Pumpkin Bread
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy.
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!
You May Also Like
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
Powered by 
- 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.
See more recipes:
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Delicious pumpkin bread and now my go to recipe! Love your recipes and cookbooks!
Betty Powell
Simply perfect ✨
I used one large pan to make this and could not keep my hands off of it. My roommate and I devoured it in 2 days. I added a little bit less sugar because I was nervous about the sweetness. It came out perfect! I also just used 3 teaspoons of pumpkin spice instead of the nutmeg, cloves, and cinnamon since it’s basically that – all in one.
This bread came out perfectly fine using two 9×5 pans and NO increase in the batter amount (as is recommended, but I only had one can of pumpkin, so I couldn’t made a larger batch of batter.) I decided to go ahead with the 9×5 pans, recognizing that the slices would end up wider and a bit flatter, and that I would have to adjust the cooking time a bit. I started checking at 50 minutes and took the pans out of the oven at 60 minutes, let them sit for 10 minutes as directed, and then turned them out onto a cooling rack. I would say they came out pretty close to perfect. As long as you don’t mind a somewhat different shape to your sliced bread, and you are aware that you need to monitor the cooking time closely, there is no reason you can’t use the same amount of batter in 9×5 pans. If I had had enough ingredients to increase the amount of batter I would have done so, but in not doing so the taste and texture of the end result is not inferior in any way. My only complaint about this recipe is that I consider it to be far too sweet, but that is purely a personal preference. I’m not sure if I could just cut out some of the sugar, or if that would affect the bread structure too much. I may experiment with cutting it back slightly, and also adding some nuts to counter the sweetness. I’ll also see how it tastes after sitting for a day, as once the flavors meld it may not seem as sweet. Overall, though, a very flavorful and moist bread.
Can you substitute the canned pumpkin with the meat of a oven baked pumpkin
Sure, Linda — just make sure you drain any liquid from the cooked pumpkin so the bread isn’t overly moist. Hope you enjoy!
I’ve used this recipe for a few years now, and it never fails me! It truly is the very best pumpkin bread EVER!!! When I give it as gifts, I always get compliments, that’s it’s the best, also! Thank you, for sharing! I’ll never use another recipe! It’s so delicious!🧡
To cut carbs……what would happen if I substituted 1 cup almond flour for one of the 2 cups of flour??
Hi Amy, I think the almond flour would make the bread dense. For the best results, I’d stick with the recipe. Sorry!
Can I use canola oil instead of butter? My dog just ate the butter off the counter that I had out to soften, wrapper and all. I have made this recipe many times and its always a hit as are all your recipes. I hope its as good with the oil!
Oh no — Sounds like something one of my dogs would do!! Unfortunately, I wouldn’t recommend canola oil in this — I’d wait until you have butter (but hide it from the dog)! 🙂
Absolutely delicious…I’m truly not a pumpkin lover but this awesome 😊
Can this be made in a Bundt pan? If so, would the bake time change?
Thanks!
If you want to make it in a bundt pan, I’d recommend this recipe from my first cookbook. It’s very similar but intended for a bundt pan. Hope you enjoy if you make it!
I baked this for the first time and loved the cake like texture. I am a southerner who loves a tender pound cake and this is as tender a cake as one could hope to bake. I am used to pumpkin bread being more dense. We had it warm from the oven with some premium vanilla ice cream. Divine!
I accidentally put all of the batter into one loaf pan instead of two. Is there any way to save the bread?
Hi Julia, I’m probably too late to help! How did the bread turn out?
How long do I bake it for, if I am only making one pan?
The baking time will be the same. Hope you enjoy!
Here in Ecuador we don’t get pumpkin so I use green squash or sweet potatoes. Double the Cinnamon, add 1/2 tsp Cardamon, 1 tsp Allspice. Tastes delicious!
Thank you for sharing.