If Starbucks could make pumpkin bread this good I might actually support them. Then again, they can't. This pumpkin bread recipe made from fresh pumpkin is silly easy and the results will shock you seeing that it only uses a handful of everyday ingredients.
The magic lies in the homemade pumpkin puree free of any commercial nastiness. What you get is a super moist pumpkin loaf you would want to eat from morning till night all through autumn and beyond.
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There's not much to it when making a pumpkin loaf. Some people might think there is some sort of secret to making a moist pumpkin bread. Not really.
Just a bit of professional knowledge and know-how will make this one of the best and easiest bakes you'll ever attempt.
Plus, I'll give you ideas on how to add things like chocolate chips, dried fruit, cream cheese and how to make it vegan or gluten-free.
Ingredients needed
You probably have them all in your pantry already.
- Pumpkin puree - Homemade pumpkin puree is way better than store-bought. Go the extra mile and make your own. If you have laziness syndrome then you could be forgiven for using a tin of Libby's pumpkin puree.
- Plain flour - Perfect for baking with less gluten than bread flour.
- Oil - Plain canola oil.
- Sugar - I used brown sugar but plain white sugar is also fine.
- Baking powder and baking soda - The recipe uses both.
- Salt - Regular fine sea salt. Don't bake anything without it.
How to make it
In a few easy steps you'll have the best autumn bread right in front of your very own eyes and mouth hole.
- Line a loaf pan or any other baking pan with greased parchment paper. I use both because it never sticks. I suggest you try it.
- Turn the oven to 170°C or 338°F.
- Mix the wet ingredients until homogenous.
- Sieve all the dry ingredients through a fine-mesh strainer or drum sieve, and fold it into the wet ingredients until you have an evenly distributed smooth batter. Don't over-mix.
- Pour the bread batter into the tin and bake for about 45 minutes or until a kitchen thermometer reads 90°C or 194°F when stuck into the centre of the bread. Alternatively use the stone age method of sticking a wooden or metal skewer into the middle. When it comes out clean, Bad boy is cooked.
- Let it cool down slightly before carefully removing it from the baking form and cooling down completely on a wire rack.
- Only slice when cooled down completely.
Variations
Be as creative as you like and try the following:
- Banana pumpkin bread - You can substitute a ⅓ of the pumpkin puree for banana puree and bake as instructed.
- Chocolate chip pumpkin bread - Add some chocolate chips of your choice to the batter before baking. I like dark chocolate chips.
- Pumpkin muffins - The same batter can be used to bake muffins in a muffin tin.
- Streusel topping - Sprinkle with a streusel topping just before baking. To make a streusel mix together 75g flour, 75g brown sugar, 25g melted butter, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and 50g chopped pecan nuts. Then sprinkle on top just before baking.
- Dried fruit and nuts - You can add in any chopped nuts or dried fruit like raisins, apricots, cherries, cranberries, chopped dates or prunes. Simply add to the batter before baking.
- Spice - Add pumpkin pie spice or make your own mix by using ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg.
- Citrus and ginger - Add orange zest or dried powdered orange peel. If you like gingerbread then add some grated fresh ginger to the wet mix or ground ginger to the dry ingredients.
How to make it gluten-free
Note that results will be different than with regular flour.
Use gluten-free cake flour instead of regular flour and make sure your baking powder and soda are also free of additives that may contain traces of gluten.
Alternatively, you can use a fine nut flour like almond or pumpkin seed flour. It will be a much denser type of bread as the nuts does not have the same binding properties as flour does.
I never recommend doing these conversations but, it is an idea for you to work with if you wish to explore that realm.
How to make it vegan
- Replace the egg with 30g linseeds(flaxseed flour) soaked in 60g water for 30 minutes.
The outcome will be different than with regular eggs as flax does not have the binding qualities of egg.
Add another 60g of flour to make up some of the losses.
Serving suggestions
You'll be happy to know that the sugar content in this pumpkin bread can be altered to your own personal taste without altering the final texture.
My favourite way to have this is to spread some pumpkin cream cheese spread on it with some freshly brewed coffee.
That means that you can make it completely for savoury dishes or keep it as is and use it as a stand-alone autumn snack.
It makes amazing sweet french toast and when you minimise the sugar it's delicious with home-cured salmon for breakfast.
Use it as a vehicle for delicious dips like pea and feta, Moroccan eggplant, creamed spinach or even smokey chipotle guacamole.
Frequently asked questions
Like any bread you should eat it in moderation but, this recipe is packed full of healthy pumpkin puree and the sugar content compared to other pumpkin bread recipes is very low.
You can keep it for very long depending on how you store it. At room temperature covered it will last about two days.
If you want your pumpkin bread to last longer then cover it airtight and store in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Can be frozen for up to 3 months stored airtight. After that this type of bread loses it's charm a bit.
Useful equipment for this recipe
Other recipes you might like
If you like home baking or have a soft spot for pumpkin then you will find the following recipes useful:
- The best carrot cake in the world - The Queen and Elton John both had the pleasure of having this when I worked in London.
- Borodinsky rye bread - One of the most popular recipes on this site and true keeper for bread lovers.
- Pumpkin cake - Packed with pumpkin in all forms and based on my famous carrot cake recipe.
- Roasted pumpkin salad - Perfect for autumn lunches and light dinner.
- Cream cheese pumpkin spread - Used in my pumpkin cake recipe but just as delicious on this pumpkin bread.
- Easy way to use up pumpkin trim - Be mindful, resourceful and clever. Every little helps to make the world a better place.
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Recipe
The Ultimate Pumpkin Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 250 g (2 cups) all purpose flour
- 12 g (3 tsp) baking powder
- 4 g (1 tsp) baking soda
- 180 g (⅘ cups) canola oil
- 125 g (½ cups) brown sugar
- 3 (3 ) large eggs
- 400 g (1 ½ cups) pumpkin puree
- 2 g (⅓ tsp) salt
Instructions
- Line a loaf pan or any other baking pan with greased parchment paper. I use both because it never sticks. I suggest you try it too.
- Turn the oven to 170°C or 338°F.
- Mix the wet ingredients until homogenous.
- Sieve all the dry ingredients through a fine-mesh strainer or drum sieve, and fold it into the wet ingredients until you have an evenly distributed smooth batter. Don't over-mix it.
- Pour the mix into the lined baking pan and bake for about 45 minutes or until a kitchen thermometer reads 90°C or 194°F when stuck into the centre of the bread. Alternatively use the stone age method of sticking a wooden or metal skewer into the middle. When it comes out clean, Bad boy is cooked.
- Let it cool down slightly before carefully removing it from the baking form and cooling down completely on a wire rack.
- Only slice when cooled down completely.
Notes
- Use grams as it's a million times more accurate than cups and spoons.
- Always sieve dry ingredients and mix well to combine.
- Mix wet ingredients well before adding to dry ingredients.
- Don't over mix the batter.
- Make sure to heat your oven well in advance before baking. 30 minutes will do.
- You can make this pumpkin bread in any baking forms. Try a bunt cake mould or bake in muffin tins or mini loaves.
- Store sealed airtight at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- It will keep for up to 5 days stored in the fridge.
- For longer storage seal airtight covered in plastic wrap, and freeze for up to 3 months.
- This recipe uses grams as it's a million times more accurate than cups and spoons.
Kate
Made this yesterday. Two things I love!!! Has no spices! Soooo over pumpkin spiced recipes and this pumpkin bread actually tastes like pumpkin because of that. It’s deliciously moist and tender. Made the pumpkin cream cheese spread also and it’s just out-of-this-world perfect.
Anne Jefferson
Absolutely stunning pumpkin bread recipe. Love the whole “no spices” thing. Tastes purely of pumpkin! Especially with the homemade pumpkin puree. Never knew pumpkin bread could taste this amazing. It’s so simple to make and then you end up with such a beautiful pumpkin loaf. Ps. Adore the balance of sweetness. Just perfect. xxx
Nikki
I added roasted pumpkin seeds and it came out super good. Perfect balance and clear pumpkin flavour. I made the pumpkin puree fresh like you suggested, Cooked it skin on and it was out of this world. Never knew you could keep the skin... It added tons of colour and flavour in my opinion! Thanks for sharing all your knowledge !
kaylee
This is the first time I've every made my own puree, and the first pumpkin anything I've ever made that doesn't contain any/all of the classic pumpkin pie spices. And it's amazing. Thank you for the delicious and simple recipe! Love it with the pumpkin cream cheese spread as suggested.
Charlé
Kaylee, Awesome! Glad you liked it and went all the way with makng your own pumpkin puree and cream cheese spread.Agree! So much better and more pumpkiny without all the added spices.
Gwen
The easiest and best tasting pumpkin bread recipe EVER!!x