Pumpkin Bread with Cream Cheese Swirl

We've now hit November, we've turned our clocks back, and our thoughts are towards Thanksgiving. But pumpkin recipes are still in their prime. I'm thankful this canned pumpkin shortage I keep reading about hasn't affected me in the least. But what to make now? There are so many options out there and so many I hope to try. Pumpkin scones, pumpkin doughnuts, pumpkin cheesecake swirl bars, pumpkin fudge, and many other pumpkin treats are all on my list.

Unfortunately, homework and other school related obligations interfere. Phooey. And so only the lucky few will be chosen. After cupcakes, biscotti, and coffeecake, I've now moved to bread.

When layering the cream cheese and pumpkin, I thought it better to have more pumpkin on the bottom of the cream cheese than on top, right? Wrong! My bottom of my bread was really tough and overcooked so I had to eat around it. If I had put the cream cheese lower and added more pumpkin batter to the top I think it would have kept it a tad moister and allowed for a shorter cooking time. I did have to leave the bread in for over 2o mins longer because the inside still wasn't getting cooked.



Overall taste: The cream cheese layer wasn't very noticeable. It came out in a thin swirl and only on the top. I assume it must have mixed in with the pumpkin which was very moist on top. It had a great pumpkin flavor and was extremely moist. However, I was really hoping for a pronounced cream cheese swirl which unfortunately didn't happen. Oh well, there are still plenty of other recipes to try!

Pumpkin Bread with Cream Cheese Swirl
from about.com



8 oz. cream cheese
1 large egg, lightly beaten
3/4 cup granulated sugar, divided
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup firmly-packed light brown sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup buttermilk
1 large egg
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cloves

Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a loaf pan.
2. In a small bowl, beat cream cheese, egg and 1/4 cup of the granulated sugar with an electric mixer until smooth. Set aside.
3. In another small bowl, whisk flour, baking soda and salt together.
4. In a large bowl, beat the remaining 1/2 cup of granulated sugar, the brown sugar, pumpkin puree, oil, buttermilk, egg and spices together until smooth.
5. Add the flour mixture, mixing until just combined. Do not overmix.
6. Pour half of the batter into the prepared pan. Top with the cream cheese mixture. Top with the remaining pumpkin batter. With a knife, cut through the batter to create a swirl effect.
7. Bake 60-70 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the bread comes out clean.