Cinnamon-Swirl Pumpkin Yeast Bread

I'm just gonna say it: I deserve the "Worst Food Blogger" award for the lack of posting that's been going on around here lately.

Have you noticed at all? I hope not. I've tried to hide the fact that I've barely stepped a toe in the kitchen to try out new things for the past few weeks by attempting to distract you with my overwhelming charm visits to fun places, collaborations with pretty blogs, random posts about the contents of my refrigerator, and occasional sharing of easy {and sinful} desserts.

I hope it's worked.

It's no substitution for regularly posted recipes, I know. After all, aren't food bloggers supposed to -- you know -- share food? I'm pretty sure that's how it's supposed to work. But honestly, I may have forgotten about that tiny detail for just a sec.

Can I just tell you how easy it is to get behind on posting when you're all.over.the.flippin'.place? I admire the bloggers out there who take fabulous trips to this conference and that retreat and this speaking engagement... and still manage to crank out posts, like, every day. I haven't mastered that part of this whole gig just yet.

I'm just over here all, "Hey look! I managed to go to work, wash a load of laundry AND share one recipe this week!" {I'm totally making that into one of those Someecard things you see all over Pinterest. Don't steal it.}

What's even more frustrating is that I actually do have plans to share stuff with you, but those things get shoved to the back of the queue because of other somewhat-more-important things that take place in the 5 minutes of spare time I have these days like showering and paying bills and vacuuming the 80 tons of dog hair that seems to cover every square inch of our home in the blink of an eye if I don't attend to it with semi-often frequency.

So, yeah. I don't blame you for not believing me anymore when I say that I do plan on showing you some of the cool things I did in San Francisco... IN JUNE. It will happen. Just don't hold your breath.

Anyway, I should probably stop apologizing and actually give you a recipe to try out. That might be a good start.

Since I'm making up for lost time, it's a doozy. Cinnamon-Swirl Pumpkin Yeast Bread. Not to be confused with Pumpkin Quick Bread, its sweeter, less time-consuming counterpart.

This is the type of bread that you cut into thick slices, toast, and slather with butter for breakfast. It's got a nice crusty exterior and a tender, bready interior with a hypnotizing swirl of brown sugar and cinnamon in the middle. It has a hint of sweetness without the feeling that you're eating cake for breakfast. {Which, by the way, I find nothing wrong with from time to time.}

And because it's fall and you can't get away with posting anything that doesn't contain at least a tiny bit of pumpkin {not even when it's still a billion degrees out where you live}... it's got some of that, too.

A word of warning: since this is "real" bread -- the type that requires kneading and stuff -- it takes some time to make. You've got to let it rise. You'll need a rolling pin. There will probably be flour everywhere. But guess what? I think it's totally worth it.

Guess what else? This recipe makes two very decently-sized loaves. One for you and one for a friend. Or two for you and a need to bust out the stretch pants. Or none for you and many happy recipients. I'll let you decide which option you'll take.

So, are we friends again? Because I need to go look for my stretch pants if we're not. I only share bread recipes with friends.

Ok, fine. Here you go.

I hope to be back on a regular posting schedule soon. Until then, nibble on some toast. 😉

Cinnamon-Swirl Pumpkin Yeast Bread
Hardly adapted from Taste of Home

4-½ to 5 cups all-purpose flour
3 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups quick-cooking oats
⅔ cup packed brown sugar
2 ½ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon sugar
2 packages active dry yeast
1 ½ cups warm water
1 cup pumpkin puree {canned or homemade}
⅓ cup unsweetened applesauce
⅓ cup canola oil
2 eggs, lightly beaten

For Swirl:
3 tablespoons butter, melted {divided}
½ cup packed brown sugar {divided}
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice, if you prefer {divided}

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine 2 cups all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour, oats, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, salt, sugar, and yeast. Mix until thoroughly combined.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together warm water, pumpkin puree, applesauce, oil, and eggs. Pour into dry mixture and beat until combined. Slowly add in the remaining all-purpose flour. It will form a thick, stiff dough.

3. Change to bread hook attachment and knead for 4-5 minutes until the dough is elastic. {You can do all the mixing and kneading by hand, too, of course. But it's a heck of a lot easier with a stand mixer!}

4. Place the dough in a large bowl greased with non-stick spray. Cover with plastic wrap. Place in a dark, warm place and allow to rise for about an hour or until just about doubled in size.

5. Once risen, punch down the dough and divide in half. Roll out into a large rectangle {about 18 x 9 inches}. Brush the rectangle with melted butter, then sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice. Starting with the long size, roll up the dough {jelly roll style} and pinch the seams. Repeat this process with the remaining ball of dough.

6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 2  9x5 inch loaf pans. Place rolled up dough into prepared pans. Cover and allow to rise, again, for 30-45 minutes or until the dough doubles and fills most of the pan.

7. Bake loaves for 55 minutes to 1 hour until the outside has formed a light brown crust. {If it starts to brown too much, just cover with foil until the bread is finished baking.}

8. Cool in pans for about 10-15 minutes, then remove and cool for another hour or so on a wire rack before cutting for best slicing results. If you don't mind crumbly slices, eat warm from the oven! 🙂