Mom's Pumpkin Bread, Veganized!

Thanksgiving day. Christmas morning. Family. Holidays. Pumpkin bread.

These words just go together for me. We can't have a Christmas or Thanksgiving without this bread, and I can't have this bread without thinking about home, family, and holidays growing up. A warm, delicious, soft, incredibly moist, cake-like bread that melts in your mouth with fall spices and pumpkin goodness. The top forms a thin, almost gooey layer of pumpkin that my brother and I would secretly cut off in pieces, like little mice nibbling away at the best part. This recipe has become almost a part of my family identity- it's right up there with steamy Baltimore summers, Cape Cod vacations, New Hampshire lakes, and long car rides in Ford station wagons- and I almost thought about not sharing it to keep the family secret. But, good food is best shared, and so, I give you... the best pumpkin bread ever. My mom's. ;-)

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies & Other Weekend Treats

As promised, we're leaving the tropics behind and moving on to Fall-themed recipes. I ran around the Farmer's market this weekend excited to find squashes and persimmons (yes! it's persimmon season again!) in addition to my usual leafy greens. I whipped up these pumpkin cookies Friday night, and they reminded me a little of my mother's pumpkin bread, in cookie form, with mini melty chocolate chips. Well hellllloooo there Fall, I didn't realize I'd missed you so much!

Homemade Whole-Wheat Naan

There are very few things I really, truly miss as a vegan. But naan bread is hands-down one of them. We order (or more recently, make) Indian food at least once a month (and sometimes it's more like once a week!) The past couple of times I've been so jealous of the buttery, fluffy, oh-so-delicious-to-soak-up-the-curry naan my husband gets. This time, I planned ahead and made my own vegan version. And I must say, I was quite pleased with myself with my delicious outcome ;-)

Freshly made, buttery-tasting, light, soft, perfect naan...

Homemade Soft Pretzel Bites and Stuffed Pretzels

Soft pretzels are hands-down one of my favorite things. I've found two places with THE BEST soft pretzels ever. First: anywhere in Germany; there is nothing as good as a fresh, German soft pretzel- all buttery, salty, perfectly chewy, and delicious. Second: the Carmel Bakery in Carmel, California. I had actually been considering breaking vegan for that Carmel pretzel after my marathon in April, simply because it ends in Carmel, and, well, I will have run an entire 26.2 miles. The thought of walking by that bakery, or never having another German soft pretzel, was just too much to take.... until now.

Figgy Banana Bread (lowfat, vegan)

Nearly overripe bananas... sitting in my fruit basket. Nothing fills me with the sudden need to try out a banana bread recipe like that sight.

OK, actually, I've never made banana bread before (somewhat shocking, given my love of baking and the fact that baking my Mom's pumpkin bread has kind of become "my thing"). But THIS morning, my close-to-extinction bananas DID compel me all the way to making my first-ever batch of banana bread.

Since I recently discovered how good vegan baked goods can be, I wanted to make vegan banana bread. Searching for recipes, I was drawn to one: "the best vegan banana bread" from  The Baking Bird. Since I didn't have applesauce, and only had nearly 2 bananas (I ate part of one before I completely decided to go for making the bread- oops ;-) ), I altered things a bit. I also thought, hey, while I'm already changing things, why not make it non-fat too, and leave out the oil? What's baking (and life) without a little experimenting?! (Note: if you use non-fat milk and cooking spray, there will be nearly no fat; if you use almond milk there will still be very little).

The result was yummy!

Ingredients: (for one small-medium loaf)

• 2 very ripe small-medium bananas
• 1/4 cup maple brown sugar instant oatmeal, cooked according to package instructions (YUP! That's right, I subbed instant oatmeal for applesauce. No, I'm not crazy)
• 1 Tbsp maple (or plain) agave syrup
• 1/4 cup unsweetened almond or soy milk (My favorites are Trader Joe's Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk, or Silk's Nonfat Vanilla Soy Milk)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp plus 1/8 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2-3 figs (I used T.Joe's Calamyrna Figs), chopped into small pieces
• ~1/2 Tbsp Vegan butter (such as Smart Balance- check for 'vegan' on the label- I use Smart Balance Light Original with Flax- or Earth Balance) or cooking spray for greasing the pan

 Steps:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350.
2. Mash the banana in a large bowl. Mix in the rest of the wet ingredients. (For the instant oatmeal, just cook according to package instructions- I kept mine slightly thick rather than soupy/watery). 
3. Mix together in a separate bowl the dry ingredients, and after well sifted, add to the wet.
4. Mix well, and then add the chopped figs. Use a small to medium sized dark non-stick baking pan, and grease with spray or non-dairy butter. Add a little flour and tap around til lighted coated to help the bread easily slide out.
5. Cook for ~30 minutes (timing will depend on the size & type of pan you use. Start checking after 20 minutes, cooking until lightly browned on top and a toothpick comes out clean).
6. Optional step: after removing from oven, spread a little bit of Smart Balance (or other vegan butter) on top, and sprinkle with a little cinnamon sugar. 
7. Cool... or eat a few slices hot! ;-)

Notes: The bread was slightly dense and a little chewy from using the oatmeal instead of applesauce (and not using any oil). But it was also very moist, packed with delicious flavor, and healthy too! This recipe might be good for mini-muffins too; you could even add a little fig jam into the center.