The Best Thing Since Sliced Bread

One thing I have not tried when baking is using yeast. I know, I know, for as long as I've been baking, you'd think I would have used it at least once. I guess it's one of those irrational baking fears but I'm worried that I'll somehow anger all those little micro-organisms in there, which will result in a baking disaster. This is probably why I'm a big fan of quick breads, especially dessert ones. The recipes do not involve yeast and therefore, go together much quicker even though the loaves still have to bake for about an hour.

When making this pumpkin chocolate chip bread, I used a container of canned pumpkin that I had froze a couple weeks earlier while stocking up due to the never-ending canned pumpkin shortage. Yes, believe it or not, the canned pumpkin shortage is still occurring. So just a heads up that if you plan to make pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving, start looking now. When I actually found canned pumpkin I reacted as if I was planning for the apocalypse or some sort of fall-out shelter. I walked out of the store with four giant cans of it, which is now being loving stored in my cabinets for any pumpkin recipe I happen to crave. But anyway, my frozen canned pumpkin was actually more finicky than I had planned for. It was the first time I had tried to freeze pumpkin and what comes out of your freezer does not look like the stuff in the can. It's much more flaky and separated and also involves draining off excess liquid that was attained in the freezer. But don't freak out too much (like I did), while it looks different, it tastes and bakes the same (phew!).

Now since this is a bread recipe and not a dessert recipe specifically, it is not as sickeningly sweet as maybe I would like. Both my husband and I thought a piece of this bread would be perfectly topped with a dollop of Cool Whip for dessert. But don't let me stop you if you want to add the Cool Whip anyway even if you eat it for breakfast. You know that's what I would do. :-)