High altitude makes cookies spread in the pan, cakes fall, and few baked goods turn out as they do at sea level. This twice-monthly column presents recipes and tips that make baking in the mountains successful. 

I’ve known and loved this quick bread for years. I bring out the recipe annually in the fall when pumpkin is at the forefront. Moist, dense and tender, it’s flavored by sweet chocolate chips and tart crystallized ginger that harmonize beautifully with the spicy pumpkin batter and orange glaze. We serve it or give loaves to friends at Halloween and Thanksgiving. It’s good to nibble any time of day and I’ve even warmed thick slices and topped with them with hard sauce for a casual dessert.

The bread is at its best when the flavors have had a few hours or even overnight to develop, so make it ahead of time if you can. Be sure your crystallized ginger is fresh and soft. To easily mince the sticky stuff, use a knife or kitchen scissors greased with a baking spray that contains flour. For a stronger ginger taste, use the large amount suggested in the recipe. Not a fan of pumpkin? Make it with the same amount of sweet potato puree instead. 

Pumpkin, ginger and chocolate chip quick bread

Adjusted for altitudes of 7,000 feet and above. Make in an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch or in three 3×5-inch metal loaf pan(s)

Bread

• 1 1/2 cups plus 1 tablespoon bleached flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• Pinch baking soda
• Slightly less than 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon allspice
• 3-4 tablespoons minced crystallized ginger
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed
• 1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk, room temperature
• 1 tablespoon molasses
• 7 1/2 ounces pumpkin puree (half a 15 ounce can)
• 1/3 cup mini chocolate chips

Glaze

• 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 2-4 tablespoons cream or whole milk
• Several drops orange oil or 2 teaspoons orange zest, to taste

Get ready: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees with a rack in the center position. Line the baking pan(s) with aluminum foil, extending it several inches on two opposing sides to use as handles when removing the bread. Generously grease the pan, foil and all, with a vegetable oil-flour spray. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, all the spices and the minced ginger in a bowl and whisk to blend well. Set aside.

Make the bread dough: In a large bowl, beat the butter, canola oil, and brown sugar until smooth and thoroughly combined. Add the flour mixture and beat at low speed until mealy. Add the egg and beat until blended. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl, lifting any dry ingredients into the mixture. Add the egg yolk and beat again until uniformly moistened. Beat in the molasses and pumpkin and, finally, stir in the chocolate chips by hand until evenly distributed in the batter.

Bake: Spoon the batter into the pan(s), until they are 2/3 full. Level and smooth the top. Bake until a tester inserted in the middle comes out clean, the top is set and slightly springy when touched, and the bread starts to pull away from the sides of the pan. This usually takes about 30 minutes for small loaves and from 45-55 minutes for large loaves, though use visual cues rather than oven time to determine doneness.

Cool: Move the pan(s) to a cooling rack, cool 20 minutes, and then use the foil handles to remove the bread from the pan(s). Let it cool completely on the rack before glazing.

Glaze: Combine confectioners’ sugar and 2 tablespoons cream/milk in a small bowl and whisk to blend. Add more cream/milk as need to get a consistency that makes a ribbon when drizzled from a spoon. Add orange oil or zest to taste. Drizzle decoratively over the top(s) of bread(s). 

Store: When the glaze is set, store the bread, wrapped airtight, for 3 days in the refrigerator. 

Vera Dawson’s column “High Country Baking” publishes biweekly in the Summit Daily News. Dawson is a high-elevation baking instructor and author of three high-altitude cookbooks. Her recipes have been tested in her kitchen in Frisco, where she’s lived since 1991, and altered until they work at elevation. Contact her at veradawson1@gmail.com.