Pumpkin-Nutella Swirl Bread

When I saw this recipe at Real Mom Kitchen, I knew it was a must try.  I have never used Nutella before, but have always been looking for an excuse to buy some.  This bread is delicious, but quite spicy in my opinion.  Next time I make this, I think I will use a bit less spice.  Though I have to say, the spices blend nicely with the nutty, chocolaty flavor of the Nutella.  But, despite the spiciness, my husband and son both loved it as a nice afternoon treat.

When I made the bread, I decided to cut down the sugar from 1 ½ cups of sugar to 1 1/8, and feel that it could even stand to be cut by another 1/8 cup.  I can’t imagine how sweet the original recipe must be!  I also added some whole wheat flour and wheat germ in place of half of the all purpose flour, just to give it an extra nutritional boost.  I ended up using an additional ¼ cup of whole wheat flour because my homemade pumpkin puree was a bit watery and I didn’t want my bread to come out dense or uncooked in the center.

Pumpkin-Nutella Swirl Bread

1 cup unbleached all purpose flour

¾ cup whole wheat flour (I needed an extra ¼ cup)

1/8 cup wheat germ

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

½ tbsp cinnamon

1 ½ tsp nutmeg

1 1/8 cups sugar

½ cup canola oil

1/3 cup water

1 cup canned pumpkin

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

8 tbsp Nutella

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease two 8 x 4 inch loaf pans.  Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, wheat germ, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.  Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, water, pumpkin, eggs, and vanilla.  Whisk until smooth and combined.

Slowly stir in the flour mixture.  Mix until ingredients are combined.

Pour batter into prepared load pans, making sure the batter is evenly divided.  Drop 4 heaping tablespoons of Nutella onto each loaf.  Stir Nutella into the pumpkin batter with a knife.  Bake for 45-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Remove loaf pans to a wire rack.  Allow to cool for 15 minutes, then carefully remove loaves from pans.  Cool completely before slicing.

Enjoy!

Amy