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 just had to try this recipe after having read through tens of glowing reviews. This recipe did not disappoint! I baked as written, and it came out very moist and flavorable. I baked the batch in my Williams Sonoma Goldtouch 8″ load pan for 65mins and in my Goldtouch muffin pan (5 wells only) for 33mins. Next time, I’ll add some chocolate chips to change it up. Otherwise, great holiday treat!
We made this the day after Thanksgiving and it was a huge success! I love the picture of your grandma’s recipe-those tend to be the best. The only changes I made were to add slightly less sugar and butter then called for. We did add around 30 dark chocolate chips to the mixed batter before baking. As far as the baking time, I usually check around 50 minutes as ovens vary. It was done earlier than the 65 minutes. So good I am making it this weekend as well. Thank you!
This is an excellent recipe! I’ve baked it twice so far! Family eats it up so fast! I love old fashioned recipes!
As I’m making this pumpkin bread for the second year in a row (my 5 year old who loves it just put in her request), I have to say that this is the best pumpkin bread I have ever tasted and I love all things pumpkin! I made several loaves for a Christmas fair and everyone loved them! I’ve also made a number of your other recipes (my latest was the roasted green beans with walnuts and cranberies) and all of them have come out great! Can’t wait to purchase your cookbook!!
Any idea how many mini loaves this recipe will make?
Hi Melissa, I suspect this will make 3 – 4 mini loaves, but I can’t say for sure because I’ve never made mini versions of these.
Excellent!! Moist and sooo much flavour!1
Whole family loved it and are looking for more. Thanks for the recipe!! Merry Christmas!!
This was EXCELLENT!
I used whole wheat flour, organic sugar (1/4 cup less than recipe called for), substituted olive oil for 1/2 the butter, and added a cup of raisins.
Wow just finished baking this bread, sooooo good thanks for sharing the spices work well together I was a little skeptical about the ground cloves I’m not really a cloves type of girl but I’m glad I followed the recipe I love it my kids and my husband love it too.
This was the first time I made this, and it was beautiful! I won’t be using any other recipe. This is a keeper! I might add a handful of chopped walnuts next time for an extra crunch, but maybe not. 🙂
What size loaf pan?
Hi Lynn, You’ll need two 8 x 4-inch loaf pans. Hope you enjoy!