Pumpkin Posting Party ~ Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bread

More pumpkin for the Pumpkin Posting Party!  Did you have a chance to enter my little giveaway yesterday?  And don't forget to get your pumpkin recipes ready to link up tomorrow.  You can also link up dessert recipes on Friday.

I love pumpkin bread so when I saw this recipe with a twist, I knew that I must try it!  I found it in my Heart & Soul cookbook.  I have to say though that I had passed the recipe over a few times without realizing how delicious it might be because of it's name!  The cookbook calls it Pumpkin-Cheese Loaves.  Sorry, but that sounds like a savory bread to have with dinner.  I only just realized it's pumpkin bread with a cream cheese filling - be still my heart!  :)  So I'm renaming it.  And fixing the errors in the recipe too (there were a few cookbook fails - oops)!

Cream Cheese Filling
1 (8-oz) pkg cream cheese, softened
6 tablespoons sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Mix cream cheese until smooth.  Add remaining ingredients and beat well.

Topping
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 tablespoon butter

Mix dry ingredients together and cut the butter in until mixture resembles cornmeal in texture.  Set aside.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bread

3 1/3 cups flour
4 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 2/3 cups sugar
2/3 cups oil
4 eggs
1 can mashed pumpkin (or 2 cups roasted pumpkin)
2/3 cup water
1 batch Cream Cheese Filling
1 batch Topping

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease loaf pans (1 large and 1 medium or 3 small/medium).

Make Cream Cheese Filling and set aside.  Mix Topping ingredients and set aside.  In medium bowl, combine flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.  Whisk together and set aside.

In large bowl, beat together sugar and oil until light.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each.  Beat in pumpkin.  Add dry ingredients alternately with water to mixture until all is well-blended. 

Spoon batter into prepared loaf pans, using up half of batter.  Spoon a layer of cream cheese filling over batter.  Sprinkle with half of topping mixture.  Carefully add rest of pumpkin batter.  Finish off with remaining topping.  Bake medium loaves for about an hour and large loaves for about 80 minutes, until tester comes out clean.  Cool on wire rack.

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I'd really like to try this recipe to make muffins.  I also think it would be yummy to add chopped nuts to the topping.

Do you have a favorite pumpkin bread recipe?  Don't forget to round up your pumpkin recipes to link up here tomorrow for Day 3 of the Pumpkin Posting Party!

This post is linked to Tasty Tuesday at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam!

Have a sweet day friends!