Indigenous recipes did include lightly sweetened, spiced roasted squash, but pumpkin breads or pies didn’t exist in traditional Native American recipes. This pumpkin bread is delicious on its own, and as part of this pudding laced with chocolate and custard.
Pumpkin Bread
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (190 g) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (200 g) sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup (240 ml) pumpkin puree
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) vegetable oil
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1/2 teaspoon grated fresh nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/2 cup (60 g) chopped walnuts
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350˚F degrees. (175°C).
- In a medium bowl, sift the flour, salt, sugar, and baking soda together. In another bowl, add ¼ cup (60 ml) water, the pumpkin puree, oil, eggs, nutmeg, cinnamon, and allspice. Stir well to combine. Whisk the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture, then stir in the walnuts. Grease a standard (8½ by 4½ by 2½-inch/21 by 11 by 6 cm) loaf pan with the butter. Pour the mixture into the pan and place on a baking sheet. Transfer to the oven and bake 50 to 60 minutes, or until cooked through. Remove from the oven and let cool.
Notes
Excerpted with permission from New Native Kitchen: Celebrating Modern Recipes of the American Indian by Freddie Bitsoie and James O. Fraioli. Copyright © 2021 Freddie Bitsoie and James O. Fraioli. Published by Abrams, 2021. Photo copyright © 2021 Quentin Bacon.