Sweet treats

Spiced pumpkin and carrot loaf recipe

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This spiced pumpkin and carrot loaf recipe is a real autumn treat. We find that it goes perfectly with a cup of tea for elevenses, but it’s just as good in the afternoon.

Enjoying pumpkin recipes ensures that your Hallowe’en pumpkin won’t go to waste after you’ve finished using them as decorations. Plus, pumpkins are also fantastic for supporting our wellbeing. Rich in beta-carotene and a good source of vitamin A, these vegetables are well worth incorporating into your diet as the days get chillier. Pumpkins can help to support our immune system, as well as help maintain healthy skin, teeth, and bones. The seeds of pumpkins are also packed with nutrients that are good for our skin.

Ginger and cinnamon help to add a warming spice to this pumpkin and carrot loaf recipe. Cinnamon is also helpful for our wellbeing and is a fantastic source of antioxidants. These helpful molecules work to remove damaging free radicals from our bodies. Cinnamon is also thought to have prebiotic properties. This means it helps to feed the beneficial bacteria in our gut, supporting our gut health.

Discover more pumpkin recipes

Ingredients

    For the cake

    • 175g butter
    • 175g coconut palm sugar (or demerara sugar)
    • 250g self-raising flour
    • 1tsp ground cinnamon
    • 1tsp ground ginger
    • 3 medium organic and free-range eggs
    • 200g grated carrot
    • 1 pumpkin (approx 150g)

    For the ginger icing

    • 2 pieces stem ginger in their syrup
    • 1 jar stem ginger syrup
    • 200g icing sugar
    • 100g soft butter
    • Pumpkin seeds (optional)

    Method

    1. Cut the pumpkin into wedges and set the seeds aside. Dry roast the wedges in an oven set to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4 for 40 minutes.
    2. When the pumpkin is cool, peel the flesh away from the skin and discard any excess water. Place all the cake ingredients into a food processor and mix until well combined. Spoon the mixture into a greased and lined loaf tin and bake at 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4 for 45 minutes or until a skewer comes out completely clean.
    3. While the cake is in the oven, mix the icing sugar and butter together until well combined. Finely chop two pieces of stem ginger and add to the icing with 2 tbsp of the syrup from the stem ginger jar. Finally, add the juice of half a lemon and mix well.
    4. Remove the cake from the oven and leave to cool in its tin. When the cake is completely cool, spread a thick layer of icing over the top of the cake and sprinkle ground ginger over the icing to compliment the warm spicy flavour of the loaf.
    5. To use the seeds of the pumpkin as an autumnal cake decoration, simply run them under water in a sieve, put them into a bowl of cold water and remove the pulp with your hands. When the seeds are clean, boil them in water for 10 minutes and then drain. Cover the seeds in olive oil and a pinch of cinnamon and place in the oven for about 10 minutes, before giving them a shake on the tray and roasting them for a further 5 minutes. When you have iced the cake and the seeds are cool, scatter them over the top for a delicious cinnamon kick.