Pumpkin Spice & Cream Cheese Bread

I don't know what it is about fall, but once it rolls around I find myself  buying/baking anything and EVERYTHING pumpkin related. From Starbucks' pumpkin spice latte to chocolate chip pumpkin cookies I lose my damn mind daily with today being no exception.  After celebrating the beginning of fall by painting my nails dark gray I found myself perusing Pinterest looking for pumpkin-spiration and low and behold there it was, staring me straight in the face: pumpkin spice and and cream cheese bread. The recipe is easy enough and most all of the ingredients can be found in the average person's pantry, making this a very accessible recipe. I plan on giving these loaves as gifts to friends so I doubled up the batter and they turned out just fine! I would also recommend only filling the pans about 1/2 full of batter before adding the cheese batter on top, still leaving about 1/2 an inch from the top of the pan.

Pumpkin Spice & Cream Cheese Bread

Yields 3 mini loaves (the mini loaf pans I use are 5 3/4 inches long X 3 inches wide X 2 inches deep)

For the Cheese Batter:
8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1 large egg, room temperature, lightly beaten
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For the Pumpkin Spice Batter:
3/4 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
2 large eggs
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/8 teaspoon cloves

Other:
Butter, to grease the pans

For the Cheese Batter:  Use a handheld electric mixer to beat together all ingredients until smooth and creamy.

For the Pumpkin Spice Batter:  Preheat oven to 350F; lightly grease 3 mini loaf pans with butter.
-In a medium bowl, whisk together the brown sugar and eggs until light and fluffy, then stir in the pumpkin, canola oil, and vanilla. 
- In a separate bowl, whisk or sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves. 
- Gradually stir the dry ingredients into the wet, being careful not to over-mix.  
-Divide the pumpkin batter between the 3 loaf pans, then pour the cheese batter on top.
-Bake until golden around the edges, about 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted inside comes out clean or with just a couple crumbs.  
-Cool 10 minutes in the pans, then remove from the pans and transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.

I plan on keeping my loaves in the pans and wrapping them up so that they make nice and festive little gifts for my friends.  Hope you enjoy this recipe!