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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I love this pumpkin bread! The recipe is so easy to follow. I successfully half the recipe every time I make it which is all year long.
The best pumpkin bread I’ve ever had.
I reduced the cloves and the nutmeg to 1/2 teaspoon each because I wanted the flavor of the cinnamon to be more pronounced . I made in smaller loaf pans, about 7 x 3″, for a yield of three loaves. I baked them for about 55 minutes . Very tasty, great texture. Thanks, Jenn!
This bread is delicious. My kids love taking a slice to school for a snack.
Best pumpkin loaf recipe I have ever baked from, and I have tried a lot of them over many years. I doubled it because I had 30oz of pumpkin puree to use up. I added ground ginger to the spice list, as well, and halved the cloves. I also halved the sugar. Yes, it took a while to bake thoroughly but it came out perfect! It’s the butter that really makes this loaf shine. Oil would make it too greasy. Thanks again for posting this!
this is the best pumpkin bread I’ve ever made!! It always get rave reviews when I bring it into work. Thank you for such a delicious recipe.
My daughter loves this recipe, she has made it several times, in fact it’s so yummy she is having it for her 21st birthday cake
The ingredients and overall taste seemed on-point, but the cooking directions just did not work. Over 2 hours in the oven at 325 and there was still a raw section to the loaves. Same thing when I tried with muffins. A real waste of time and ingredients. Maybe re-working the temperature and ingredients would help.
Hi Mark, I’m sorry you had a problem with this! Is there any chance you could’ve measured something incorrectly?
I’ve made this recipe for years with no problem and everyone always LOVES it! Comes out perfectly every time. I second what Jen asked; is there something that you altered in the recipe? Have you had your oven calibrated or used an oven thermometer to check your oven’s temperature? Don’t give up, because this is one of my favorite recipes of Jen’s!!!
Sounds like error on your part or an issue with your oven given that everyone else’s came out great – including mine. Try again!
Same thing happened to me – twice. I triple checked all my ingredients and I was sure I measured everything right. Then I realized I was using the big can of libby’s pumpkin *face palm*. Might want to make sure you’re not in the same boat.
This is the best pumpkin bread recipe I have ever had. It is so moist, I can’t keep it in the house.
Made this last night and it was DELISH!