Cranberry Walnut Pumpkin Bread

Bring on the spirit of Thanksgiving with this tart and nutty pumpkin bread! Easy to make on a weekend for the week's breakfasts or after school/work snacks.

Prep: 15 minutes

Bake: 75 minutes

Oven: 350 degrees F

Yield: 2 loaves

Ingredients:

2 cups granulated sugar

1/2 cup honey
1 cup cooking oil

4 eggs

3 1/3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 cup water

2 cups canned pumpkin (or 15oz can)

1 cup walnuts

1 cup dried cranberries

1. Grease bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of two 9x5x3-inch loaf pans; set aside. In a HUGE mixing bowl, beat sugar, honey, and oil with electric mixer on medium speed. Add eggs and beat well; set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Alternately add flour mixture and water to sugar mixture, beating on low speed after each addition just until combined. Beat in pumpkin just until combined. Fold in walnuts and cranberries. Spoon batter into prepared pans.
3. Bake for approximately 75 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near centers comes out clean. If the tops start looking too dark, cover with aluminum foil and continue baking. Once done, cool in pans on wire racks for about 10 minutes. Remove from pans and continue cooling on wire racks. Once completely cooled, wrap and store overnight before slicing if you want a clean firm slice. If you're anything like my husband, you'll want to eat it as soon as it comes out of the oven!

Recipe adapted from Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook 75th Anniversary Edition.