Fall Honeyed Pumpkin Bread

Fall is upon us, which means it is pumpkin season! This recipe combines pumpkin, honey and a bit of crunch from the nuts and dried fruit, that will have everyone wanting more. Make a double recipe, one bread for eating and a second for the freezer for later. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 cup of honey
• ¾ cup of milk
• 5 tablespoons of butter
• 2 egg yolks
• ½ cup of sugar
• 1 cup of pumpkin puree
• 2 ¾ cups of flour
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1 ¼ teaspoons of baking soda
• 1 teaspoon of powdered cinnamon
• ¾ cup of chopped walnuts
• ¾ cup of chopped dates
• ½ cup dried apricots soaked in hot water for 5 minutes, then drain and chop

Preparation

1. Choose a small 1 to ½ pound pumpkin. Remove stem, cut in half, and remove seeds and stringy fibers. Place in microwave with opening facing up and cook for 5 minutes. With a fork pierce the meat of the pumpkin and if soft scoop and place the meat in your food processor, if still firm cook a bit longer until meat of the pumpkin is soft. Process until pumpkin is soft like mash potatoes, put to one side.
2. In a medium pot add your honey, milk and sugar and cook over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. Cool for 10 minutes and then add your butter in small pieces to the mixture and beat until dissolved. Cool another 10 minutes and beat in your egg yolks and Pumpkin puree. 
3. Stir all the dry ingredients together. Then add to the Pumpkin batter and mix well. Add the fruit and nuts to the mixture and fold them in well together. Turn on the oven to 350 degrees. Butter the inside of the bread pans and coat with flour. Add your mixture to the bread pans and bake for 1 ¼ hours or until the bread is done, push a toothpick into the bread and if it comes out clean, its ready.
4. Cool the bread in the pan for 15 minutes and then on a rack to cool. Serve warm with butter or cream cheese. Enjoy!