Pumpkin Bread

The holiday season is a time to enjoy scrumptious treats and savory eats. From the office potluck to a family gathering, the celebrations -- and food -- abound! But this seasonal splurge can often mean additional calories. According to the New England Journal of Medicine, Americans gain about 0.4% of their body weight every year in the days surrounding Christmas.

This year, opt to bring a healthy alternative that will have everyone asking for the recipe. This pumpkin bread is lighter on fat and sodium with more dietary fiber. Follow the recipe below from our own Clinical Dietitian Specialist, Sharon Smalling, MPH, RD, LD.

Ingredients

¹/₂ cup skim milk

2 cups granulated sugar

¹/₂ tablespoon lemon juice

¹/₂ cup egg substitute

3 ¹/₃ cups white whole wheat flour

¹/₂ cup canola oil

1 tablespoon baking powder

2 large omega-3 eggs

2 teaspoons baking soda

²/₃ cup water

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

15 ounce can pumpkin

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Cooking spray

¹/₂ teaspoon ground allspice

¹/₃ cup chopped pecans

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Coat 2 9” x 5” pans with nonstick cooking spray.
3. Add lemon juice to skim milk and let it sit at least 5-10 minutes.
4. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour and next 6 ingredients (through allspice) in a bowl.
5. Place sugar, egg substitute, oil, skim milk, and eggs in a large mixing bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until well blended. Add water and pumpkin, beating at a low speed until blended. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture, in batches, beating at a low speed after each addition just until combined. Spoon batter into 2 9”x 5” loaf pans coated with cooking spray.
6. Sprinkle pecans evenly over batter. Bake for 1 hour or until wooden toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pans on a wire rack; remove bread from pans. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Yields 2 loaves; 24 slices

Learn More

To find out about the nutritional information for this recipe and receive more recipes for your healthy holiday, please fill out our Contact Us form.

This recipe originally appeared in Cooking Light magazine in November 2007. Changes were made by Sharon Smalling, MPH, RD, LD to decrease calories, fat, and sodium while increasing dietary fiber.