Pumpkin Bread
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Kids love it, grown-ups love it…this pumpkin bread is hard to beat!
My grandmother clipped this pumpkin bread recipe from a magazine over 50 years ago, and it is my most-cherished family recipe. One of my clearest childhood memories is baking the loaves with my mom and carting them off to every neighborhood potluck and holiday party. Now I bake pumpkin bread with my own kids, and it’s just as wonderful today as it was back then. It’s easy to make — just a bit of mixing and stirring, pop it in the oven, and, in about an hour, you’ll have a house smelling of sweet autumn spices and two scrumptious, pumpkiny loaves.
Above, you can see the original recipe from my grandmother’s recipe box—it’s definitely seen its share of spills! After a bit of research, I discovered that the recipe was first published in the McCalls Cook Book (Random House, 1963). It is a typical sweet quick bread, similar to banana bread or cranberry nut bread, leavened with baking powder and/or baking soda instead of yeast. Quick bread batter can often be used to make muffins, and my pumpkin muffins are nearly identical to this bread, but with the addition of a pecan streusel topping.
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need To Make Pumpkin Bread
How To Make Pumpkin Bread
Begin by combining the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and spices. I like to add everything in neat little piles in case I lose track of what I’ve added.
Whisk well and set aside.
Combine the butter and sugar in a large bowl or in the bowl of an electric mixer.
Beat until just combined. It will look a little crumbly.
Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Continue beating for a few minutes until light and fluffy.
Add the pumpkin.
Beat until combined. It will look a little curdled or grainy — that’s okay.
Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture.
And beat on low speed until just combined.
Transfer the batter to loaf pans.
Bake for 65 to 75 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean.
Let the loaves cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack to cool completely.
That’s all there is to it. Enjoy!
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Video Tutorial
Pumpkin Bread
Kids love it, grown-ups love it…this pumpkin bread is hard to beat!
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1½ sticks (¾ cup) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cups sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 (15-oz) can 100% pure pumpkin (I use Libby's)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Generously grease two 8 x 4-inch loaf pans with butter and dust with flour (alternatively, use a baking spray with flour in it, such as Pam with Flour or Baker's Joy).
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Whisk until well combined; set aside.
- In a large bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until just blended. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Continue beating until very light and fluffy, a few minutes. Beat in the pumpkin. The mixture might look grainy and curdled at this point -- that's okay.
- Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until combined.
- Turn the batter into the prepared pans, dividing evenly, and bake for 65 – 75 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Let the loaves cool in the pans for about 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Fresh out of the oven, the loaves have a deliciously crisp crust. If they last beyond a day, you can toast individual slices to get the same fresh-baked effect.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The bread can be frozen for up to 3 months. After it is completely cooled, wrap it securely in aluminum foil, freezer wrap or place in a freezer bag. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (24 servings)
- Serving size: 1 slice
- Calories: 166
- Fat: 6 g
- Saturated fat: 4 g
- Carbohydrates: 26 g
- Sugar: 17 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Sodium: 117 mg
- Cholesterol: 31 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Hello so I was wondering if this could work in a muffin tin? If so what temperature should I put it at?
Hi, If you’d like to make muffins, I’d suggest this recipe (and you can omit the topping if you’d like). Hope you enjoy if you make them!
Timing was way off for me.
Thank you for sharing this DELICIOUS recipe! I have the bigger loaf pan, can I make just 1 loaf out of this recipe instead of 2 (for the height)? Would I still bake it at the same temperature and time? I devoured half right out of the oven… YUMMM!
Glad you like it! If you only have 9 x 5-inch loaf pans, I’d increase the batter by 1.5 and bake in two 9 x 5’s. Bake time may be a touch longer but oven temp should remain the same. Hope that helps!
Much better than your average pumpkin bread! This isn’t just pumpkin spice. It’s a great way to welcome fall.
I added my review but my husband’s review is even more glowing. He was not excited when I told him I was making pumpkin bread. He said he didn’t even like pumpkin. Now he can’t stop raving about it! He even asked if he needed to go to the store to make sure I had enough pumpkin to make more.
LOL – glad it was a hit!
Baked this evening! OMG absolutely delish! I didn’t have cloves so only used cinnamon and nutmeg! Definitely adding to baking rotation!
This bread is seriously way too sweet. I would cut the sugar by half and add some orange zest and cranberries to cut all that sugar. I threw away the rest of the batter. Garbage!
Please do not call a recipe trash simply because it doesn’t fit YOUR tastes. This bread is amazing!
Can I make muffins with this recipe?
Yep, I would use this recipe as a guide.
Wow!! I’m seriously the worst baker however I made this pumpkin bread without fail. It tastes legit. Can’t wait to share with my family. Thank you for sharing the goodness.
This is amazing! Instead of the written spices, I used a tablespoon of pumpkin pie spice, 1/2 teaspoon of allspice, and 1/4 teaspoon of ground clove. I also accidentally melted most of my butter (oops! That’s what I get for trying to speed things up with the microwave) so after beating it with the sugar, I stuck in it in the freezer for a few minutes before adding the rest of the ingredients.
Other than that, I followed the recipe as directed. It took about 85 mins for the loaves to be done, though I suspect that may have had something to do with my melted butter mishap.
I’ve already eaten half a loaf by myself 😆 I’m bringing the other to my mom tomorrow. Thank you so much for this recipe!
Your recipe says to bake at 325°F for 60 to 75 minutes. Every time I use this recipe I realize it takes longer than the time shown in this recipe for it to be done. Mine takes at least about 95 minutes to be done for two loaves. I think I’m gonna try it at 350° instead. I tossed in some chopped up pecans and this turns out very delicious but the time and temperature of this recipe is off
Not only is this bread delicious, but I love that you shared the story behind it. Having treasured family recipes handed down and then being willing to share is very special:)
❤️
I’ve made this pumpkin bread several times. Great texture. Very moist.
I seem to be having problems with orange spots coming to surface on the top of the loaves by the next day after baking.
What can this be the cause of? I want my bread to look beautiful!
Hi Dani, glad you like the bread! The orange spots sound very unusual! Do you happen to have a picture of the bread with the spots? If so, please email me with it: jennifer@onceuponachef.com. Thanks!