Autumn has arrived without my permission. The weather is too cold for me, and I’m not ready to bundle up just yet. Although, this time of year does have it’s advantages. Imagine a kitchen scented with the warming spices of ginger and cinnamon swirled into pumpkin batter. Yes, that works for me.

Mini loaves of pumpkin bread were my goal. I found a recipe in a wonderful vegan cookbook by Nava Atlas. To adjust for high altitude, I lowered the amount of baking powder and added liquid. The liquid I chose was milk tea by Twrl. Because the canned beverage is unsweetened, I added a little more sugar and a sugared glaze. I also chose not to add dried fruit or nuts to allow the flavor of the tea to come through; you may add 1/3 cup of either of those to your bread, if desired.

Pumpkin Mini Tea Loaves with Tea Glaze inspired by Pumpkin or Squash Mini-Loaves

for mini loaves
1.5 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
1.75 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon powder
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
6 tablespoons Twrl black milk tea
for tea glaze
9 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 tablespoon Twrl black milk tea

For the mini loaves: Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly oil three mini loaf pans and set aside.

Add the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and ginger to a large bowl. Whisk to combine. Add the pumpkin puree, oil, and 6 tablespoons Twrl tea to a medium bowl. Whisk to combine. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet mixture. Stir until well combined.

Divide batter among loaf tins. Bake 25-28 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a loaf comes out clean. Cool loaves in their pans for 10 minutes on a wire rack, then tip out the loaves and place on a wire rack to fully cool.

For the glaze: add the powdered sugar and 1 tablespoon Twrl tea to a small bowl and stir to combine. Drizzle over the cooled loaves just prior to serving.

Until next time, happy baking!