A few times a month my husband goes paintballing, and though we have a number of things in common - a love of SciFi, an interest in cooking, among other things - paintballing is not one of them. He tried to get me into it, offering to buy me my very own Tippmann A5 paintball marker and a camouflage outfit. He sat next to me at the computer and showed me all the different camo patterns, exclaiming: “It’ll be such a good experience for you baby. You’ll be a warrior baking babe!” After a few weeks of this I caved, renting camouflage and a marker for the day then braving the wilds of upstate New York along with a handful of the teens in my youth group. I played for about five hours and I admit, there’s a certain allure to the adrenaline rush that comes with running like a bat out of hell, terrified that the next popping sound you hear will shortly be followed by the impact of a high velocity paintball smacking your bum. But ultimately, it wasn’t for me. I’d rather stay home and bake.

That’s what I did today, starting a batch of dough while my husband was assembling his various paintball markers (yes, he has more than one) and donning his battle gear. As he got in the car and drove off I waved goodbye, then made myself a honey-vanilla latte, put Oreo on the treadmill and watched the Sex and the City movie, on loan from Netflix. Much more appealing start to the day if you ask me. Originally I was going to watch Baby Mama, but because my husband wants to watch it too I magnanimously agreed to wait for him. He’s already seen SATC, so that was fair game… and now you see what I mean about our being kindred spirits, except when it comes to paintball.

The result of this morning’s baking was the loaf of yeasted chocolate-chip pumpkin bread you see here. I’ve been working on the recipe for a couple weeks now, experimenting with bread flour vs. all-purpose, vegetable oil vs. butter, this spice vs. that, conducting all manner of trials in my kitchen until I arrived at the recipe below. I know pumpkins are the thing in October and though I love the traditional pumpkin ‘quick’ bread, I wanted to create a lighter alternative to those dense, heavily spiced loaves. This yeasted version is sweetened with light brown sugar and spiced with an aromatic combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. When I first created the recipe I was adding cranberries and pecans to the bread, but eventually I decided semi-sweet chocolate chips were the way to go. It was a spur of the moment modification, but let me tell you, chocolate and pumpkin make a sweet pair. You should feel free to modify the amount of chocolate in the recipe according to your taste - the more you add (up to 3/4 cup) the sweeter each bite of bread will be! Use the best quality chocolate you can find.

I hope you enjoy this recipe and don’t forget about the monthly book giveaway! September’s winners have been posted on the giveaway page and this month’s giveaway features two of my favorite books: Some Like It Hot: 50 Drinks to Warm Your Spirits by Holly Burrows, and Great Grilled Cheese: 50 Innovative Recipes for Stove Top, Grill, and Sandwich Maker by Laura Werlin.

Yeasted Chocolate-Chip Pumpkin Bread (My Recipe)

Ingredients: Makes 1 large loaf

• 4 to 4 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 heaping tablespoon active dry yeast
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup low-fat milk, warm
• 1/4 cup melted butter (warm, not hot)
• 1 large egg, plus one more for the glaze
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, according to taste
• 2 teaspoons olive oil

In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl, combine the warm milk, the yeast and 1 tablespoon of the flour. Allow to rest for 5 minutes.

Add the pumpkin puree, spices, light brown sugar, salt, egg, and melted butter. Mix until combined. Add the flour 1/2 cup at a time, mixing well between additions. After you have added 2 cups of flour, add the chocolate chips, then continue with the rest of the flour. When the dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl switch to your dough hook, or a wooden spoon if making bread by hand.

If using a stand mixer, knead the dough for 4 minutes, adding extra flour 1 tablespoon at a time, if needed - just enough to keep the dough from sticking to the sides of the bowl. If making the bread by hand, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead 4-5 minutes, sprinkling with flour as needed to prevent sticking. *Note: Although I generally use my stand mixer to knead my dough, I always turn it out onto a floured surface and finish the kneading by hand, for the last minute or so. It’s the best way to know when the dough has been kneaded enough. The dough is done when it’s smooth and bounces back when you press your thumb into it.

Place the dough in a deep container greased with 1 tsp of olive oil. Turn the dough once to coat the top and cover with plastic wrap. Allow dough to rise at room temperature until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Spray a spring-form cake pan with baking spray (such as Pam) and lightly flour. Sprinkle the flour on the bottom and along the sides, then invert the pan and tap out any excess flour.

Divide the dough into 3 equal portions, and roll each portion out into a smooth, thick strip about 15 inches long, with the ends slightly thinner than the middle. Be gentle with the dough or you’ll tear it, which wouldn’t affect the final flavor but would influence the way the finished loaf looks.

Lay the ropes side-by-side, not quite touching. Beginning in the middle and working towards you, braid the lower half of the three ropes. To braid, alternately move the outside ropes over the one in the center - left over, right over, left over - until you come to the end. Now go to the other side of your working space and braid the other half, this time moving the outside ropes under the center one. Braid tightly - you don’t want any gaps. When you finish braiding each side crimp the tapered ends together, then tuck them under. Twist the braid around itself, pinwheel fashion, gently pressing the outside end against the larger body of dough. Transfer to your prepared pan.

Whisk together 1 egg and 1 teaspoon of olive oil, this is going to be the glaze for your bread. Gently brush the dough with it. Loosely cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

About 30 minutes before baking, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

Brush the dough with the egg mixture again. The dough will have stretched during rising, so be sure to get any spots that don’t have glaze on them.

Place the pan on a rack in the center of the oven and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until browned and the loaf sounds hollow when you tap it with your fingers. Allow to cool for about 10 minutes, then transfer the bread to a cooling rack. Allow to cool at least 20 more minutes before slicing.

Since I published my recipe for Autumn Apple bread on Wednesday, I’ve received several emails asking one of two questions: First, is it ok for non-Jewish people to wish Jews a shana tovah? And second, do I have a favorite recipe for honey cake?

The answer to both questions is the same: Of course! I often wish my non-Jewish friends a Merry Christmas and would be delighted if someone wished me a happy new year in any form. Happy Rosh HaShanah, Happy New Year, Shana Tovah, Shana Tova Umetukeh - it’s all good, and very much appreciated. Rosh HaShanah begins tonight (Monday) at sundown and ends on sundown Wednesday, so if you have the opportunity to wish someone a happy new year during that time by all means do so.

As for the honey cake recipe, below is my favorite. It’s a spiced honey cake topped with caramelized apples and served with vanilla ice cream. Cooked in brown sugar, the apples are a succulent way to combine the apple and honey themes of Rosh Hashanah on one plate. I love how the warm notes of cinnamon, allspice, cloves and nutmeg capture the flavors of Fall, and though the ice cream is optional, I’ve never gone without it. How could I resist a spoonful of cool ice cream, warm apples and spiced cake, the ice cream barely beginning to melt as the spoon makes it way to my mouth? Exactly. I plan to serve this dessert tonight with my homemade pumpkin spice lattes - though obviously I had to sample a slice in order to take the photo shown here. It’s a hard life, being a food blogger.

I hope you enjoy this recipe and don’t forget about the monthly book giveaway! September’s winner will be posted on the giveaway page on October 1st - I plan to post details about October’s giveaway by then too.

Spiced Honey Cake with Caramelized Apples (My Recipe)

Ingredients: Makes 1 8-inch square cake

For the cake:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• A few pinches of freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2/3 cup honey
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• 1/2 cup warm (not hot) English Breakfast tea
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• Optional accompaniments: whipped cream and/or vanilla ice cream

For the apples:

• 6 Gala apples, peeled, cored and sliced into 1/2 inch wedges
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 4 1/2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar

Put the oven rack in middle position and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat an 8-inch square cake pan with non-stick spray (I used Pam).

In a large bowl, gently whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer or using a hand-held mixer, cream the softened butter and brown sugar together until fluffy. Add the egg and mix until combined. Add the honey, yogurt, tea and vanilla. Mix until combined.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix with a hand held mixer on the lowest setting, just until everything is combined. Pour batter into prepared cake pan and bake until deep golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool on a rack for 10 minutes before attempting to remove the cake.

Making the caramelized apples:

While the cake is baking, make the caramelized apples. Peel and core each apple, then cut into 1/2-inch thick wedges.

Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add apples; sprinkle with 1 tablespoon light brown sugar. Sauté apples until almost tender and beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining 3 1/2 tablespoons sugar. Increase heat to high and gently, but briskly, stir the apples until the sugar melts and apples are golden brown, about 4 minutes. Pour apple mixture onto large plate.

Once the cake has cooled run a thin knife around the edge of the pan, then invert the cake onto a plate and cut into squares. Serve warm or at room temperature, topped with the caramelized apples, along with whipped cream and/or vanilla ice cream, if desired.

Notes:
- You can make the caramelized apples 1 day in advance. Allow them to cool completely (uncovered), then transfer to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator. Reheat over low heat before serving, or in a microwave for 20-30 seconds.
- You can make the cake 1 day in advance. Cool it completely (uncovered), then store at room temperature covered loosely with plastic wrap.