Pumpkin bread: what went wrong?

As you know, Ben and I have been inspired to spend more time in the kitchen than we did before we were hitched. We've been going through recipe books we received when we got married, ones we've acquired over the years and magazine cut-outs.

Today, Ben is experimenting with barbecue pork in the crock pot. He did this without any direction of a recipe. Fingers crossed it will be a success!

I relied on a recipe this afternoon for my first try at pumpkin bread. It was from the local Lutheran church cook book. It's super bland. The pumpkin flavor is subtle, and, even though I added extra cinnamon, the bread doesn't pack a lot of spice. I'm so disappointed, especially since I made two loaves and there's no way I'm going to punish friends and family by sharing some with them. I followed the directions pretty closely, so I can't help but think the ingredients are the culprit. I'd love for readers to weigh in.

Here's the recipe I used:
--2 cups sugar
--3 cups flour
--1 1/4 cup oil
--4 eggs
--1 cup pumpkin
--1/2 cup chopped nuts (I used walnuts)
--3 tsp cinnamon
--1 tsp baking soda

Here's a recipe I'd like to try next time. The source is Simply Recipes.

1 1/2 cups (210g) flour
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 cup (200 g) sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup (1/4 L) pumpkin purée*
1/2 cup (1 dL) olive oil
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/2 cup (1 dL) chopped walnuts

* To make pumpkin purée, cut a pumpkin in half, scoop out the seeds and stringy stuff, lie face down on a foil or Silpat lined baking sheet. Bake at 350°F until soft, about 45 min to an hour. Cool, scoop out the flesh. Freeze whatever you don't use for future use. Or, if you are working with pumpkin pieces, roast or boil them until tender, then remove and discard the skin.

1 Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Sift together the flour, salt, sugar, and baking soda.

2 Mix the pumpkin, oil, eggs, 1/4 cup of water, and spices together, then combine with the dry ingredients, but do not mix too thoroughly. Stir in the nuts.

3 Pour into a well-buttered 9x5x3 inch loaf pan. Bake 50-60 minutes until a thin skewer poked in the very center of the loaf comes out clean. Turn out of the pan and let cool on a rack.

Makes one loaf. Can easily double the recipe.