Tasteful Thursday--Enjoy

Fall is in the air. One of my favorite smells and tastes of fall is when I decide to make pumpkin bread with cream cheese filling!! Enjoy this recipe. I don't follow it exactly and often I will double the filling, sweeten the cream cheese to taste, etc. I've often made it for Christmas gifts and wrapped it nicely, and even given it to people when they are new in the neighborhood as welcome gifts. Always a hit!

•Filling:
•1 package (8 ounce) cream cheese, at room temperature
•1/2 cup granulated sugar
•1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
•1 large egg

Bread

•1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
•1 teaspoon baking soda
•1/2 teaspoon salt
•1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
•1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
•1/4 teaspoon ginger
•1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
•1 cup pumpkin puree, canned or homemade
•1/2 cup vegetable oil
•2 large eggs
•1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
•1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts, optional

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 325°. Lightly grease two 8x4x3-inch loaf pans. In a medium mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, 1/2 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon flour, 1 egg, and the orange peel; beat until smooth and creamy. Set aside.
Into another bowl, sift 1 2/3 cup flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and nutmeg; set aside. Put pumpkin puree, vegetable oil, 2 eggs and 1 1/2 cup sugar in a large mixing bowl; beat well. Stir the pumpkin mixture into the flour mixture just until combined. Fold in the pecans or walnuts, if using.

Pour half of the pumpkin bread batter evenly into the two prepared loaf pans. Spoon cream cheese mixture on top of pumpkin batter layer and then pour on the remaining pumpkin batter.

Bake in preheated 325° oven for 60 to 70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean. Cool bread in pans for 10 minutes; remove to a rack to cool completely.
Pumpkin bread recipe makes 2 loaves.

Enjoy!