Packed with lots of yummy pumpkin and just the right blend of fall spices, this simple Pumpkin Bread is delicious! It’s super moist, just like pumpkin bread should be, and perfectly sweetened just enough to enhance the natural pumpkin flavors. It’s sure to become your new favorite pumpkin quick bread recipe this holiday season!
The Best Pumpkin Bread Recipe
During the fall season, it’s always a toss up for me as to which I love more, pumpkin pie or pumpkin bread. I love them both so much and look forward to them both every holiday season. But this year, I think I really outdid myself and this Pumpkin Bread recipe is my favorite!
The simple recipe doesn’t call for a lot of ingredients or anything fancy. In fact, it’s fairly standard for a quick bread. Yet, what is special about it is the ratio of ingredients and how well it’s spiced. You see pumpkin bread is all about the balance of moist and dry ingredients. Sure, all recipes are like that, but when working with pumpkin it actually takes some refining and lots of testing. And that’s exactly what I’ve done here.
My pumpkin bread is perfect. It’s soft, moist, perfectly sweetened, and full of pumpkin flavor. You can eat a slice as is or spread it with butter if you like. I sometimes even like to pair it with a warm Pumpkin Spice Latte for a total celebration of pumpkin!
Why You’ll Love This Pumpkin Bread
- Quick and Easy! This easy foolproof quick bread recipe comes together in just minutes! And all you need is a few basic pantry ingredients and a can of pumpkin.
- Comforting Fall Classic! Super soft and moist perfectly spiced pumpkin bread symbolizes everything there is to love about fall and the holiday season.
- Perfect Gift! These pumpkin loaves make wonderful gifts that you can give to your friends and family. Who doesn’t love homemade baked goods!?!
Ingredients You’ll Need
Wet Ingredients
- Pumpkin Puree – You’ll need a can of pure pumpkin puree. Make sure it’s the puree and not the pumpkin pie filling.
- Eggs – They help to bind the bread and improve its structure.
- Vegetable Oil – Any type of neutral vegetable oil will work like canola oil, soybean oil, or safflower oil.
- Water – Used to thin out the batter.
- Sugar – Granulated white sugar is used to add a touch of sweetness.
Dry Ingredients
- Flour – Simple all-purpose flour is all you need for this recipe.
- Baking Powder – Used as a leavening agent it helps the bread rise.
- Baking Soda – It reacts with the acidic ingredients in the batter and helps the bread to rise just like the baking powder.
- Salt – A dash of salt balances the sweetness.
- Spices – I use a blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves, and ginger. But feel free to use any spices you like. You can even use pumpkin pie spice.
How To Make Pumpkin Bread
This simple recipe is really easy to whip together! I use a mixer, which I recommend to make it even easier. However, you can make this recipe by hand too. Just make sure not to overmix the batter and the bread will come out perfect.
Preheat The Oven And Prep The Pan
First, preheat your oven temperature to 350°F (177°C) to get it ready before you even begin making the batter. Next, grease 2 9×5-inch loaf pans and then dust them with flour. Make sure you knock off all the excess flour after you dust the pans.
Mix The Wet Ingredients
Now we can begin the batter! Add the pumpkin, eggs, vegetable oil, water, and sugar to the large bowl of your stand mixer and then mix them together on medium-high using the paddle attachment. The ingredients must be well combined until they are nice and smooth.
Mix The Dry Ingredients
In a separate medium bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices. Then whisk them together. It’s important not to just stir the dry ingredients into the batter. This step ensures that the leavening agents as well as the salt and spices are evenly distributed in the flour mixture.
Finish The Batter
Once the wet and dry ingredients are both mixed together well separately you can finish the batter. To do this, just add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture in the bowl of the stand mixer. Then mix on low speed until the flour mixture is just blended into the wet mixture. At this point, do your best not to overmix the batter.
Bake The Bread
To bake, evenly distribute the batter into each of the prepared baking pans. Now, transfer the pans to the preheated oven and bake the loaves for about 50 minutes or until a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Then set the baked pumpkin loaves on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes before removing them from the pans.
What Can I Add To The Bread?
For the most part, you can add anything you like to the batter. Some good options are nuts like pecans or walnuts, cranberries, and chocolate chips. But do keep in mind that wet ingredients such as frozen fruit can throw the batter off.
Can I Make Gluten-Free Pumpkin Bread?
Probably yes, but I’ve not tried. However, make sure to use a 1-to-1 gluten-free flour that has xanthan gum in it, which acts as a replacement for the gluten that is naturally in all-purpose flour and the recipe should work perfectly.
Can I Use Fresh Pumpkin?
Yes! But, you need to cook out as much liquid of the fresh pureed pumpkin as possible. It needs to be as close to canned packed pumpkin as you can get. If it’s too liquidy it will make the batter too wet.
Expert Tips
- Grease and dust the pans well. Be sure to grease the pans well and dust them with flour to keep the bread from sticking. You can also line the bottoms of the pans with parchment paper as an extra precaution if you like.
- Don’t overmix the batter. It’s crucial that you gently fold the flour mixture into the wet ingredients. Overmixing will almost always result in dense bread.
- Don’t open the door. Do not open the oven door until at least 45 minutes of baking time have passed. If you do you risk your bread not rising properly or even worse sinking in the middle.
Storage
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container for about 2 to 3 days at room temperature or for about a week in the fridge. To reheat, you can put it in the microwave for about 15 seconds or in the toaster oven for about 2 to 3 minutes.
You can also wrap the loaves well in plastic wrap and freeze them for about 3 months. Then just allow them to thaw out at room temperature for a few hours before eating or reheating.
Other Delicious Quick Breads To Try
- Quick Cinnamon Bread (No Yeast)
- Carrot Zucchini Bread
- Honey Beer Bread
- Starbucks Lemon Loaf (Copycat)
- Zucchini Bread
Craving More? Follow Along:
Pumpkin Bread
Equipment
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients
- 15 ounces pumpkin puree 1 can
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- ⅔ cup water
- 2 cups sugar
Dry Ingredients
- 3½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease and dust with flour 2 9×5-inch loaf pans.
- In the bowl of your mixer add all the wet ingredients. Mix until smooth.
- In another large bowl combine all the dry ingredients together.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until just blended.
- Pour the pumpkin batter equally into the prepared pans.
- Transfer the pans to the oven and bake for 50 minutes to one hour or until an inserted toothpick in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
Tips & Notes:
- Recipe yields 2 loaves.
- Grease and dust the pans well. Be sure to grease the pans well and dust them with flour to keep the bread from sticking. You can also line the bottoms of the pans with parchment paper as an extra precaution if you like.
- Don’t overmix the batter. It’s crucial that you gently fold the flour mixture into the wet ingredients. Overmixing will almost always result in dense bread.
- Don’t open the door. Do not open the oven door until at least 45 minutes of baking time have passed. If you do you risk your bread not rising properly or even worse sinking in the middle.
- Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container for about 2 to 3 days at room temperature or for about a week in the fridge. To reheat, you can put it in the microwave for about 15 seconds or in the toaster oven for about 2 to 3 minutes.
