Chocolate Banana Pumpkin Swirl Bread

The weirdest cooking outcome for me in this pandemic is that I want to bake treats all the time.  I don't always make them when the urge starts though.  I start the recipe in this blog and then never follow through (drafts), I've done about 5 like that in the last couple of weeks.  I don't even eat sweets other than candy (black licorice especially) and dark chocolate fits once in a blue moon.  Anyway, I did make this one with a couple of edits.  I didn't have white whole wheat flour.  I had ripe bananas, so I threw them in.

• 1 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda 
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 4 medium bananas, mashed

• 1 1/2 cups pure pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup avocado oil 
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 140 grams dark (70%) chocolate, melted in microwave
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a 9-inch loaf pan with cooking spray.  I assembled this in my stand mixer with the whisk attachment.  Next time I'd use the paddle attachment instead.

Whisk flour, pumpkin pie spice (I made my own, above, using fresh grated nutmeg), baking powder, baking soda and salt in stand mixer bowl.

Whisk pumpkin, oil, brown sugar, eggs, bananas, buttermilk and vanilla in a large bowl until combined.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients; whisk just until combined.  Transfer half of the batter back to bowl; whisk in melted chocolate and cocoa powder into stand mixer batter.  DO NOT heat cocoa powder with the chocolate - I did and got a crumbly microwave cake 😏.

I had to throw it out and start over, therefore losing my semi-sweet chocolate chips the original recipe called for.  I just edited and upped the dark chocolate next round.  

Starting and ending with the pumpkin batter, alternate pouring the two batters into the prepared pan. 

Using a butter knife, gently swirl through the batter lengthwise three times.

Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean, about 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove from the pan and let cool for at least 20 minutes more before slicing.  Sooooo, I took it out and then thought I'd put it back in for 5 more minutes.  When I did that, it slid all the way to the back of the oven.  

Then I stupidly pulled the rack to try and bring it forward but instead it fell down the back and flipped over!  Above is what it looked like, flipped, lifted out with 2 large spatulas.

Disaster.  It was so pretty looking when it first  came out of the oven too, but of course I didn't take a picture.  🙁  It could not be saved as a loaf, but son did say it was yummy and tasty with all 3 flavors.  I gave him some with butter, below.  He said the pumpkin spice was great too.  I think I might break it up - further, haha and serve it with ice cream as a dessert as it was kinda cake like.

Shit happens!  This is the next one I plan to make.  Hopefully with more success!  This one was more work than banana bread, that's for sure, so it was a bummer to lose the architecture of what I worked to achieve.