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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This recipe is so simple yet so delicious! I subbed in cake flour instead of all-purpose and it made it super fluffy. Highly recommended.
Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe! Adjust the sugar, or don’t – I’ve made it both ways and still it’s delicious, moist and unexpectedly light for all the decadence poured into it. I appreciate your work very much and so do all the happy stomachs of my husband, and my mother and my father and my brother and my sister in-law and their two kids and my neighbors and… 🙂
🙂
Made this recipe. Very moist and delicious but did not rise very much at all?? 🤷🏻♀️
It’s just under 2’’ 🙁
Hi Narda, this doesn’t rise a ton, but it should be at least 3 inches high. Did you use 8 x 4-inch loaf pans?
Can this be made as a bundt if i double the recipe?
Hi Yan, If you’d like to make a pumpkin bundt cake, I’d recommend this (it’s from my first cookbook). Hope you enjoy if you make it!
Hi Jenn. This is an absolutely wonderful bread…none better. I have made it several times and added nuts. It turned out fine. I would like to add raisins this time. Should I soak them first, or just add them from the box?
So glad you like it, Steve. You can just add the raisins straight from the box. 🙂
THE BEST pumpkin bread I have ever made or tasted! Hands down. I’ve already shared this recipe with so many friends and family. I used the full batter amount in a large loaf pan and just added on another 15 mins or so to the baking time. It came out SOOOO moist and flavorful. Thank you for sharing!
I have made this recipe many, many times and it’s delicious! I love that it’s made with butter instead of oil. My family loves it! Thank you for such a great recipe!
This is the best pumpkin bread recipe I have ever made. I added raisins and used fresh pumpkin. This is a keeper for sure.
This is a winner. I make this for family and friends. Only problem: no one wants to share. It’s really that good.
Ha – glad it was a hit! 🙂
I had people who didn’t think they liked pumpkin bread ask for more. I’m doing it again. Awesome. I love the old fashioned flavor. The cloves made a difference.
This is the best pumpkin bread ever. Moist and flavorful.
Follow the directions and you will have no problems.
Yeah I even accidentally doubled the amount of butter and it still turned out great!
🤣🤣🤣🤣It wasn’t greasy with 3 sticks of butter?