Pumpkin Bread
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy.
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!
You May Also Like
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
Powered by 
- 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.
See more recipes:
Comments
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
This sounds terrific and I love pumpkin! I bake bread without salt because my husband can’t have sodium. My bread turns out great with no salt. I have “no sodium” baking powder but can’t use baking soda for this recipe. Should I use more baking powder? Thanks!
Hi Janice, unfortunately, I don’t think this will work without the baking soda — I’m sorry!
Will salted butter work?
Yes – While it varies by brand, most salted butter has approximately 1/4 tsp. salt per stick, so you can use the salted butter and reduce the salt in the recipe as needed. Hope you enjoy!
This is THE pumpkin bread recipe! I made it exactly as written and would not change a thing. We love this bread. Thanks for sharing!
Hi. I loved this recipe!! I might have added a bit more cloves than needed but it still tastes good!! I definitely want to try making this for Christmas. Thank you for sharing your recipe. God bless! 💕
I made mine into small loaves so they only took about 40 minutes. Great recipe! I added choc. chips to mine and it turned out great.
This recipe has become ‘Dad’s famous pumpkin bread’ to our family! =) Can you recommend a baking time for smaller pans? We like to make mini loaves as gifts, but haven’t dialed in the timing right. Thanks for sharing!
So glad it’s a family hit! I’d start checking mini loaves at 35 minutes. Hope your recipients enjoy!
Can I use butternut squash instead of pumpkin?
Sure, Kate, that will work. Please LMK how it turns out!
Okay, it’s high time I comment here after making this bread for two years. I use silicone pans, which make it real easy to turn out the loaves. After probably 20 batches that have turned out beautifully in two different ovens, I can say that this is a perfect recipe! Thank you!!
I make this recipe a lot during the fall/winter and I really like it! Everyone always wants me to bake more once they’re done. Thanks for such a great recipe!
So moist and flavorful! Exactly what I had hoped for! Can’t wait to make this again — thank you!
Mine did not rise like the one in the recipe. I am not sure the exact pan size but I am sure it was not more than 9 inch. ( 9×4). Mine was a little chewy. I used King Arthur unbleached all purpose flour. It was too sweet for me. Can I use pumpkin pie spice instead of the spices in the recipe? any suggestions for my second try? Thank you.
Hi Barbara, I strongly suspect the reason yours did not rise like what you see in the pictures is due to the size of the pan you used. (Although 1 inch doesn’t sound like it would make much of a difference, it can!) If you make this again, I’d recommend using the 8 x 4“ loaf pans. And yes, you can use pumpkin pie spice in place of the other spices. You’ll need a total of 1 tablespoon. Hope that helps!
Thank you, I will make it again with the right pan size.