Homemade pumpkin bread is a favorite fall recipe packed with cinnamon spice and tons of pumpkin flavor. Extra moist and easy to make, this recipe has been a fan favorite for years. You don’t even need a mixer! The days of bland pumpkin bread are behind us.
I originally published this recipe in 2014 and have since added new photos, a video tutorial, and a few more success tips.
One reader, Laura, commented: “Wanted to say this bread is really good! And last year when I took some of my farmers markets breads to our county fair, this is one of the breads I entered for judging, got a blue ribbon, 1st place, for it! Very good! ★★★★★”
When September rolls around, I have the sudden urge to make every quick bread recipe under the sun. Some of my favorites are banana bread, apple cinnamon bread, and this orange beauty: the BEST pumpkin bread I’ve ever had. This is a favorite pumpkin bread recipe because each slice is incredibly moist and the process is very straightforward. There are no dry crumbs here! This pumpkin bread is also packed with pumpkin and pumpkin spice flavors. I’m telling you… this is some good stuff.
Perfecting This Pumpkin Bread Recipe
When I was testing this pumpkin bread recipe, it took me about 6 or 7 tries to get it just right. After plenty of sunken, soggy, and flavorless loaves, I finally mastered what ingredients and how much of each to use, and the result is pumpkin perfection. The recipe is a lot like these pumpkin muffins.
Here are the key ingredients you need & why:
- Pumpkin: There’s a lot of pumpkin in this recipe because it not only adds flavor, but moisture as well. I always bake with canned pumpkin, but homemade pumpkin puree works too. If you’re interested, here’s how to make pumpkin puree. Make sure you blot your homemade pumpkin puree to rid some of the moisture (not necessary if using canned pumpkin). Simply measure your homemade pumpkin puree, then squeeze out some of the moisture with a paper towel.
- Oil: Adds incredible moisture and lightens up the crumb. Vegetable oil is best, but you can substitute melted coconut oil instead.
- Favorite Fall Spices: Cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves… the gang’s all here! These 4 spices complement the pumpkin flavor wonderfully (and are often found together in pumpkin pie and many other pumpkin recipes). You could also use pumpkin pie spice—see my recipe Note below.
- Orange Juice: I know orange juice seems strange here, but don’t be nervous. This bread will NOT taste like oranges. I use orange juice because a little liquid keeps the bread from tasting too dense. Milk works too if you don’t have orange juice, but the subtle orange flavor is like magic in this bread. It just works.
- Chocolate Chips: Optional, but if you’re a chocolate lover, pumpkin + chocolate is always a good idea. You can also add chocolate chips to other quick bread recipes like zucchini bread and peanut butter chocolate chip zucchini bread.
Here’s the batter and a couple pictures of the bread without chocolate chips:
Why You’ll Love This Pumpkin Bread Recipe:
- Delicious in the fall
- Smells wonderful while it bakes
- Easy to make—no mixer required
- Extra moist
- Tons of pumpkin flavor
- Loaded with warm spices
- Adaptable—studded with chocolate chips, or use chopped pecans, or leave plain
- Similar to banana bread, it tastes even better on day 2 (if it lasts that long!)
I love this pumpkin bread recipe so much that I included it in my first cookbook, Sally’s Baking Addiction. It’s always a hit, especially when pumpkin spice season picks up!
But after 1 taste, you might not want to limit this quick bread to the fall season. 🙂
Another reader, Liz, commented: “This is by far the best pumpkin bread recipe I have made… It’s moist and loaded with flavor. I love the orange juice that adds a fresh flavor to it. I add some orange zest that kicks up the orange flavor a bit. It goes well with the chocolate chips too. ★★★★★”
More Perfect Pumpkin Recipes
- Pumpkin Muffins & Mini Cinnamon Sugar Pumpkin Muffins
- Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies & Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
- Pumpkin Roll
- Brown Butter Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies & Pumpkin Oatmeal Cream Pies
- Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Pumpkin Bundt Cake
- Pumpkin Coffee Creamer
- Recipes to Make With Leftover Pumpkin Puree
For even more inspiration, here are my 30+ best pumpkin dessert recipes.
Print
My Best Pumpkin Bread
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes
- Yield: 1 loaf
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Homemade pumpkin bread is a favorite fall recipe packed with sweet cinnamon spice, tons of pumpkin flavor, and optional chocolate chips.
Ingredients
- 1 and 3/4 cups (219g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg*
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves*
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger*
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup (150g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1 and 1/2 cups (340g) pumpkin puree (canned or fresh)
- 1/2 cup (120ml) vegetable oil, canola oil, or melted coconut oil
- 1/4 cup (60ml) orange juice*
- 2/3 cup (120g) semi-sweet chocolate chips*
Instructions
- Adjust the oven rack to the lower third position and preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Lowering the oven rack prevents the top of your bread from browning too much, too soon. Grease a metal 9×5-inch loaf pan with non-stick spray. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, and salt together until combined. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs, granulated sugar, and brown sugar together until combined. Whisk in the pumpkin, oil, and orange juice. Pour these wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and gently mix together using a rubber spatula or a wooden spoon. There will be a few lumps. Do not over-mix. Gently fold in the chocolate chips, if including.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Bake for 60–65 minutes, making sure to loosely cover the bread with aluminum foil halfway through to prevent the top from getting too brown. The bread is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean with only a few small moist crumbs. This may be before or after 60–65 minutes depending on your oven, so begin checking every 5 minutes around the 55-minute mark.
- Allow the bread to cool completely in the pan on a wire rack before removing and slicing.
- Cover and store leftover pumpkin bread at room temperature for up to 3–4 days, or in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Notes
- Make Ahead Tip: Baked pumpkin bread can be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 9×5-inch Loaf Pan | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Cooling Rack
- Spices: You can use 1 teaspoon store-bought or homemade pumpkin pie spice instead of nutmeg, cloves, and ginger. Be sure to still add 2 teaspoons of cinnamon to the batter.
- Oil: Oil is a better choice than melted butter in this recipe. The bread is not as moist and soft if using butter.
- Orange Juice: You can substitute milk (any kind) for orange juice.
- Chocolate Chips: If desired, try using milk chocolate, white chocolate, dark chocolate, or even chopped pecans/walnuts instead of the semi-sweet chocolate chips. You can leave the pumpkin bread plain, too.
- Pumpkin Muffins: This recipe makes 15–18 pumpkin chocolate chip muffins. Bake for about 20 minutes at the same oven temperature, or try this similar pumpkin muffins recipe.
- Bundt Cake: Simply make this pumpkin Bundt cake (pretty much this exact recipe) and leave out the cream cheese filling. Add 1 and 1/2 cups chocolate chips if desired. About 1 hour bake time.
Sally, while this was baking my home smelled delicious. I think even my dog was going crazy. I followed directions and measured to the t. Once the bread was done, I let it cool before cutting some slices. I was sad to find the bread came out so dense! Is there a reason for this? What did I do wrong? I’m thinking I over mixed it as it also happened the last time I made your banana bread recipe. I would love to make this as a gift for friends but don’t like the “dense” appearance of it. It still Tastes heavenly. Thank you 🙂
Sally, this bread is amazing! Made some last night and was thinking about it all morning at church. So moist and packed with flavor, and one of my new fall favorites!
I made the Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread. Looked great coming out of the oven, and my cake tester came out clean after baking for 65mins . The perimeter of the bread was delicious, but the center was mush……not baked at all. What did I do wrong ?
this just happened to me too
Sally, I cannot wait to try this recipe! Question- I have a jumbo muffin tin (makes 8) would the temperature and bake time be the same?
Andrea– yep, 350F for 25+ minutes (a little longer than the standard size muffins, shorter than bread). The muffins are done when a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
If I don’t have OJ, can I substitute something else?
Milk would be OK as a replacement, but the OJ really puts the bread over the top.
This recipe looks great! Can’t wait to try. Can I substitute oil with apple sauce?
You can, yes– but for the best texture, I don’t recommend it! You can also try half/half.
Can I just say that this is the BEST pumpkin bread that I have EVER made! Today is my 5th time baking this and I am still as obsessed as ever – its the perfect amount of sweet, moist, and delicious! Thank you so much for this recipe!!! Much love.
I have never written a comment on a recipe before, but given how many of your recipes I have tried, I felt compelled! I just want you to know that you are my go to website for all things delicious! I have made so many of your recipes and every single one of them has been fabulous. In fact, as I type I have your pumpkin muffins in the oven for our school bake sale.
Thank you for being a baking goddess and making me look good
I’ve made this bread twice now – so delicious!
Just made this recipe with my kids yesterday. We made the pumpkin puree ourselves and used cinnamon chips instead of chocolate chips. IT IS FANTASTIC!! Less than 24 hrs later and it is gone. When my son saw it in is lunchbox he said it was better than having a brownie. That is a big compliment from my chocoholic son. I will definitely be making this recipe again. Thanks for posting this.
I love all of your recipes- certainly my go to for any occasion and slowly making my way through your amazing cook book 🙂 I’ve made this bread twice now and it received glowing reviews! So delicious and moist- it gets even more moist over time if that is even possible! I added a sprinkle of cinnamon sugar & some shaved dark chocolate mid way through pouring in the pan and again on top for a little extra something. Great recipe, love your blog-can’t wait for holiday baking to commence 🙂
Sally I’ve been drooling over this bread ever since you posted it! I finally got around to making it yesterday and I have to say that its just as good as I’ve anticipated, if not better. Its so moist without being heavy or soggy and very flavorful. Definitely another favorite from your blog!
Made this tonight and it was incredible! Thank you for sharing!
Thank you for this recipe! I didn’t have any ground ginger or cloves so I used about a 1/2 teaspoon of ground allspice instead. I used half of the batter to make a loaf and the other half to make into muffins. Both turned out wonderfully! Took no time to whip up with a great result! Will absolutely make again!
This is an awesome recipe. Ive had nothing but compliments so far. Thank you for this recipe. I only have one question…how can i keep the chocolate chips from falling to the bottom of the pan before the batter sets up?
Hi Mike– I’ve never had that happen before. The batter is quite thick so the chocolate chips shouldn’t really be sinking. Two things you can try… (1) toss the chocolate chips in 1 Tablespoon of flour and add to the recipe as directed (including any excess flour) and/or (2) pour batter into pan and chill for 15 minutes in the refrigerator before baking. No longer than 15 minutes or the baking soda will lose some of its leavening power.
Wow Sally what a wonderful recipe this is! I’ve had your book for a while now and been waiting and waiting for Autumn to try this out. Thankfully I could get hold of Libby’s pumpkin puree here in the UK (which is a complete miracle if you ask me!) and I’ve made this loaf twice in two weeks. My whole family love it, we have a slice with a dollop of creme fraiche or sour cream, depending on what’s in the fridge. I’m sure it’s the orange juice that makes this cake extra moist! I might even prefer it to banana loaf now, which I never thought I’d say.
Rosie x
I don’t have vegetable or canola oil. Would olive oil work?
That should be OK.
Wow – how delicious! I made this last night and it was incredible! I didn’t have any cloves so I left those out and added a teeny splash of vanilla. So simple and easy! I just came across your blog and love it! Inspirational for a novice baker like me!
Hi there! I was super excited to try this recipe, and it was the first dessert bread that I’ve attempted. It smelled great, and was fun to make, but it ended up tasting bland. I followed the recipe and directions, so I’m not sure where I went wrong. I suppose I just need to add more sugar/spices next time? It was deliciously moist, though. I made a whipped cream cheese brown sugar/cinnamon spread to go on top of the bread while it was still hot, and it was yummy. But I’m just not sure how in the world it lacked that wonderful, festive flavor!
This was so, so yummy! Even my hubby, who hates everything pumpkin, was gobbling it up. Seriously delish!
Made this today….my whole house smells so delicious and the pumpkin bread came out fantastic! Can’t wait to make it again for Thanksgiving. Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Amazingly moist and oh so delicious! Thanks for sharing!
I made this today… and… it’s AMAZING! So soft and flavorful, and wonderfully captures the essence of fall, IMO. Thanks again for another wonderful recipe… I’m adding it to my recipe collection!
These were a HUGE hit. Completely devoured. Delicious + moist with the chocolate chips. Might make with different flavored add-ins next time, like you suggested.
I just made this bread yesterday and tried it this morning! Best pumpkin bread ever! Way better than the one I used to get at Starbucks
Oh my lucky stars, just made this recipe. Though it is currently baking, I couldn’t stop stealing little licks of the batter! That orange? Delicious. It adds a whole other level to the flavor and I can’t wait to share it with my coworkers tomorrow 🙂
I made this today and it is delicious. I added some chopped walnuts and it is a hit. I am looking forward to taking some to work tomorrow.
This pumpkin bread is so good!!! I love pumpkin and this makes me so excited for fall!! It was the perfect post-run breakfast 🙂 yummmm! Love the addition of orange juice
Hi Sally,
I made this yesterday and it was awesome. But you are right, it’s even better the second day! I love recipes with pumpkin all year long so please keep them coming.
Julie
I made this as written. Perfect. I doubled the recipe and that worked out super well, too. Just used Libby’s Pumpkin Puree from the can. I used mini-chips. This couldn’t have come out better — thanks for a very excellent recipe!!