TRADING JOE'S
While I wouldn't trade my Joe (or any of his culinary creations) for anything in the world, on a recent visit to LA my friend, Michelle, prepared one of the most delicious pumpkin bread recipe's I've ever had. Her secret: Trader Joe's bread and muffin mix. My pumpkin, Joe, has baked fabulous things (I have the love handles to prove it!) but we've not yet ventured into the world of pumpkin bread. One of the tricks of the trade: simplicity in ingredients and directions. Buy the box, add two ingredients, wait an hour and enjoy! If you'd rather not be a trader, however, I've picked one of my favorite recipes from Cooks Illustrated. It's not as easy, takes a bit longer but if you're like my Joe and would rather not think outside of the box (or bake) it's a winner!TRICKS FROM THE TRADER:
Like most quick-bread mixes, the Trader Joe's Pumpkin Bread was a cinch to prepare. You just add eggs, oil, and water. After an hour in the oven, the loaf came out moist, spicy, and the color of molasses. We devoured it, though we all agreed the flavor was more reminiscent of gingerbread or generic spice cake than of pumpkin.
TRADING UP:
If you'd rather not bake out of a box, this one is from Cooks Illustrated. I go for quick and easy, though!
Ingredients
1/2 cup warm water2 packages (2 tablespoons) active dry yeast2/3 cup warm milk (whole or low-fat)2 large eggs, beaten1 1/2 cups puréed pumpkin, either fresh or canned2 tablespoons vegetable oil6 1/2 cups (approximately) all-purpose flour1/2 cup dark brown sugar2 teaspoons salt1/2 teaspoon ground ginger1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
Procedure
1. In a large bowl, stir yeast into water to soften. Add milk, eggs, pumpkin, oil, 4 cups of flour, brown sugar, salt, ginger, and cardamom. Mix vigorously with a wooden spoon until thoroughly combined, about 2 minutes.
2. Gradually add remaining flour, a little at a time, until you have a dough stiff enough to knead. Turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead, adding flour as necessary, until it is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes.
3. Place dough in a large bowl coated with oil or nonstick cooking spray. Turn once to coat, then cover with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and allow to rise until doubled, about 1 hour.
4. Turn dough out onto a lightly oiled work surface. Divide dough in half. Shape dough into loaves and place in well-greased 10 x 5-inch pans. Cover again and let rise until almost doubled, about 45 minutes.
5. While the loaves are rising, preheat the oven to 375ºF. Bake the loaves for 30 minutes. Check the internal temperature of each with an instant-read thermometer; a reading of 190ºF means that they are done.
6. Immediately remove bread from pans and allow to cool on a wire rack.
1/2 cup warm water2 packages (2 tablespoons) active dry yeast2/3 cup warm milk (whole or low-fat)2 large eggs, beaten1 1/2 cups puréed pumpkin, either fresh or canned2 tablespoons vegetable oil6 1/2 cups (approximately) all-purpose flour1/2 cup dark brown sugar2 teaspoons salt1/2 teaspoon ground ginger1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
Procedure
1. In a large bowl, stir yeast into water to soften. Add milk, eggs, pumpkin, oil, 4 cups of flour, brown sugar, salt, ginger, and cardamom. Mix vigorously with a wooden spoon until thoroughly combined, about 2 minutes.
2. Gradually add remaining flour, a little at a time, until you have a dough stiff enough to knead. Turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead, adding flour as necessary, until it is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes.
3. Place dough in a large bowl coated with oil or nonstick cooking spray. Turn once to coat, then cover with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and allow to rise until doubled, about 1 hour.
4. Turn dough out onto a lightly oiled work surface. Divide dough in half. Shape dough into loaves and place in well-greased 10 x 5-inch pans. Cover again and let rise until almost doubled, about 45 minutes.
5. While the loaves are rising, preheat the oven to 375ºF. Bake the loaves for 30 minutes. Check the internal temperature of each with an instant-read thermometer; a reading of 190ºF means that they are done.
6. Immediately remove bread from pans and allow to cool on a wire rack.
TIME TO COMPLETE TASK: One Hour (Trader Joe's version)
COST: $2.99
STRESS LEVEL: Oh Punkin, it aint that hard!! LOW
