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how to get a more lofty loaf (quickbread)?

17 years ago

I made a loaf of pumpkin bread last night and while it tasted good, was a little more squat than I'd like. My banana bread always does that too. Kind of flat, not tall and lofty. I think it would look better if it were taller.

The recipe I used only called for baking soda. Should I try baking powder instead next time, or perhaps increase the baking soda?

Any good tips on making a nice tall lofty loaf? Thanks!

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Comments (12)

Terri_PacNW
17 years ago
Hmm I usually get smaller loaves when I don't bake it enough.
I have found that when baked in mini loaves they always rise better.
grainlady_ks
17 years ago
Normally, quick bread recipes are designed to be baked in a 9x5-inch loaf pan, but I have some recipes that use a regular-size loaf pan (8-1/2x4-1/2-inches), so check the recipe and see if you are using the correct size pan. Fill pans no fuller than 3/4 full as a general rule-of-thumb.

Mixing techniques used in the recipe can also affect the loft.

Extra leavening can backfire. Too much leaven over-inflates batters, weakens the structure, and can cause it to collapes. Here's a general rule-of-thumb for leavening for a quick bread (also muffins):

One to two teaspoons baking powder OR 1/4 t. baking soda PLUS 1/2 c. of an acidic ingredient, leavens 1-cup of flour.

Pumpkin has a pH of 5.0, so it works as an acid ingredient.

Pumpkin bread tends to be dense and squat because there isn't a lot of air incorporated in the mixture. There is also often a lot of vegetable oil/liquid fat, which also makes it tender, but also "heavy". You might try reducing the amount of vegetable oil a little.

And as always, make sure you keep mixing to a bare minimum (a Danish Dough Whisk is the perfect utensil for mixing batters). Over-development of the gluten can cause the quick bread to be "squat", or using the wrong type of flour or too much flour, as a reason for a compact, heavy loaf. Make sure you work quickly and get the mixed batter into the prepared pan and into the pre-heated oven so you get maximum "umph" from the leavening.

-Grainlady
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vacuumfreak
Original Author
17 years ago
Thanks Terri and Grainlady. Grainlady, I was hoping you would respond... I knew you'd have the perfect answer. You really know your stuff... the pumpkin bread recipe I used had a 1/2 cup of oil (called for olive, but I used vegetable... who uses olive oil in sweets?)! (now watch, someone on here that I really respect will come on and say they use olive oil all the time!)I did mix just until combined. There was 1 and 1/2 cups flour and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda. Maybe I will increase that by a 1/2 tsp next time. I don't even know what size my loaf pan is, I thought they were all the same! I knew enough to have the oven preheated and pan prepared beforehand to get it into the oven as soon as possible...

Do you think there would be any kind of change to the end result if I used baking powder insead of baking soda?
readinglady
17 years ago
Yes, there would be a difference if you subbed baking powder for soda. Soda has 4x the leavening strength of baking powder, so you'd have to use more baking powder to equal the amount of soda called for. The problem with that is unless you're using Rumsford, your baking powder probably has aluminum in it and if you use too much you'll end up with a metallic after-taste in your loaf. Or, ironically, the loaf will collapse due to too much leavening. (More air bubbles lead to a less stable loaf).

If your loaf pan is smaller you'd need more baking soda than with a larger pan. What I mean is, assuming the same recipe and same amount of batter, in a smaller pan the batter is deeper and therefore needs more leavening to lift.

A soggy loaf can be the result of too much moisture. That may be a fault of the recipe (some recipes are flawed) or it could be the pumpkin you used had a higher proportion of water or there was a problem in measuring.

You can try greasing the bottom of the pan only. That will result in a taller loaf because it gives the batter a less slick surface to cling to on the sides.

Carol
vacuumfreak
Original Author
17 years ago
Four times the leavening stranght of baking powder? Wow... I didn't know that! I do use Rumford (the red canister), btw. I'm running low, and almost bought some no name at Aldi yesterday. Then I remembered about the aluminum and put it back on the shelf. I'll get more Rumford when I go a regular supermarket!

Never even considered not greasing the sides of the pan. Knowing my luck, it would stick like the dickens. Of cousre you can stick a slender knife down and run it along the walls. I need to look at the dimensions of my loaf pan when I get home tonight.

I'll post a link to the recipe I used. I left the nuts out and used vegetable oil instead of olive, but other than that follwed it to a T.

Thanks :o)

Here is a link that might be useful: The recipe I used
cloudy_christine
17 years ago
I bet you need to replace your baking powder. I don't know if Rumford is worse than the others in this respect, but I usually have to throw out half the can, even though the date is fine. Moisture gets in (somehow) and the stuff doesn't work as well anymore.
cloudy_christine
17 years ago
Sorry, I forgot your recipe only used baking soda.
You might just try another recipe. Some just don't work that well. That recipe has enough (more than enough) soda.
Breads leavened only with soda can't wait around, because the rising action starts as soon as the soda meets the acid. They have to go in the oven immediately. Did the bread have to wait while the oven pre-heated?
lindac
17 years ago
Bobby, Darlin'....do you want good pumpkin bread or "health food?
Good pumpkin bread will be made with butter....and won't be using white sugar....Brown sugar all the way!!
The recipe in the link uses brown sugar and baking POWDER....feel free to muck about with the spice mix to suite your taste....but I believe the secret is brown sugar.......and butter.....always butter!!
Linda C
vacuumfreak
Original Author
17 years ago
Why Linda, what link are you talking about?

I'll try that (brown sugar and butter) next time (I still have a half can of pumpkin left over from the bread... and a whole can that is destined for the ONE pie I'm going to make this season... went overboard last year).

This was the first pumpkin bread I've made, and I thought it was good. Guess I'll have to do it grandma Linda's way and compare the two!

If this is health food, I'm going to make an oven full and eat it for every meal... wonder if I'll get down to 150 pounds (from 200) by Christmas!? What do you think?
readinglady
17 years ago
Elise is a good site and I don't see any particular problem with the recipe. The oil along with the pumpkin would result in a nice moist loaf.

But, in an earlier post you said you used 1/2 tsp. baking soda and I see the recipe calls for 1 tsp. Did you mix up the salt and soda amounts, because if you did use only half the soda called for that would definitely explain the problem.

(Leaving out the nuts and switching vegetable oil for olive oil wouldn't make a difference.)

Carol
dgkritch
17 years ago
If half a cup of vegetable oil and white sugar is health food, I'm goin' to Bobby's and help him eat the Pumpkin Bread.

(be there in about a week, I'm driving..... grin)

Deanna
(Butter and brown sugar is what I call Heaven!)
vacuumfreak
Original Author
17 years ago
Thanks :o)

Carol, I remember using the orange measuring spoon for the baking soda and that one is my 1 tsp, so I misspoke when I typed that.

I just looked, and my loaf pan is the 9 inch one. I bought some disposable 8 inch ones at the market to see if they give me the result I'm looking for.

Deanna, there's still half a loaf left. Toasted, with butter and cinnamon sugar on top, it's just a little piece of heaven. Too bad I dropped my heaven on the floor this morning after the labor intensive toasting process. I don't have a real toaster (no counter space for such a thing), so I use the bottom broiler drawer to toast when I need to. I have to bend over and open the drawer about 36 times in 3 minutes, because one second too long and perfect toast becomes charcoal. I was so mad I at losing my perfectly toasted pumpkin bread that I had a salami sandwich for breakfast instead!

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