Give Fall a Hearty Welcome With Pumpkin Bread

Everything about Fall makes me giddy. It is, after all, my favorite season. I do all the stereotypical Fall activities like apple picking, wearing too many scares, heirloom pumpkin buying, pumpkin carving, and of course, baking. The brisk air, amber light and falling leaves all encourage baking.

I go a little crazy during these Autumn months, making everything from apple spiced hand pies to pumpkin baklavas, but the first on my to-do list every year is a rendition of this pumpkin bread. I feel like I've made it a million times, substituting the rye flour with others like buckwheat or whole wheat and sometimes replacing the nuts with candied pecans or pumpkin seeds. You can do the same, or you can stick to this version, which I adore. 

This pumpkin bread is perfectly pumpkin-y, bright orange and the nuts give it nice texture. It's moist, nutty and the crumb is large, just as a quick bread should be. You can easily turn these into muffins, if you like. It should yield you 12 fluffy muffins that are awesome first thing in the morning. My favorite way to eat this bread is warm and slathered with a bit of salted butter.