Pumpkin Spice Bread

Are you ready for pumpkin spice everything? This recipe will put you in the mood for steaming coffee, cozy flannel shirts, and glorious autumn colors.

Next time try this easy, 3 ingredient pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting!

Jump to:

• ❤️ Why you'll love this recipe
• 🧾 Ingredients
• 🔪 Instructions
• 🎥 Video
• 💭 Tips
• 🎃 Using fresh pumpkin
• 📖 Variations
• 👩🏻‍🍳 FAQs
• 📚 Related recipes
• 📞 The last word
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

❤️ Why you'll love this recipe

• easy recipe
• always gets rave reviews
• freezes well for up to 3 months

The pumpkin in this easy quick bread recipe keeps it moist - sort of like zucchini and pineapple bread or banana bread.

A generous amount of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and ginger plus a little power-up from a pinch of chipotle brings the fall flavor alive in this easy pumpkin spice loaf.

Instructions for both canned and homemade pumpkin puree included.

🧾 Ingredients

• The chipotle is totally optional. It brings a spicy, smoky flavor to the pumpkin bread.
• If you don't want to use bourbon substitute all buttermilk.

🔪 Instructions

Note: This is an overview of the instructions. The full instructions are in the green recipe card below.

1. Start by greasing and flouring 2 loaf pans. You may also want to line with parchment. It makes it so easy to remove the pumpkin loaf when it's done.
2. Mix the flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, and chipotle (if you're using it) together in a medium bowl and set aside.
3. Add the oil, sugar, and brown sugar to the bowl of an electric mixer and beat on medium speed until the sugar starts to dissolve.
4. Beat in the eggs, buttermilk, and bourbon.
5. Stir in the pumpkin until well blended.

5. Add the flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture and stir to blend.
6. Fold in the chopped pecans.
7. Divide batter between the prepared pans.
8. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean - about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Start checking at 55 minutes.
9. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes then turn the pumpkin spice bread out to cool completely.

🎥 Video

Click on the image to watch me make this recipe from start to finish with extra tips! (Video opens in a new tab).

💭 Tips

Expert Tip: Just don't use the pumpkin pie filling that has all of the sugar and stuff in it. You want pure pumpkin puree.

• 2 tablespoons of pumpkin pie spice can be used in place of the spices in this recipe.
• Let cool completely before storing.
• This can be made ahead, wrapped in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for 2 days. Freeze for longer storage.
• To make in individual sizes prepare muffin pans or mini loaf pans bake for 20 minutes and then check every 5 minutes until done.
• The bread is done when the interior registers 200F on an instaread thermometer stuck in the center OR a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean
• It's better the next day.

🎃 Using fresh pumpkin

When I first wrote this post on pumpkin spice bread I had made my own puree from fresh pumpkins.

I used to do a lot of that kind of thing - growing, cooking, and canning - but with some pretty radical changed in my life it just doesn't happen much anymore.

You can use fresh pumpkin if you want to but canned will work fine.

How to make homemade pumpkin puree

If you happen to be using fresh pumpkin make sure that you drain as much liquid off it as possible - let it sit in a colander overnight if you have time. Fresh pumpkin is generally more watery than the commercially canned type and can cause issues with your recipe.

1. Cut a small sugar pumpkin (also called pie pumpkins) in half.
2. Clean out the seeds.
3. Bake, cut side down, on a greased baking sheet at 375F for about 30 minutes or until the flesh is soft and cooked.
4. Let cool.
5. Scoop out the pumpkin and press with a towel to get out as much moisture as possible.
6. If the pumpkin seems very watery you can cook it on low heat to get some of the liquid to evaporate. Remember to stir it often.

📖 Variations

I absolutely love this recipe as written - and so does everyone else who tries it! You might want to try one of the variations, though -

• Make the bread in mini loaf pans.
• If you don't want to use alcohol then an equal amount of ginger ale, or apple juice will work fine.
• Rum substitutes nicely for the bourbon.
• You can substitute 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract for the bourbon and make up for the rest of the liquid in buttermilk, water, or apple juice.
• Hubbard squash or sweet potato is a fantastic substitute for the pumpkin. Mash it before using.
• Walnuts can be used in place of the pecans.
• ½ cup chopped, candied ginger can be added to the batter.
• The oil makes this pumpkin spice bread recipe extra moist - but you can substitute with melted butter or melted, browned butter if you like.
• Toasting the pecans before adding them to this recipe adds a buttery flavor and better texture.
• Add 1 cup or so of chocolate, white chocolate, or toffee chips.
• If you don't want to use the glaze dust the cooled loaf with Confectioner's sugar.

👩🏻‍🍳 FAQs

Here are the questions I am most frequently asked about this recipe.

📚 Related recipes

I can't resist pumpkin spice anything! When it's time for back to school I start pulling out these favorite recipes.

• Pumpkin Bundt Cake with a bourbon brown butter blaze is full of pumpkin spice flavor.
• Easy Pumpkin Pie Recipe from Scratch is a favorite of almost everyone. It's the classic recipe you probably grew up with.
• Bourbon Peach Tea is a refreshing cocktail to make in a pitcher - it's delicious on those final warm, golden days when summer turns into autumn.
• Pumpkin Pie Cupcakes taste like old fashioned pumpkin pie but in cupcake form.
• Pumpkin scones or my other Starbuck's scone recipe is my copycat of a raspberry scone they used to make years ago.
• Try this pumpkin baked oatmeal! Such a delicious breakfast treat!

What’s new? Check out my Restless Chipotle & Co. Store on Amazon where you'll find all kinds of nostalgic goodness!  Thanks so much for being a part of Restless Chipotle!

📞 The last word

I love the idea of curling up on a gray, chilly day with a quilt, a thick slice of spicy pumpkin bread, and a cup of coffee but it doesn't look like that's going to happen anytime soon. In fact, I don't anticipate seeing autumn until sometime in November.

While Autumn strides into the Northeast like Auntie Mame it sneaks into Texas like it's doing the walk of shame.

At some point, for about two weeks, the Dallas area will be arrayed in gorgeous red and gold. At almost exactly the two weeks mark Autumn will rolls her eyes like a bored teenager and move on to something else, leaving us with naked trees and the menopausal climate associated with winter in my area of Texas.

It takes copious amounts of pumpkin spice everything to soften the blow.

You can make this southern peach bread all year long because it uses canned peaches. Try it next!

📖 Recipe

First published March 2008. Last updated September 11, 2021 to add video.