Falling Into Spring: Pumpkin Spice Bread

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It's definitely Spring here in London.  The trees are blooming, the sun is shining more often than not, and the birds on the canal are having adorable, fluffy babies:

And how am I celebrating this glorious breaking of Winter?  Well, I'm sneezing a lot... and numbing myself with bucketsful of Benadryl... and baking pumpkin bread.

I know, pumpkin is a Fall thing.  Well, be that as it may, we had a can of pumpkin in the cupboard (and not much else) when we got back from the States, and I wanted to bake.  Better yet, I wanted something not-too-sweet and borderline healthy, and pumpkin is great for that as it adds tons of flavor and moisture all on its own, without needing butter or a lot of sugar to help it along.

This loaf was just what I wanted: spiced, flavorful, and satisfying without feeling heavy and sticky in my still-recovering-from-Easter-candy belly.  Also, did I mention it was super easy to throw together?  Yup, awesomely easy, and another one-bowl-wonder.  So Spring or Fall, Winter or Summer, this is one for the recipe box, for sho.

Pumpkin Spice Bread:

     Liberally adapted from Allrecipes

Preheat oven to 325F/160C and grease an 11x5 loaf pan or 2 9x5 pans (the loaf may be kind of shallow in 2).

In a large bowl, mix until smooth:

     3/4 c sugar

     1/2 c brown sugar

     1/2 c oil

     2 eggs

     1 can pumpkin puree

In a separate bowl, whisk:

     1 3/4 c flour

     1 tsp baking soda

     1/4 tsp baking powder

     3/4 tsp salt

     1.5 tsp ground ginger

     1/2 tsp ground allspice

     1 tsp cinnamon

Mix the dry ingredients into the wet and blend (careful not to overmix).  Add a liberal glug of brandy for extra flavor if you like (I always like).  

Pour into pan and bake 45-60 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.

Didn't I tell you it was easy?