Mini Pumpkin Loaves

Now that the weather has finally cooled off a bit, I'm in full fall baking mode (as much as I can be with a one month old strapped to me 24/7)! As you can probably tell, I'm a bit obsessed with pumpkin. Unfortunately for me Stephen isn't wild about it. So usually I make smaller portioned recipes or give away most of the pumpkin goodies I make. This time around I decided to make miniature pumpkin bread loaves and mix in my favorite toppings. With so much variety you really can't go wrong! I kept all of these beauties to myself, snacking on them throughout the day and eating them throughout the rest of the week. I think the flavor gets better and better as the days pass, the sweet spiciness of the bread becomes more vibrant. Now if you don't want to make so many different kinds, don't worry, you can do what you please, or if you don't have or want to use a mini loaf pan, you can aways bake the batter in a 9x5" pan which yields one standard size loaf. No matter what you decided to put in these or how you decided to bake them, I hope you'll enjoy them as much as I did!

Mini Pumpkin Loaves
Ingredients
1¾ c. all-purpose flour
¾ c. sugar
½ c. brown sugar, packed
⅓ c. water
¼ c. oil
¼ c. unsweetened applesauce
1 c. pumpkin puree
2 eggs
1 tsp. baking soda
¾ tsp. salt
½ tsp. cinnamon
1¼ tsp. pumpkin pie spice
½ tsp. vanilla extract

Optional toppings:
chocolate chips

butterscotch chips

cranberries

cinnamon & sugar

chopped pecans

chopped walnuts

pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray a miniature loaf pan* or one 9x5 inch loaf pan with baking spray. Lightly dust with flour, remove any excess by patting it upside down over the sink or a garbage can, set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together applesauce, oil, and sugars. Mix until smooth. Add pumpkin puree, water, and vanilla, mix until smooth. Add in one egg at a time, mixing after each addition.
3. In a medium mixing bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Whisk together. With mixing speed on low, gradually add dry ingredients. Mix until just incorporated. Now you can either mix in the "toppings" or actually put them on top, the choice is yours.
4. Pour batter into prepared pan, if desired, sprinkle additional toppings over the batter. Place in oven and bake for 22-25 minutes, or 50-60 minutes for one standard loaf. The tops should be slightly dark, but should not be burnt! They will spring back after touched. Remove from oven and let cool in pan for 20 minutes (or 45 for a standard loaf) before removing. Allow to cool on a wire rack for an additional 30 minutes before eating.

*NOTE: I used the Williams-Sonoma Goldtouch® Nonstick Mini Loaf Pan, if you are using larger mini loaf pans, please adjust the baking time as needed.
Adapted from allrecipes.com, Pumpkin Bread | Makes (8) 3"x4" miniature loaves or (1) 9"x5" loaf

Lemon Pound Cake with Vanilla Bean Glaze

 
When I came across a version of this recipe it was love at first sight. I've always been a huge fan of pound cake, but this recipe promised a pound cake that was moist and fluffy. That sounds a little weird for pound cake, right? But really, who wants to bite in to a dense, dry cake? So I went to work adjusting things here and there so that it would be extra moist and so that the lemon flavor would really pop. Instead of doing a lemon glaze for the top, I opted for a light and simple vanilla bean glaze. That was a great decision! The cake turned out to be everything that I had hoped for- moist, fluffy and flavorful. Stephen was circling the cake as it sat on the counter and kept asking me when it would be ready to eat. As soon as I had photographed it we cut ourselves a few slices and dug in. He agreed that it would be perfect with poppyseeds and I thought it would be great with a handful of fresh blueberries! I hope that you'll give this recipe a try, you won't be disappointed! Enjoy this lovely summer treat!

Lemon Pound Cake

Ingredients

1¾ c. all-purpose flour

1¼ c. sugar

16 tbsp. (2 sticks) butter, room temperature

5 eggs

⅓ c. sour cream

½ tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

Zest of 3 lemons

3 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

½ tsp. lemon extract (optional)

½ tsp. vanilla 

¾ c. blueberries *see note below

OR 3 tbsp. poppyseeds

Lemon simple syrup:

¼ c. sugar

¼ c. fresh lemon juice

Vanilla bean glaze:

½ c. powdered sugar

1 tbsp. milk

¼ tsp. vanilla bean paste
pinch of salt

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place your rack in the middle of the oven (mine was the second "shelf" from the bottom). Lightly grease one 9x5 loaf pan with butter, then lightly dust with flour, set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together butter, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, lemon oil, and vanilla for 3 minutes (on medium-high) or until light and fluffy. Add sour cream, beat until incorporated. Add eggs one at a time, mixing to incorporate after each addition. 

3. In a small mixing bowl whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. With mixing speed on low, gradually add dry ingredients, mixing for an additional 45 seconds after all of the dry ingredients have been added. Remove bowl from stand and fold in any "mix-ins" (blueberries* or poppyseeds), if desired.

4. Pour batter into prepared pan and spread evenly. Place in oven and bake for 1 hour or until the top becomes golden brown in color. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan for 20 minutes.

5. Meanwhile in a small saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar and lemon juice to create a syrup. Once sugar has dissolved allow to gently simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from heat.

6. Remove loaf from pan after 20 minutes of cooling. Using a toothpick or cake tester, poke holes into the top of the cake- lots of 'em! Brush the syrup over top (and the sides too) so that it seeps into the cake. Allow the loaf to cool for another 1½ hours before frosting with glaze.

7. To prepare the glaze, in small mixing bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, milk, vanilla bean paste, and salt. It may not look like a lot, but a little goes a long way, trust me! Spread over the loaf and allow to drip over the edges and sides. Allow to sit for 20 minutes to harden before serving.

NOTE: If you are planning on folding in blueberries, toss them in flour before adding, this will help prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the loaf.
NOTE: You can find vanilla bean paste (Nielsen-Massey brand) at Williams-Sonoma, Sur La Table, King Arthur Flour and many other baking stores.

Adapted from Best Summer Desserts, Lemon Pound Cake | Makes one 9x5 loaf

Mini Carrot Cake Loaves with Baked Cream Cheese Topping

I love carrot cake. Yes it can be hit or miss, but for the most part as long as raisins (and pineapple) are out of the picture, I'll gobble it up at any given chance! Since Easter is just around the corner I thought I'd make myself some little loaves to snack on over the next few days. Instead of topping them with a fresh cream cheese frosting, I opted for a cheesecake-like batter that would go on top prior to baking. I'm not a big frosting fan (I find it a little too sweet, especially for breads) but I love the texture of cheesecake, so it turned out to be a really good last minute decision! They baked evenly and the topping was perfectly set. I could't resist grabbing one and munching on it while I finished cleaning up the kitchen!

Mini Carrot Cake Loaves with Baked Cream Cheese Topping

Ingredients

1½ c. all-purpose flour

¾ c. sugar

¼ c. brown sugar

⅓ c. oil

2 tbsp. applesauce

1 c. grated carrot*

2 eggs

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. baking powder
1½ tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. nutmeg

1½ tsp. vanilla

¼ c. walnuts, finely chopped (optional)

Cream cheese topping:

8 oz. (1 block) original cream cheese, room temperature

¼ c. powdered sugar

1 egg

¼ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. vanilla bean paste

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray and flour an 8-well mini loaf pan or 1 standard loaf pan, set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together sugars, oil, applesauce and vanilla. With mixing speed on low, beat in one egg at a time. Add the grated carrot and mix until just combined.
3. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and chopped walnuts. With mixing speed on low, slowly add the dry ingredients. Mix until combined.
4. In a medium size mixing bowl (using a hand mixer or a sturdy spatula) beat together cream cheese, powdered sugar, egg, salt and vanilla bean paste until smooth and creamy. Set aside.
5. Pour the carrot cake batter into the prepared pan, then top with cream cheese mixture, making sure to spread evenly across the batter. Place in oven and bake for 30-35 minutes (or about 1 hour for a loaf). The cream cheese should be lightly browned on top, and yes, it will crack! Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan for 30 minutes (longer for a large loaf). Remove from pan and allow to cool for 15 more minutes before serving.

*When grating the carrot use the bigger holes, this will help prevent the carrots from becoming mushy and juicy.

NOTE: I used my Goldtouch® nonstick mini loaf pan from Williams-Sonoma. 

Created using a Stephen + Natalie family recipe | Makes approximately 8 mini loaves or 1 standard size loaf