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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Can unsweetened applesauce be substituted for the butter?
Hi Susan, I would suggest sticking with the butter here. That said, a few readers have commented that they’ve used applesauce in place of some of the butter and have been happy with the results.
This is absolutely the best pumpkin bread recipe I have ever tried..This will be the one I will use always..Thank you so much for sharing..I made two loaves, and they were gone by the next morning..lol…Incredibly moist, and the combination of the spices are perfect..,and, oh my, how the kitchen smells while baking..Thanks again ..
I cut back the sugar by nearly a cup, and it was still absolutely delightful. Had Thomas Aquinas, the great saint and philosopher, been privileged to partake of this heavenly pumpkin bread, he surely would have dictated this recipe in his Summa Theologiae as the first proof of God’s existence. Cause of all causes type of stuff, with massive implications on how we should live our life because there is most certainly a Creator.
I exaggerate for comedic effect.
But seriously, this pumpkin bread recipe is a gift. Thank you!
Can I use an equal amount of fresh sweet pumpkin as a substitute for the one can of Libby’s pumpkin?
Yep!
This bread was so tasty! I used a deep stone loaf pan, which worked out well. I pulled it from the oven right at 65 minutes, and I think it was just cooked. Any longer and the top would have crisped. Even after greasing the pan heavily, the bottom stuck a little, so maybe using some parchment paper wouldn’t hurt next time. I actually made some amateur french toast out of a piece and it was so good!
This turned out awesome, what a great heirloom recipe. I want to try this in individual loaf pans and was wondering if you have tried any other pan sizes? Thanks, Maria
Glad you liked it! Yes, you can use mini loaf pans for this. Just reduce the bake time. I’d start checking around 35-40 min.
I made it in a bunt pan buttered and lined in sugar. It worked well but the top got stuck a bit. Are bunds pans not a good idea. I didn’t need to change cooking times. It tastes wonderful and is very light,
Hi Lee Ann, You’d definitely need to grease and flour the pan – I’m guessing the sugar caused it to stick. Hope that helps!
Can you make the batter ahead? I was thinking of making the batter friday night, and then baking it saturday.
Unfortunately, it won’t work, Elena. Sorry! The most you could do ahead is to combine the dry ingredients.
Made this today. As soon as I saw the lovely batter, I changedit and made a bundt cake! Can I say lovely! Smells amazing. Baked up beautifully. Can’t wait to glaze and eat. Great recipe!
Very easy and quick. Great for drop in company.