Bake pumpkin bread

Pumpkin bread is the easiest loaf you can bake. There is no yeast, no kneading and no mixer. You stir it in one bowl, pour it into a pan and the oven does the rest. Your place will smell like fall for about an hour.

What you need

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (or 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon plus 1/4 teaspoon each of nutmeg and ginger)
• 1 cup pumpkin purée (about two thirds of a standard 15 oz can)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup neutral oil
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup water or milk

A 9 by 5 inch loaf pan is the usual size. Chocolate chips, chopped pecans or walnuts are all good in it, about 1/2 cup.

Make it

1. Heat the oven to 350°F. Grease the loaf pan, or line it with parchment so the loaf lifts out.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt and spice.
3. In a second bowl or a big jug, whisk the pumpkin, sugar, oil, eggs and water until smooth. If you want to stick to one bowl, mix the wet ingredients first and stir the dry ones in on top.
4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir just until no dry flour is left. A few small lumps are fine. Fold in the chocolate chips or nuts if you are using them.
5. Scrape the batter into the pan and smooth the top.
6. Bake for 55 to 65 minutes. It is done when a skewer in the centre comes out clean or with a few dry crumbs. If the top browns too quickly, lay a piece of foil loosely over it.
7. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then lift it out onto a rack. Let it cool for at least another 20 minutes before you slice it, so the crumb sets.

Use the right pumpkin

Check the can. You want plain pumpkin purée. Pumpkin pie filling has sugar and spices added and will throw off the recipe. If you are starting from a fresh pumpkin, roast it, scoop out the flesh and blend it until smooth, and blot off any extra water with a paper towel. Some canned pumpkin is thicker than other brands, so the batter can vary a little from loaf to loaf, and that is normal.

Ways to change it

Swap half the sugar for brown sugar for a deeper, molasses-like flavour. Add a handful of chocolate chips, chopped pecans or walnuts, or a spoonful of cinnamon sugar sprinkled over the top before it goes in the oven for a crackly crust. If you want muffins instead, spoon the batter into a lined muffin tin and bake at 350°F for about 20 to 25 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean.

If something goes wrong

• It sank in the middle. It was underbaked, or the door was opened early. Give it another 10 minutes next time and test it with a skewer.
• It is dense and tough. The batter was over-mixed. Stir until just combined and stop.
• The outside is dark but the middle is wet. The oven runs hot. Lower it by 25°F and cover the top with foil.
• It stuck to the pan. Grease the pan well, or line it with parchment with an overhang to lift the loaf out.
• It tastes flat. It probably needs salt, or a little more spice. Check that your spices are not years old.

Keeping it

Wrap the cooled loaf tightly. It keeps at room temperature for two or three days and in the fridge for up to about a week. Sliced and wrapped, it freezes well for a couple of months, so you can toast a slice straight from the freezer. A pat of butter on a warm slice is hard to beat.

Make it a fall evening

Bake it on a Sunday afternoon with the oven on and rain outside, then take half to a friend. If you have leftover pumpkin purée from the can, it makes a good pumpkin spice latte the next morning.