Haven't done too much baking lately, but Happy Birthday Bruce! Thanks for asking me to keep it simple!

When I asked my sweet husband what kind of cake he wanted for his birthday, he insisted on simple white cupcakes with white icing. 

What a relief!  Since moving to the mountain, my passion for baking has taken a back seat to riding, reading and writing.  That and the fact that the high altitude has affected a few of my favorites--especially my oatmeal chocolate chip cookies that were once my most requested baked good.  And of course I have to admit that the bake shops up here that I've written about are also responsible for my lack of baking.  Thank you Sweets 'n Stuff and Village Green! 

When it comes to cupcakes, I always turn to Dede Wilson's Cupcakes.  If you're looking for a holiday gift, check this out.  There are great recipes and very creative decorating ideas.  I kept the decorating simple.  Thanks to a gift from my good friend Margaret, I had cupcake liners and birthday themed toppers to add a bit of color and charm to Bruce's cupcakes.  He was most appreciative.

Cranberry Pumpkin Bread

Now I did try something new recently.  I saw a delicious looking cranberry pumpkin bread recipe on the web site of one of my former instructors, Clemence Gossett of Gourmandise School of Sweets and Savories now in Santa Monica. http://www.thegourmandiseschool.com/  

One of my early blog entries in March 2010 was about my classes with Clemence.

http://bakingdazeinla.blogspot.com/2010/03/clemence-gossett-gourmandise-desserts.html



Cranberry Pumpkin Bread

Now the bread smelled and looked wonderful, but once again, high altitude intervened.  The outside was turning brown and crispy while the inside was still mush---kinda like a pumpkin, I guess.  The outer edge pieces were delicious, but I  had to toss out the rest.

Then I reread the recipe, and saw that #6 specifically says, "Pour into cupcake liners or small loaf pans."  Not large ones! The high altitude intervened all right--with my brain not the bread!  

Update!  I have successfully used this same recipe only in small loaf pans--not one large one--and they came out fine. 

Cranberry Pumpkin Bread

You can make this into muffins as well- this recipe makes 18-24 muffins and bake for about 20-25 minutes to do so.

1- 2/3 cups flour                                  
1 tsps baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt                         

1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp orange zest                                  
1 tsp ground ginger (we actually prefer 1/4 tsp fresh grated ginger)

1 cup pumpkin puree                       
1 cup vegetable oil (we like grapeseed)

1- 1/2 cups sugar                               
3 eggs

1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries

1) Measure out all of your ingredients.                                             

2) Whisk together the flour, salt, zest, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and ginger.                                                                                 

3) In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin, oil and sugar.
4) Add the eggs one at a time and beat until smooth.
5) Carefully fold in the dry ingredients and mix until just barely combined. 

6) Pour into cupcake liners or small loaf pans and cover with cranberries, sugar and zest. Bake at 325 for about 25 minutes.