pumpkin cranberry pecan bread

a.k.a. the perfect way to use up your leftover Thanksgiving ingredients!

How was your Thanksgiving holiday?  I hope it was wonderful!  Matt & I had a great weekend visiting his brother in Las Vegas.  My parents & in-laws came out to spend it with us too... it was awesome!

I don't know about y'all, but I am still full.  Probably because I stuffed myself silly with leftovers.  And ate pie for breakfast.  And ate pie for dessert.  Yuuup.  Needless to say, my stomach and I are definitely ready to get back into our routine.  This pumpkin bread is just the thing.  It's light, relatively healthy, and the perfect way to start the day.

While I was making the bread with my leftover canned pumpkin, I decided to throw in the rest of my leftover Thanksgiving ingredients too.  As my grandma always says, "waste not want not".  Does that even make sense here?  Anyways, I made the bread in mini loaf pans because we all know how I feel about mini things.  :)

Clear out your pantry and make this bread.  It's super delicious and would make a great holiday gift for family, friends & neighbors!  And now that Thanksgiving has passed, it's time for all of the holiday baking to commence!  What's on your list?

Pumpkin Cranberry Pecan Bread
makes 8 mini loaves or 2 full-sized loaves
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Ingredients:
For the Pumpkin Bread:
3 cups flour
5 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups light brown sugar, packed
1 15oz. can of canned pumpkin
4 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup orange juice
1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries, whole or roughly chopped
1 cup chopped pecans

For the Streusel Topping (optional):
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cold & cubed
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Lightly grease loaf pans.

To make the bread:  In a medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients.  Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together sugars, pumpkin, eggs, oil, and orange juice.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until combined.  Fold in the cranberries and pecans.

Pour batter into prepared loaf pans about 3/4 full.  

To make the streusel:  In a bowl, combine all ingredients using a fork, pastry cutter or your hands until it resembles coarse crumbs.  Sprinkle topping onto bread batter.

Place loaf pans on a baking sheet (to catch any drippings).  Bake for 45-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

*NOTES:
- You can use dried cranberries if you don’t have fresh ones.
- I used Tropicana Trop50 orange juice to cut down on extra sugar and calories.
- Baking time may be longer for full-sized loaf pans.

Source: adapted from Allrecipes.com