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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Hands down the BEST recipe for super moist delicious pumpkin bread! Easy to make and turned out PEFECT! A beautiful deep orange color! I added 1 tsp vanilla and covered the top with raw unsalted pumpkin seeds…….😍😍😍
Oh I also used 1 Tablespoon Pumpkin Pie Spice in place of the 3 tsp of spices because it’s what I had on hand.
I made this recipe tonight, adding semi sweet chocolate chips to one (Hubby’s request) and raisins and pecans to the other. Both were delicious! The semi sweet chocolate really set off the sweet pumpkin very well and I am not a fan of the combination as a rule.
Can you use some honey in place of some of the sugar here?
Hi Nina, I would recommend sticking primarily with sugar; you’ll need that in order to create the correct texture when you combine the sugar and butter. If you replace any of the sugar with honey, I’d keep it at a minimum. Hope that helps!
I haven’t tasted the bread yet as it is still in the oven. But it certainly smells divine! Yet my most favorite part of this recipe may be the paper on which the recipe is written! Covered with remnants of the countless times it was touched by grandma’s hands, double checking on a measurement or an ingredient allthewhile, leaving behind traces of her creation! I have well-loved recipes like this and I’ve often considered rewriting them on clean, fresh paper. But after seeing this, I realized I’d be getting rid of the “love” that comes with a worn-out, flour-touched, spilled-on much loved recipe that is passed down from grandmother to daughter to son to granddaughter to nephew and beyond. Thanks for sharing that with us all! There goes my timer… (:
This recipe is easy and delicious!! I gave some to friends and they wanted more… getting ready to make more loaves. I think it tasted just like pumpkin pie, without the pie!
Made this for a friends party. Put the batter into a large bundt pan, came out great. I used the low end of the time in the oven. Added a maple glaze on top.
Oh my gosh. This turned out phenomenal. I’m sure the recipe is perfect as is, but I tweaked it based on what I had. In case anyone is curious, I used 100% whole wheat flour, half white sugar half coconut sugar, and subbed half a stick of butter with 4 tbsp of unsweetened applesauce. It is SO good. I’m most impressed by the crumb – it is still amazingly tender even with all whole wheat flour and missing some of the butter. Thank you for the lovely recipe!
I am giving this 5 stars before it even comes out of the oven! I can tell by the batter it’s going to be great, I might have tasted it. I added mini chocolate chips to one of the pans! Can’t wait to try this 🙂
Hi, I’m planning to make this in a bundt pan tomorrow. I was wondering if I can use brown sugar instead? Thanks!
Hi Gitu, I’d be hesitant to bake this in a bundt pan as I’d be afraid it would stick. That said, a few readers have used a bundt pan successfully. I’d just make sure to generously grease the pan with butter and a good dusting of flour. And I’d stick to white sugar for this.
Hi 🙂 I’ve just made it in a bundt pan with half white and half brown (I didn’t have enough white) sugar and it’s come out beautifully! Thanks for the recipe xx
Good to know! So glad it turned out nicely. 🙂
I saw one comment where someone added nuts and the bread fell apart. Can raisins be added?
Yep- raisins should work here. Enjoy!