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.
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
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
- ¾ cup (1½ sticks) 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 (165°C )and set an oven rack in the middle position. Generously grease two 8 x 4-in (20 x 10-cm) 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 to 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.
Notes
- 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.
- Freezing 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
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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The best pumpkin bread! This is TOO good. I make double the recipe so I can have some loaves on stand-by in the freezer. The perfect snack or breakfast! I actaully just throw all wet ingredients (along with spices) in a bowl, then add in the dry ingredients. It still bakes up beautifully. Sometimes I don’t have the time or space to make this properly (I’m usually deep into meal prep), but this is a go-to recipe for me and now I have pumpkin puree stocked up in my pantry – at least 2 cans at all times! I highly recommend you try this one. When I have a little more time, I will try this as a muffin with cream cheese in the center.
The clove flavor overpowers everything else. I’m planning to make this again but remove the cloves entirely as all my whole family could taste was cloves. I’m surprised I don’t see more people mention the clove ratio – – I always see 1/4 tsp clove to 1 tsp cinnamon in pumpkin recipes. The whole family said “make it again but remove the cloves” as everything else seemed so great.
I have made this loaf so many times. For my whanau, friends, church and many other activities we have here in Upper Hutt, Wellington New Zealand thank you for the awesome recipe.
I just pulled it out and a good portion is already gone definitely saving this recipe very easy and tasty. I put it in a flat pan and it cooked in about 30 minutes
Can you make cookies out of this recipe?
Hi Brenda, this recipe really isn’t designed for cookies – sorry!
I love this bread! it is perfection! I made a batch of 4 loaves and froze three. One stayed in the freezer for 6 months before I found it, and it was just as good as the first loaf I ate fresh.
Made this recipe and it is great! I was wondering if you could just cut it in half if you just want one loaf. Would that work?
Thanks,
D
Definitely!
Why no ginger or allspice? Aren’t they part of the pumpkin pie spice?
Feel free to add a bit of ginger or allspice. Alternatively, you can replace the cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg with one tablespoon of pumpkin pie spice.
I love this Pumpkin bread. It is everything I hoped for. Thanks for sharing.