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.
This is the original recipe from my grandmother’s recipe box; as you can see, it has seen its share of spills! After a bit of research, I discovered that the original recipe was published in the McCalls Cook Book (Random House, 1963). It is a typical sweet quick bread, similar to banana bread or cranberry nut bread, in that it is leavened with baking powder and/or baking soda instead of yeast. Quick bread batter can usually be made into muffins; my pumpkin muffins are almost identical to this bread but with a crunchy 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 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 65-75 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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Bizarre and confusing that the ingredients list comes far below the instructions for putting those ingredients together. I may or may not make this recipe but the layout puts me off.
Hi Tim, sorry you found the layout frustrating! At the very top of the page, to the right of the recipe name, you’ll see an orange/red button that says Jump to Recipe – if you click on that, it will take you directly to the recipe. Hope that helps and that you enjoy the bread if you make it!
Best pumpkin bread I’ve ever tasted. So flavorful and perfect texture. And it’s not too difficult to make.
Absolutely delicious! So moist, which to me is a must when it comes to enjoying loaves.
I have made this recipe multiple times over the past year or two and we absolutely love it, our friends love it and beg us to make more!! Thank you!
A definite crowd-pleaser. I’ve made this bread dozens of times and I’ve lost count of how many people have asked for the recipe. So many pumpkin bread recipes have so much sugar and an over-abundance of spices that the pumpkin flavor is lost. This is sweet, spiced just right and has big pumpkin flavor. Love!
Love this recipe. The cake came out moist and soft. I used hand (manual) mixing throughout.
one of the best pumpkin bread recipes.Thank you Once Upon a chef.
This is my new and go to pumpkin bread! I will never need to try any other recipe as it is the BEST!
I’ve made many loaves of pumpkin bread over the years and this recipe is by far the best I’ve ever tasted. The texture is delicate with a perfect mixture of spices. It freezes beautifully as well. Thank you, Jenn for this wonderful recipe.
I made this pumpkin bread today, eight days before Thanksgiving Day, 2021. It turned out perfectly. I couldn’t find my one loaf pan so I split the batter between two 9 inch cake pans. It turned out light and fluffy. I’m not an experienced baker so I was surprised that the thick batter produced this nice bread. One adjustment I’ll make next time is I’ll cut down the seasoning of cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg from one teaspoon each to ½ teaspoon each. The taste at 1 teaspoon each, is a bit too strong for my preference. I will say , though, that loads of whipped cream helped a lot. 😊
For the next one, I will cover the loaf with a cream cheese frosting.
I might have commented in the past but just had to do so again! This is the best pumpkin bread I have made. Made many loaves in the past as well as other recipes for pumpkin bread. This season I have already made 8 loaves of this recipe. Put a couple in the freezer and gifted some and my family ate the rest! Granddaughter loves it! Thank you!
I love this recipe but am back living in Colorado at high altitude. Does anyone know if this will work or how to modify so it will turn out as perfect as it normally does?
Thanks!
Hi Sarah, I hope another high-altitude reader will weigh in with some guidance. I don’t have experience baking at high altitudes so, unfortunately, I don’t have any wisdom to share – I’m sorry! You may find these tips helpful though.
Hi,
I live in CO at 6000 ft and I don’t change anything.
I live in Colorado and I didn’t change a thing with this recipe. It turned out wonderful! No adjustments were needed! Enjoy!
Jenn,
You’re my favorite cookbook author, both books are my go-tos! Have you or any of your fans tried to convert this recipe for vegans?
Hi Cheryl, Thank you for your kind words! 🙂 Yes, a number of readers have commented that they’ve successfully made a vegan version of this. Hope you enjoy if you make it!
OK, I will say, this bread was totally delicious, but how the heck are you guys getting 2 full-sized loaves out of this? When I put the batter in the 2 pans, I thought it was awfully low, but just went with it. When they came out of the oven, they weren’t that much taller. I probably could have stacked both loaves in one pan, LOL. I searched some other recipes out before writing this comment and most that make 2 loaves call for more ingredients. I mean, if you break these ingredients down, each loaf only has 1 c. flour, 1 c. sugar, and 1/2 can of pumpkin (plus the other mostly lesser ingredients). It just seems hard to imagine that it could plump up enough to make 2 full loaves. A recipe from FoodNetwork calls for 3 1/2 c. flour and 3 c. sugar for 2 loaves. Anyway, I gave it a 4, but it would be a 5 if based on taste alone. So yummy I made my husband take it to work today so I wouldn’t sit here and eat it all day.
Regular loaf pans measure 9″ x 5″, this recipe calls for 8″ x 4″ pans.
You might check to see if your baking soda and powder are still good. That could cause an issue with the bread rising.
Great recipe, super good flavor, easy preparation. The only issue I had was when I sliced it it didn’t hold together. Any ideas what could have caused this??
Hi Mary, Did you let it cool completely before you sliced it. It will often get crumbly if it’s not cool enough.
Maybe it was totally cool. I thought it was, but maybe could have waited longer. Thanks for the input
absolutely delicious
This was the best pumpkin bread I have ever tasted let alone made. I substituted regular sugar for brown sugar because that’s what I had, and I didn’t have a hand mixer so had to actually mix it, but sooooo worth it.
I love making this bread with my daughter! We adapt it for our family by cutting the sugar in half, substituting half of the white flour for almond flour, and adding a spoonful of flax meal. Sometimes I add an extra egg if they are small eggs. It still comes out very moist and not too crumbly. We love it! Sometimes we add in chopped walnuts or pecans also!
The best pumpkin bread recipe I have ever baked. This bread is so moist and flavorful. Easy recipe, I continue to make this for friends and family they love it as well.
This is the best pumpkin bread recipe I have ever had, and I have tried a lot of recipes! It goes together easily; never failed me in all the times I have made it. I use four small loaf pans. Some to freeze and one to give to my kids.
I’m a pumpkin spice lover😍this recipe is awesome…. My husband couldn’t wait for it to cool he likes the top crust. Thank you so much for sharing.
Hi Jen,
Your recipes used to have a save button to save favorite recipes into the recipe box on your website. I don’t see it anymore. Is this option in a new location? I cannot seem to find it.
Thanks,
Diane
Hi Diane, Sorry for any confusion. I rearranged some things on the blog and removed that button. If you look at any recipe on the blog you’ll see a little heart with an orange tab on the far right side of the page. That’s also a way to save a recipe. For what it’s worth, to avoid confusion, I may add that save recipe button back to the page. 🙂 Hope that helps!
The bread itself is moist. Personally I think the recipe calls for too much spice, especially the ground clove, was to over powering. Next time I make I will cut the spice in half.
Beautiful loaf of pumpkin bread and very moist. However, it is way too sweet for my taste. I will cut the sugar back to 1.5 cups if I use this recipe again.
Do you know if this recipe works for cupcakes? Thanks!
Hi Leslie, I’d recommend using this recipe (you can omit the streusel and replace it with frosting). Hope you enjoy if you make them!
I made cupcakes using this exact recipe. It made 18 regular sized cupcakes, only change was cooking time, which was about 35-40 min. Came out perfect, and I added cream cheese icing.
This definitely lived up to the hype! I just woke up wanting pumpkin bread, googled and this is the recipe I chose based on the reviews. This is fantastic! For sure the best recipe I have tried. I have never made one without oil and this is SOOO much better! It’s perfectly moist and fluffy. Just the right amount of sweetness. I only had one larger loaf pan, so I made one big one and two 5″ ones. They surprisingly took the same amount of time to bake–just under one hour. I did not have cloves so I just put in 3 tsp of pumpkin pie spice instead of the individual spices and it seems to be good–one more teaspoon might have been even better, but next time I will make sure to have the individual spices. This is now my go to recipe! Thanks!
I honestly did not like this recipe after trying the one on the Libby’s can. Libby’s has Allspice, more flour & more sugar. This recipe made 2 small loaves & needed more flavor which was definitely missing from the Allspice. Yes your asked for butter vs oil, but definitely lacking in flavor just my opinion.
I’m honestly not a baker at all— but this was so easy and came out so delicious!!
This is a spicy, delicious pumpkin bread. I knew I had to try it when I saw the recipe used a generous measure of cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg–my pumpkin pie recipe does the same and it is a dark, spicy pie. The only spice left out was allspice so I just added about 1/4 teaspoon of that. So good. My 90 year old uncle made a special effort to contact me and tell me that he is generally not a pumpkin fan but that this recipe was a keeper. He is right!
We absolutely love this pumpkin bread – it’s the best recipe I have ever baked AND the kids swear it’s better than the Starbucks version. I do have a question though — what would the baking time be if I were to swap mini loaf pans for each 8×4 loaf pan? Would the cooking temp remain the same?
Mini loaf pan dimension: 5 1/2″ x 3″ x 2 1/4″ high
How many minis = 8×4 loaf? Thanks!
So glad you and the kids like it! I’d start checking mini loaves at about 35 minutes. And 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. Please LMK how they turn out!
I am making this at this very moment, in mini pans (5.5×3.5×2) and if you fill the pan about 2/3 full, you get about 4 pans worth
I am keeping an eye every 10 minutes just to see how it’s looking given the smaller pans
Could you swap oil for butter? If so, how much? I’m out of butter and want the make this! Thx!
You really need butter for this. The only oil option that would work is (solidified) coconut oil.
Oh my goodness this is the BEST pumpkin bread I’ve ever had. I have made countless pumpkin bread recipes trying to find the best one, and this is it. Thank you!!
I tested this recipe for the first time today. It turned out tasty, flavorful and moist. I substituted butter with canola oil. My loaves were smaller, but they turned out well. Baking time was less for me, but I guess that depends on the oven. The smell and the toothpick test tells me when it is done. Overall, I am happy with the results and I can not wait to try more recipes from your website.
Hi! Can these be made into muffins? If so, does it change the baking time? Thanks!
Hi Susan, If you want pumpkin muffins, I’d use this recipe (and you can omit the topping if you’d like). Hope that helps!
My two loaves cooked in 8 1/2 x 4 1/2
didn’t cook all the way through even after 75 minutes. Not sure what happened. Was really excited for this too.
I’m sorry to hear you had a problem with these. Did you make any adjustments to the recipe? If not, you may want to check your oven temperature for accuracy. Here are some tips for going about it.
Hi. I was wondering if you could substitute the flour for almond flour and splenda for the sugar. Trying to accommodate a diabetic diet. Thanks!
Hi Natasha, Unfortunately, I don’t think those substitutions will work. Sorry!
If I want to make mini-loaves (8.75×3” pans), how many should I make from one recipe?
Hi Alice, I’m a little confused as the dimensions you’ve provided are just a tiny bit smaller than that those called for in the recipe. When I think of mini loaf pans, I think of ones that are about 5 – 6 inches long and 3 inches wide.
This the BEST pumpkin bread recipe I’ve tried! Super moist, light and balanced with spices! In the fall I’ve given loaves and mini loaves to family and friends who love it. A winner!
Made this Pumpkin Bread and it was so moist and delicious. I doubled the recipe and gave away the extra loaves. They all wanted the recipe. Thanks Jen!
Dangerously delicious, thanks for sharing!
hi we are moving and i packed up my bread pans can i make it in one 9 x 12? any idea how long it would bake and if that is the right size pan? thank you! love your recipes!
Unfortunately, I don’t think it will work in that size pan. If your muffin tins are still accessible, you could make these muffins.
So delicious and spicy! I did not have the pan sizes listed so I risked it and used one 9×5. I also substituted half of the sugar with brown sugar. Baked it for about an hour and half and it turned out perfect! Will definitely bake this again!
thank you!! will try them now…
Jenn, if only I would have had the pleasure of meeting your grandmother, I could not thank her enough for clipping this recipe! It’s THE best pumpkin bread that I have eaten; it will cause nay sayers to think twice.
Thanks for sharing.
Yolonda
💗
I’m so glad I stumbled on this recipe!! I made it to the exact except I veganized it by swapping a couple ingredients. I’ve had both regular and vegan pumpkin bread, but I can honestly say that this is the BEST one I’ve ever tried! It came out so fluffy and moist I’m excited to make it again.
We love this pumpkin bread! The only problem I have is that here in Ontario Canada we can only get pumpkin in 796ml cans. That’s about 27oz so I have lots left over. Good thing your pumpkin pancakes are just as tasty as the bread!
Sharon, I am from Ontario too. I use the 365 brand pumpkin puree. Happy Baking.
Followed the recipe exactly as written and the result was an absolutely delicious pumpkin bread!
I normally don’t write reviews but this pumpkin bread recipe was amazing. Next time I am going to experiment using sweet potatoes.
So good! Used GF flour instead of regular and it was still yummy!! Will make again. So good with my coffee this morning. Lol!
I am a big fan of the Starbucks pumpkin bread slice. This weekend I went to get a latte and I looked to see their pumpkin slices on display; OMG $3.25 plus tax…of course it’s California
Well I decided to make my own, found your recipe and it’s exactly the same if not more moist and tastes awesome!!!
Thank you so much for posting it!!! I will be a fan of your page look you up on insta and make more recipes from your website!
I made 1/2 the recipe (you know how it is, a cup of left-over pureed pumpkin in the freezer) and made 12 muffins (w/papers and a spritz of cooking spray). They are, without a doubt, the best pumpkin muffins I’ve ever tasted (and I’m nearly 70). I just threw all the ingredients into a bowl, mixed them with an electric beater and baked them.
This is Beulah again. BTW, I make muffins only now, and stopped making LOAVES of things like banana bread, cranberry bread, strawberry bread, pumpkin bread, etc. YEARS AGO because, as I see from some other comments, sometimes the centers end up as raw batter after baking and I’m not willing to waste good ingredients. Muffins : the wisdom of the ancients …
How long do you bake for muffins? Still at 325? TY!
Hi Caroline, If you want to bake this as muffins, I’d use this recipe (you can omit the topping if you’d like). Hope you enjoy if you try them!
Don’t know timing, sorry — I always bake muffins until I touch the top of a couple and the tops spring back. That’s how my Mom did it anyway.
Can you use a Bundt pan? Or a larger loaf pan?
Hi Carol, If you’d like to use a Bundt pan, I recommend this recipe from my first cookbook. It’s very similar.
Very good recipe. I tweaked it a little. I used 1 cup of brown sugar and 1 cup of sugar. It gave it more of a deeper richer taste.
Maple syrup is a great sub too
Absolutely amazing! I’ve been making this for years. It turns out wonderful. I add a handful of raisins and I use mini loaf pans for holiday gift-giving. It’s delicious.
So good, more like a cake than a bread but loved it. I always look to cut sugar so I did 1 c white sugar and 1/2 c brown sugar. Probably could’ve cut the white sugar too 3/4 c. I also reduced the nutmeg and cloves. Although I don’t mind them my family definitely noticed them. I might replace them with pumpkin spice next time. Oh I also flavored the flour that lined the pans with cinnamon. So good. Recipe is a keeper for sure.
I halved the recipe and used 1/4 tsp of cloves.This is a dark, moist bread and really good! Better than other pumpkin bread recipes I’ve used. I used an 8 1/2 ” x 4 1/2″ old Glassbake loaf pan and it rose to a good height. I’m tossing other recipes and only using this recipe in the future.
This is an outstanding pumpkin bread recipe. I’ve made it several times, followed the recipe exactly, and it’s turned out perfectly every time. To anyone who is having problems, read the recipe carefully and follow the instructions. Don’t over mix. Use the specified pan size. Make sure your ingredients are fresh (baking soda and baking powder too). Use softened butter, NOT melted. The batter is very thick and you need to be patient getting it into the pans. Just take your time. Be sure to grease and flour the pans well. It’s actually a very simple recipe and makes a lovely pumpkin bread loaf IF YOU FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS.