Farmer Boy Pumpkin Recipe - Pumpkin Bread

This was probably one of the very first recipes that I ever made, when I was a young teenager. It's one of those time-tested, hand-me-down recipes that can be tweaked with your choice of added ingredients.  This version is my favorite!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 Cup of vegetable oil
• 1/3 Cup of sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 Cup of canned pumpkin
• 1/3 Cup of water
• 1 3/4 Cups of all-purpose flour
•  1/4 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon of salt
• 1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 1/2 Cup of chopped nuts (walnuts or pecans)
• 3/4 Cup of chocolate chips

Glazing: 1/2 Cup of powdered sugar, 1/8 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice, 1 Tablespoon of melted butter, 1/2 Tablespoon milk

Directions: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Lightly grease and flour a loaf pan.  Cream the oil and sugar.  Beat into this, the eggs, water and finally the pumpkin.  Add this mixture to the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, spices and vanilla.  Stir well.  Mix in the nuts and chips.  Spoon the batter into the pan.  Bake for about 65 to 70 minutes. (test with a probe for proper baking)   Remove from the oven to cool in the pan and then to a wire rack to cool the rest of the way.  As it cools, prepare the glazing.  You can drizzle this over the top with a spoon or put the glaze into a plastic food storage bag and snip one closed corner to create a piping bag.

This recipe is so versatile that you could use any type of chips that are available out there these days - cinnamon, peanut butter, white chocolate, etc.  And you could use raisins or dried berries in place of the chips - almost anything goes!  I've seen folks use unsalted pumpkin seeds in it too!  So, experiment and have fun - if you don't like the results, just try again.  If you have kids, and this doesn't turn out the way you'd hoped - just put more sugar on top - they'll eat just about anything with sugar on it!  :)

I can just imagine that little Farmer Boy gobbling up as much as he could fit in his mouth at one time!

Please let us all know how it comes out, by leaving a comment here.  Thanks. The Old Man in the Bib Overalls