This easy pumpkin bread recipe has a soft, moist crumb with a wonderful pumpkin flavor, spiced with warm cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. It’s quick to pull together (no mixer required!) with ingredients from your pantry, and it makes two loaves, which is perfect for sharing.
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The Best Pumpkin Bread Recipe
This pumpkin bread is a sweet bread or a dessert bread made with pumpkin puree, and it’s similar in consistency to banana bread but has all of the cozy flavors of Pumpkin Pie and smells just like Autumn. I honestly think it’s better than the famous Starbucks pumpkin bread.
Want to know a secret? This recipe is based on our popular Pumpkin Cake and easy Pumpkin Cupcakes. Several readers shared that they had converted the base to make pumpkin bread and added more spices to it, so I tested it and sure enough – it became an instant hit. We slather it with a bit of our irresistible Honey Butter for a delicious Fall-flavored snack, dessert, or even breakfast.
Pumpkin Bread Ingredients
It’s easy to whip up this delicious pumpkin bread with just a few pantry staples. No fancy equipment is needed, just a couple of mixing bowls and a whisk, and don’t forget the loaf pans! This makes two (8 1/2″ x 4 1/2″) loaves.
- Baking Staples – all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt give the pumpkin bread a soft crumb.
- Spices – cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and vanilla gives the pumpkin bread the fall smell and taste we love. We think it’s perfectly balanced, but for a more heavily spiced bread, add a tsp of pumpkin pie spice.
- Eggs – room temperature, this helps the bread rise in the oven
- Oil – use neutral extra light olive oil, vegetable oil, or canola oil
- Pumpkin puree – Double-check you are getting pumpkin puree and NOT pumpkin pie mix. You can also use a well-drained homemade pumpkin puree.
- Optional Mix-Ins – add 1 cup of add-ins such as chocolate chips, nuts, dried cranberries, or chopped dates.
Pro Tip
Don’t swap the oil for butter here, because the oil is what helps keep that amazingly soft and moist crumb. It also stays softer after refrigeration with oil.
How to Make Pumpkin Bread
This recipe couldn’t be easier. Simply mix the dry ingredients, mix the wet ingredients, and then combine them and bake.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg.
- Mix Wet Ingredients: In a second bowl, whisk together pumpkin puree, oil, and eggs
- Combine and Bake: Whisk wet ingredients into dry ingredients, and then transfer to 2 buttered/ floured loaf pans, and bake.
Natashas Pro Tip
To get a light and airy crumb, be sure not to over-mix the batter, or else the bread could become tough. Mix until the ingredients are combined, but it’s okay to have a few lumps.
How to Serve Pumpkin Bread
This sweet bread pairs perfectly with a cup of coffee, warm with butter, but here are some fun ways to keep this pumpkin bread exciting:
- Homemade Honey Butter
- Salted butter with a shake of pumpkin pie spice
- Glaze (see Maple-Glazed Cinnamon Rolls)
- Almond butter or peanut butter
- Cream cheese or whipped cream cheese
Make-Ahead
Similar to our other fan-favorite quick bread recipes, like our Banana Bread, Cranberry Bread, Cornbread, and Zucchini Bread, this pumpkin bread keeps really well:
- To store: Cover the bread in an airtight container or with plastic wrap, and it will stay moist for 3-5 days on the counter or refrigerator.
- Freezing: Wrap the loaf or slices in plastic wrap and foil or in a freezer zip bag for up to 3 months.
- To thaw: Place loaf in the refrigerator overnight, or thaw at room temperature for a few hours then unwrap to serve.
This easy pumpkin bread recipe comes together quickly and tastes amazing. It makes two loaves—perfect for gifting or freezing. The moist crumb pairs nicely with a cup of coffee or hot chocolate in the fall and all year long. We know this will become one of your go-to treats.
Pumpkin Bread
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 tsp baking soda, sifted to eliminate lumps
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves, optional
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg, optional
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 cup extra light olive oil, (or vegetable or corn oil)
- 15 oz pumpkin puree
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350˚F. Butter and lightly dust with flour, two 8 1/2"x4 1/2" bread pans.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 1/2 cups sugar, 1 tsp baking soda, 2 tsp baking powder, 2 tsp cinnamon 1/4 tsp cloves, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, and 1/2 tsp salt.
- In a second medium mixing bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients: 3 room temp eggs, 1 cup oil, pumpkin puree and vanilla.
- Pour wet ingredients over dry ingredients then whisk together until smooth. Divide evenly between 2 prepared bread pans and bake at 350˚F for 45-55 minutes*, or until a toothpick comes out clean (my oven took 50 min). Let cool in the pans for 10-15 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to fully cool.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
Our Top Pumpkin Recipes
If you love all things pumpkin during the cozy Fall months, try these next:
- Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Pumpkin Roll
- Easy Pumpkin Waffles
- Pull-Apart Pumpkin Bread
- Mini Pumpkin Pies
- Pumpkin Pancakes
- Pumpkin Soup
- Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
Favorite pumpkin bread recipe I use every year!
So glad you love it!
Hi Natasha! Can I substitute with coconut oil?
Hi Kim! That should be fine.
SUPER beginner baker here! This turned out perfect and I will definitely be making again. I added a little chunky salt and sugar to the top and also 1/2 tsp vanilla in the mix.
Hi! I want to give an honest review of the pumpkin bread. It ended up amazingly, super moist and tastes just like pumpkin spice (I added extra some nutmeg and ginger powder for that icon taste). However, I want to mention that I find the sugar quantity to be too much. We had it the way the recipe says and all of us got a little sick after eating it. I would recommend using 150-200g of sugar, I think that will be a great improvement, especially if using a sweet pumpkin (I made my own puree). Besides that the recipe is absolutely flawless and I can’t wait to make it again of course with less sugar. Thanks for the recipe Natasha!
Thank you so much for sharing that with us, Diandra!
Love this recipe! Appreciate that it uses the whole can of pumpkin and uses healthy oils. I add flaxseed for extra fiber and my kids keep asking for more!
That is the best when kids love what we moms make and I’m so glad this was a hit with your family, Anne!
Has anyone ever tried making this with flaxseed in place of the egg?
Yes! I used 3 flax eggs in this recipe and it turned out fantastic!!! I find flax eggs work really well for everything I bake. For those who don’t know, to make one flax egg you use 1 tablespoon ground flax seed and 3 tablespoons warm water. Mix and allow to sit for a few minutes until slimy.
Other subs I made, white whole wheat flour for the all purpose and coconut sugar for the white sugar. Still turned out delicate and delicious!
So moist and delicious! We really enjoyed it!
So happy to hear that, Lisa!
VERY MOIST! Thanks again for the brilliant recipes that are always delicious and foolproof!
I made it and it was delicious. Is the estimated nutritional facts for 1/8 of a single loaf?
Hi Emma, that’s correct! I’m so glad you loved it.
Can I reduce the sugar amount and change for dark brown sugar?
Hello there! I have not tried reducing the sugar amount in this recipe to advise. I imagine brown sugar will also be fine, let us know how it goes if you try it!
This pumpkin bread is so easy and so delicious. I cut back the sugar to one cup and it still tasted so good! We’ll definitely be making this recipe again!
Do you think I could use gluten-free flour?
Hi Theresa! Some of my viewers have reported using GF flour with good results.
My bread is moist and delicious it just didn’t rise.
Hi Maggie! See my reply to your previous comment. I’m glad it still tasted great!
Oh Natasha…why doesn’t my bread rise like yours? 🙁
Hi Maggie! Are you using the same size pan? Also- make sure your baking powder isn’t old or expired. If it’s been opened for a while it can loose its potency. We use both baking soda and baking powder in this recipe.
This is delicious! I made some honey butter to serve with it, and added dark chocolate chips to the batter before baking.
That sounds amazing! I can only imagine how yummy the honey butter addition was.
Would I use 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice to replace the cloves and nutmeg
Hi Marcy! Yes, that will work.
The recipe was very easy to follow and the end product turned out great! Thank you for sharing this recipe and I’ll enjoy it the rest of this fall season.
I swapped out sugar for maple syrup and the texture was unreal. Absolutely delicious.
I made this in a 13×9 pan and i added 1tsp vanilla. This cake really high and was so light and fluffy. This is the best recipe. Thank You!!
This sounds great! Do you have any changes for high altitude? I live at 4750’.
I haven’t tried this in high altitude but this High Altitute Baking guide can be useful for you.