This pumpkin cranberry bread has a great texture: moist on the inside with a great crust. It's lightly spiced and slices well, without being too delicate. This recipe works with canola oil or melted butter.
Preheat the oven to 350ºF (175 °C). Butter and flour a 1-pound loaf pan, either a 9x5-inch (23x12.5x7.5 cm) loaf pan (like this Nordic Ware pan on Amazon) or for a taller loaf, use an 8.5x4.5-inch (21.5x11.5x7 cm) loaf pan (like this Oxo pan on Amazon). Line the bottom with a rectangle of parchment. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Set aside.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the pumpkin purée, oil, granulated sugar, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla.
Pour the wet mixture over the dry ingredients. Stir the ingredients just to combine them. Don't over mix. Fold in the flour-coated dried cranberries.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth it out. Bang the pan on the counter to help remove any air pockets.
Bake the pumpkin cake until a cake tester inserted into the centre comes out clean. This takes about 1 hour 15 minutes. Keep checking it every so often after an hour of baking.
Place the pan of baked pumpkin bread on a cooling rack and let it cool for 15 minutes before unmolding it on the rack to cool completely.
Notes
Most canned pumpkin purées are pretty dry, but some are watery. To be sure you aren't adding excess liquid to this pumpkin cake recipe, strain the pumpkin before measuring it. To do so:
Set a strainer over a deep bowl and line it with a couple layers of cheesecloth.
Place the pumpkin in the lined strainer and let drain for at least 30 minutes.
Occasionally, give the pumpkin a stir, a press, or a squeeze to help remove any excess liquid.
Once the pumpkin is thicker and less watery, you are ready to measure out the cup for this recipe.
If you are using defrosted pumpkin purée, you may notice the water will separate upon defrosting. Again, this is a good reason to strain it before using.
The baking times suggested are for a cake baked in a light coloured 9x5 inch loaf pan like this one on Amazon made by Nordic Ware. I have also tested the recipe in the OXO loaf pan from Amazon with similar results, yielding a taller loaf cake.