This is the perfect pumpkin bread recipe. It is incredibly moist, insanely pumpkiny and has just the right blend of warm autumn spices! It always bakes up to perfection and is easy to make into loaves or muffins.
To me, there is no fall unless there is pumpkin bread.
Pumpkin bread is the king of all the pumpkin baked goods.
I love slicing it up into THICC slices and enjoying on the side of my pumpkin spice latte on a cool, overcast, fall day. This recipe I’m about to share with you, is LEGIT the best pumpkin bread I’ve ever had in my life. I have no self control when it comes to this one. The pumpkin & the spices are wonderful, but the texture of this bread is magnificent. Magnificent.
I promise this is the perfect pumpkin bread
I’m talking about that perfect dome top, one large crack down the middle and crisp edges from the square loaf pan (this one is my favorite!). The bottom gets just a little bit caramelized. The inside of the bread has an omg…really, soft, tender crumb. Also, the top gets a little sticky by the next day…you know what I’m talking about right?! That insane level of moistness on the top of the loaf that makes you want to just slice the whole thing lengthwise and eat the top? Maybe that’s just me? 🙂
The ingredient list for this recipe is a little hefty; it calls for a lot of fat and a lot of sugar.
But don’t be alarmed.
I promise you this is not an overly sweet or greasy bread. It’s just right!
I prefer to use fresh pumpkin when I make this bread (as I do in all my pumpkin treats), but canned works perfectly fine. Especially since you may not have fresh pumpkin available to you yet. I know I haven’t seen any. 🙂
But, the thing I like about fresh pumpkin is the bright orange color and subtle fruitiness it lends to anything you put it in. That’s what I used today. Using canned pumpkin, I notice a darker color and deeper flavor. This bread works really nice with both fresh & canned versions. Like I said, I know fresh pumpkin is not an easy thing to track down. Since availability is seasonal, I like to buy in bulk, roast & puree my own pumpkin and freeze it for recipes throughout the year. It’s so easy to do, takes just a few steps and the flavor is unlike anything else! Click here for my post on how to make your own fresh pumpkin puree!
This bread has the perfect blend of spices- nutmeg, clove, ginger, cinnamon…I like to add a touch of cardamom, of course.
This bread needs no topping, but you can certainly add a layer of powdered sugar, glaze, or cream cheese frosting if you’re feeling decadent (I suggest mascarpone frosting too!).
You can bake up this recipe into loaves and give as gifts; it’ll make two. OR, pour the batter into muffin cups and you’ll get 24 normal sized (filling the cups just less than 3/4 of the way). For large muffins with tops, you’ll want to fill them just about all the way but the quantity will be less. For this batch, I made one loaf and about 8 large muffins.
The perfect pumpkin bread of course, freezes VERY well.
Go ahead and make a few batches ahead of time!
I usually make a bunch of muffins and wrap them individually, first in plastic wrap, then tin foil. If I have it on hand, I’ll use freezer paper. That makes it super easy to pop one out of the freezer on a whim, unwrap and pop into the microwave for a tasty, warm, pumpkin muffin any time. The bread or muffins will last 3-4 months frozen.
Perfect Pumpkin Bread
Ingredients
- 15 oz pumpkin puree
- 4 eggs (room temp)
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 c vegetable or canola oil
- 3 c granulated sugar
- 1/2 c unsalted butter (melted, cooled)
- 2/3 c water (room temp)
- 3 1/2 c all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp cloves
- 1/4 tsp ginger
- 1/8 tsp cardamom (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Grease two loaf pans with shortening or butter. Set aside.
- In a very large bowl, combine the pumpkin, eggs, vanilla, oil, sugar, butter and water until fully blended.
- In another large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (the remaining ingredients).
- Carefully add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Stir well to combine and mix until all the flour is absorbed.
- Bake for 50 minutes and check on the loaves. Once they begin to brown, take a piece of aluminum foil and tent it over the tops. My loaves took approximately 70 minutes to bake all the way through. The foil prevented the tops from browning further while the inside continued to bake. At the one hour mark, take a toothpick and test the center; bake until the toothpick comes out clean.
- Allow to cool in the pan for 20-30min. Remove from pan and fully cool on a baking rack.
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