How to Make Pumpkin Bread
Autumn is on our doorsteps, and so I present this recipe for Pumpkin Bread. It’s a favorite in my house, whether my family wants a snack or something to tuck into a lunchbox.
I am not a big fan of traditional pumpkin pie. It’s slimy. But this pumpkin bread? It’s totally good. It encompasses what I like about pumpkin pie — the cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and all the lovely smells — without the mush factor of pumpkin pie. Your house will smell like classic autumn while this is baking.
And guess what? You can even eat this pumpkin bread with a great big dollop of whipped cream on top, which is really the best part about pumpkin pie anyway. If you don’t want to eat this bread as dessert, serve it plain and it’s great for breakfast or packed in the school lunch bag.
This recipe makes a heck ton of bread. Three loaves, to be exact. Trust me: you will eat them all. But you can also place the extra loaves in freezer-safe bags or wrap them in foil or plastic wrap and freeze them.
Pumpkin Bread
Ingredients:
- 1 15-oz. can pumpkin puree (Be sure you get pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling; there is a difference.)
- 4 eggs
- 2/3 cup water
- 3 cups white sugar
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (I like to use 1 3/4 cups white flour and 1 3/4 cups whole wheat flour to add some nutrition.)
- 2 tsp. baking soda
- 1 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp. ground nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp. ground cloves
- 1/4 tsp. ground ginger
Directions:
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 3 regular-sized loaf pans with cooking spray.
In a large bowl, mix pumpkin puree, eggs, water, sugar, and oil until well blended. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. Stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture until just blended. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pans.
Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until a toothpick or fork inserted into the center of each loaf comes out clean. Allow to cool for about 30 minutes and then remove from pans, slice, and serve with whipped cream.
Dear Rachel,
I love pumpkin bread. I desperately want to try your recipe!
What is the difference between the canned pumpkin and pumpkin puree (which I have never heard of but totally believe you because I have been completely living a sheltered life when it comes to baking my own goodies), I refer to your advice “Be sure you get pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling; there is a difference”.
Hi, Mary. Canned pumpkin and pumpkin puree are the same thing. They contain only pumpkin. On the other hand, canned pumpkin pie filling contains spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, etc. Sometimes the cans of canned/pureed pumpkin look similar to canned pumpkin pie filling, so you just have to look closely at the labels. Good luck!
This looks delicious. I have both 8 inch and 9 inch loaf pans, what size should I use? Or rather, what size are your loaf pans? Thank you
My pans are around 9 inches, but either size would probably work. It’s our favorite pumpkin bread recipe!