Pumpkin Bread

Ok, so I have been so MIA it's not even funny.

I'm sorry.  September was crazy.  In both good ways and bad ways, and I won't even get into either.

So let's just leave September behind and embrace October, which has always been one of my favorite months anyway.  Between the awesome weather, my favorite holiday (Halloween,) apple picking, and pumpkins, it will always hold a place in my heart.

And it just keeps getting better since October is now also the month of my wedding anniversary (4 years next week!) and my daughter's birthday (1 year in two weeks!)

How is it even possible that my Mini is going to be a year old?

I will never forget a comment that one of Mr. Vittles' old co-workers once made, that "you just have to keep 'em alive the first year and then it's easy after that."

"Easy" may be a relative term, I hear there are these things called the terrible twos (or as it may be, threes).... middle school... and teenage years?  But either way, I can't believe our "Keep Her Alive" period is almost up.  People always say that time flies when you have children, but it really is the truth.

And luckily, Miss Mini is now old enough to enjoy one of her daddy's favorite treats - pumpkin bread!

For my wedding shower, my mother mailed blank recipe cards in the invitation for guests to give me their favorite recipes.  My sister-in-law Melissa was kind enough to share her brother's favorite recipe for pumpkin bread, which she said was handed down from their grandmother to their mother.

As you probably know by now, Mr. Vittles doesn't get excited over much in the culinary world, so "favorite foods" are somewhat of an anomaly.  (It just so happens that this month also marks 6 years of enduring this tired, nightly script: "How is it, hon?" - "Pretty good."  Ah, the sacrifices we make for love!)

Melissa did also write that the recipe was 'super-secret,' but I think she made that up for dramatic effect.

Hopefully.

The below is adapted slightly anyway, for a single loaf instead of two; although, in this household, two loaves would probably be a smarter bet.  This stuff does not last long!

Pumpkin Bread

• 1 C. canned pumpkin
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 C. oil
• 3 T. water
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 C. flour
• 1 1/2 C. sugar
• 1 1/2 t. pumpkin pie spice
• 1 t. baking soda
• 3/4 t. salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Grease a 9 x 5" loaf pan and set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk pumpkin, eggs, oil, and water until smooth.

In a large bowl, sift together dry ingredients.  Add pumpkin mixture, and mix with a spoon until no streaks of flour remain.

Pour into prepared pan, and bake about 60-70 minutes.*   Cool on wire rack, and remove from pan when completely cooled.  Store in a ziploc bag or airtight container.

*Keep in mind the bread will keep cooking after you remove it from the oven - so if the edges are getting a little too brown but the middle is still a bit soft, it's probably ok to pull it out. Or, if you're like Mr. Vittles, you may like it slightly undercooked anyway :))

Slightly Adapted from a Family Recipe; Origin Unknown