the bread tender and moist!
But anyone can make a Pumpkin Loaf. Those are a dime a dozen during the Fall season. I wanted to elevate the typical quick bread with a delightfully crunchy, crumbly topping. Similar to making a shortbread crust, I blend together flour, butter and sugar. For extra flavor and crunch, I combine the shortbread mixture with oats, pecans and brown sugar. Yum!
The topping browns and crisps up nicely while the Pumpkin Crunch Loaf bakes. It's fabulous fresh from the oven, but because of the pumpkin, it will keep well for days wrapped tight in plastic.
Pumpkin Crunch Loaf
Ingredients
For the pumpkin loaf
· 1 ½ cup sugar
· ½ cup vegetable oil
· 2 eggs
· 1/3 cup milk
· 1 tbsp vanilla extract
· 1 cup pumpkin puree
· 1 ¾ cup flour
· 1/2 tsp salt
· 1 tsp baking soda
· ½ tsp baking powder
· 1 tsp cinnamon
· 1 tsp ground ginger
· ½ tsp ground clove
· ½ tsp nutmeg
For the crumble
· 3 oz flour
· 1 oz sugar
· 1/8 tsp salt
· 4 tbsp butter, chilled & cubed
· ½ tsp vanilla
· Splash of water
· 1 tbsp brown sugar
· 2 tbsp pecans
· 1 tbsp rolled oats
Preheat oven to 350F.
For the loaf… Whisk together the sugar, oil, eggs and milk. Stir in the vanilla and pumpkin. Sift over the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and spices.
Pour the batter into a greased 9-by-5-inch loaf pan.
For the crumble…Using a food processor, pulse together the flour, sugar, and salt. Add the butter one piece at a time. Blend on medium speed until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the vanilla and a splash of water. Blend until the dough begins to clump together. Remove from the processor and set aside.
Add the brown sugar and nuts to the food processor and pulse until the nuts are chopped fine. Add the oats and pulse 3-4 more times. Add the mixture to the bowl with the reserved dough. Mix with your fingers or a fork – you want to ensure the dough is still clumpy but well distributed.
Crumble the mixture generously over the top of the pumpkin loaf batter.
Bake for about 65-75 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Allow the loaf to cool in the pan for about 5 minutes before turning out of the pan and onto a wire rack. Slice and serve warm or at room temperature.
Serves 8
Notes
For extra crunch, add about ½ cup of finely chopped pecans to the pumpkin batter.
Gluten Free Friendly!
Substitute the flour for a GF flour blend. I’d recommend Cup4Cup for this recipe.
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