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
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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What oven temp?
The oven temp is 325°F/165°C. Enjoy!
I love it, I’ve been doing a baking project every weekend and this one was a hit. My mom and dad loved it!
Made this pumpkin bread and it was absolutely amazing! Best recipe yet. Moist, sweet and wonderful, my family loved it. Will definitely make again.
This Is an awesome recipe! Delicious and so very moist. Made as indicated. No changes at all. Thanks for sharing
I followed recipe and mine came out a bit too moist almost wet, baked 70 min in pre heated oven, tooth pick came out clean. I loved the flavor, added chopped pecans and cranberries, topped with pumpkin seeds. I will try again, maybe reduce pumpkin portion, your thoughts?
Hi, Were the cranberries fresh or dried (like craisins)? If they were fresh, they would’ve added moisture to the bread. If you want to try it again with fresh cranberries, I’d increase the flour by 1/2 cup.
Can you use fresh pumpkins? If so, do you puree it?
Yes and yes. 🙂
Just make sure to squeeze out any excess liquid so that the bread isn’t too moist. Hope you enjoy!
I followed this recipe to a T and it came out undercooked even after 75 minutes in the oven. It made my house smell amazing though!
I followed instructions to the letter. If I had left in for 65-75 minutes, these would have been bricks. I took out at 55 minutes and maybe that was slightly too long. Flavor is good but I would use more spices next time. It was good but I have have other pumpkin bread recipes that I prefer.
So moist and delicious! I used about 1.25-1.5 tsp. of pumpkin pie spice instead of all the individual spices. Also subbed some sugar for brown sugar. Amazing recipe and I’m totally making it again!
Have made this twice using fresh pumpkin from my garden. I end up having to change the order a bit (puree the cooked pumpkin with the eggs, for eg.) but it still ends up delicious anyways. Thanks for the super recipe.
Could you use fresh pumpkin puree? We have some stored and I don’t want it to go to waste.
Definitely! Just squeeze out any excess liquid so the bread isn’t too moist. 🙂
We can’t get canned pumpkin in Australia. Can I use freshly steamed pumpkin instead? Would I need to drain in a sieve after puréeing?
Yes and yes. 🙂
You just want to remove as much liquid from the cooked pumpkin as possible before incorporating it into the recipe. Hope you enjoy!
Could I bake this in two 9” rounds to make a cake?
Hi Jen, I think you could get away with it but the baking time will be different so keep an eye on them. You could also use this recipe for round pans. If you’re going to frost it, I’d double the frosting (you may end up having a bit of frosting leftover). Hope that helps!