Published October 20, 2021.This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
This amazing Pumpkin bread recipe is incredibly easy to make and is loaded with chocolate chips and walnuts making it light, fluffy, and delicious!
I’m not sure there is anything I like more than fresh homemade bread. If you love baking bread just as much as I do, then you absolutely have to try out my Naan or Pita Bread.
Pumpkin Bread
Pumpkin bread is a simple quick bread recipe that consists of a standard wet to dry ingredient mix that is mixed with pureed pumpkin and then baked. Believe it or not, pumpkin bread has a rich history stemming back to Native Americans and Indians.
The cultivation of gourd produce, and utilizing every single piece of food, led to the creation of gourd loaves of bread which is essentially how pumpkin bread was born. You can also use fresh cooked-down pumpkin if you’d like to make this recipe completely from scratch.
How to Make Homemade Pumpkin Bread
Use these easy-to-follow instructions for making this amazing homemade pumpkin bread recipe:
Whisk together the melted butter and sugars in a large bowl until combined
Next, add in one egg at a time until it is whisked in.
Pour in the vanilla, oil, and milk and mix.
Add in the pumpkin puree and whisk until mixed.
Now, add in the baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt and mix in.
Whisk in the flour until combined.
Thoroughly fold in the walnuts and chocolate chips.
Top off with alittle mixture of pepitas and brown sugar and bake at 350° for 75-80 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean in the center, or until it reaches 197° to 198°.
Cool in the panfor 20 minutes before slicing and serving.
Why is My Pumpkin Bread So Dense?
Pumpkin bread can become dense if there is not enough hydration or wet ingredients in the recipe. Another cause is overcooking the bread which can cause it to dry out. Remember, it’s always easy to keep cooking if it isn’t done but impossible to take cooking time back. Try backing off the total cooking time by 5-10 minutes.
You can counter this by adding more of one of the following ingredients:
- ½ cup pumpkin puree
- ¼ cup oil
- A quarter cup of whole milk
- ¼ cup melted unsalted butter
Why is My Pumpkin Bread Gummy?
Pumpkin bread can seem gummy or a little bit wet when the dry to wet ratio is off. If you discover that your batter is way too wet, start by including a ½ cup of flour to help stabilize it a bit more. The batter should be giggly, but not so thin that it will simply pour into the loaf pans without the assistance of a rubber spatula.
Make-Ahead and Storage
Make-Ahead:You can make this pumpkin bread recipe up to 1 day ahead of time.
How to Store:Keep covered at room temperature for up to 3 days or cover and keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. This will freeze well covered for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator until soft.
chef notes + tips
- You can just useoil, or just use milk, or a combination of both like I did in this recipe. You can also swap out the milk for full-fat yogurt.
- Feel free to swap out the walnuts with pecans if you’d prefer.
- You can easily make24 muffins using this recipe if you prefer pumpkin muffins instead. Bake them for 25-28 minutes.
- Discard the use of chocolate chips if you do not want them.
- If you do not want the pepita-brown sugar topping, you can swap it out for a glaze. Once the bread is completely cooled, make the glaze from my polenta cake recipe and pour it over the top.
More Bread Recipes:
- Zucchini Bread
- Banana Bread
- Cornbread Recipe
- Soda Bread
- Brioche
Be sure to follow me onFacebook,YouTube,Instagram,andPinterest,and if you’ve had a chance to make this then definitely drop me a comment and a rating below!
Video
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Homemade Pumpkin Bread Recipe
5 from 21 votes
This amazing Pumpkin bread recipe isvery easy to make and is loaded with chocolate chips and walnuts making it light, fluffy, and delicious!
Servings: 16
Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour hour
Ingredients
- 2 sticks melted unsalted butter
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- ¾ cup sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- ¼ cup whole milk
- 3 cups pumpkin puree
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- pinch of sea salt
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup roughly chopped walnuts
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°.
In a large bowl whisk together the butter and sugar until completely mixed.
Next, add in 1 egg at a time until completely mixed in.
Pour in the vanilla, oil, and milk until combined and then pour in the pumpkin puree and whisk them in.
Now, whisk in the baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt until completely mixed.
Whisk in the flour until it is combined and then thoroughly fold in the walnuts and chocolate chips using a rubber spatula.
Divide the batter between 2 9×5 loaf pans that have been sprayed with nonstick spray.
This part is optional but mix together 1/2 cup of packed light brown sugar with 1/2 cup of pepitas (pumpkin seeds) and evenly sprinkle it over the top of the bread loaves.
Bake at 350° for 75-80 minutes or until browned and cooked in the center. If you press a toothpick in the center, it should come out relatively clean. It should have an internal temperature of 198°.
Remove from the oven and set on a rack and cool for at least 20 minutes before slicing and serving.
Notes
Chef Notes:
Make-Ahead: You can make this pumpkin bread recipe up to 1 day ahead of time.
How to Store: Keep covered at room temperature for up to 3 days or cover and keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. This will freeze well covered for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator until soft.
You can just use oil, or just use milk, or a combination of both like I did in this recipe. You can also swap out the milk for full-fat yogurt.
Feel free to swap out the walnuts with pecans if you’d prefer.
You can easily make 24 muffins using this recipe if you prefer pumpkin muffins instead. Bake them for 25-28 minutes.
Discard the use of chocolate chips if you do not want them.
If you do not want the pepita brown sugar topping, you can swap it out for a glaze. Once the bread is completely cooled, make the glaze from my polenta cake recipe and pour it over the top.
Nutrition
Calories: 353kcalCarbohydrates: 58gProtein: 7gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 42mgSodium: 129mgPotassium: 315mgFiber: 4gSugar: 29gVitamin A: 7225IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 76mgIron: 3mg
Course: bread
Cuisine: American, Native American
Author: Chef Billy Parisi
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46 comments
- Paula Greco
Chef Parisi strikes again!!!! So very yummy!
- Reply
- Rachel Verstraete
What should I do to make mini loaves? I’ve read conflicting recipes to decrease temp as well as bake time or not decrease temp. Thank you!
- Reply
- L Mascolo
Awesome recipe !!! First time making pumpkin bread. Husband was skeptical on taste and he actually loves it !!! Almost gone and we are on day 3.
- Reply
- Chef Billy Parisi
appreciate you trying this!
- Reply
- Charlene LaFontaine
This is the best pumpkin bread I have ever made. I have made it many times. I love the addition of mini chocolate chips to the walnuts in the mixture. It is so moist and delicious.
- Reply
- Chef Billy Parisi
thanks
- Reply
- Mary Sisserson
Great flavor
- Reply
- Chef Billy Parisi
Thanks!
- Reply
- Diana
So very moist, easy to make and delicious.
- Reply
- Chef Billy Parisi
Appreciate you trying this!
- Reply
- Debbie H
Absolutely fantastic! Delicious and moist! I will be saving this recipe that is for sure
- Reply
- Chef Billy Parisi
Thank you for trying this!
- Reply
- Sharon
So moist and yummy
- Reply
- Anne
Excellent results.
- Reply
perfect!!
- Reply
- Marjorie Stradinger
This one is stellar. Is there anyway I can persuade you to stop recommending Canola. First there are NO vegetables with oil. Monsanto calls it that as a ruse. They certainly know rapeseed is not a vegetable. And the Round Up and hexane residue is carcinogenic. And it’s a trans fa, highly inflammatory.
I’m a subscriber and contribute (and will continue) to you and I make most of what you make and teach. Love you, love your recipes.
- Reply
- Dawn
Turned out wonderful.. moist & tasty . Ty
- Reply
- Lea
I know!!
Tag you’re it!! This pumpkin bread is spot on!! I changed out and put pecans. But all the ingredients that went into this recipe is a whole farm raised local. I am so grateful. You’re an excellent chef. Thank you for this website!!- Reply
- Rod MacDonald
Excellent, perfect for the fall!
- Reply
ys
- Reply
- Rosa Lee Neaves
very good
- Reply
fc
- Reply
- Nancy Lane Lane
Pumpkin Bread Recipe.. Great. Love All your recipes.
- Reply
- Chef Billy Parisi
Thank you!
- Reply
- Migliori Lisa
Moist and delicious. My new favorite!
I add raisins to mine- Reply
nice!
- Reply
- Eileen Muller
Moist and flavorful. The pumpkin seed topping makes this truly special!
- Reply
so good!!
- Reply
- Christina Kallberg
Absolutely delicious and easy to make with Billys wonderful recipe⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Reply
thank you so kindly!!
- Reply
- Janice
A friend did for me and it’s the ultimate beat!!
- Reply
awesome!
- Reply
- Janet
great recipe
- Reply
thank you so kindly!!
- Reply
- Linda
Do you make your pumpkin puree for this recipe, or do you buy it? If so, which brand, please? I love your recipes! Thanks for bringing so many to the table!
- Reply
you can use homemade or store-bought. I buy whatever’s organic and on sale.
- Reply
- Helen Viola
Hi Billy, does the cook time change if you only have one pan to bake with? I have the pumpkin bread in the oven as I type. I was planning to make the second one tomorrow. Help!
- Reply
Nope!
- Reply
- Gretchen
Oh my. So VERY good! Thx for this wonderful, easy and delicious recipe. Video was spot on too. Could not have been better.
- Reply
- Linda Goss
I ate half the dough! Billy is the best!
- Reply
- Joyce Prendergast
Loved wathcing you make this pumpkin bread. Could you use raisins instead of chocolate chips?
TYIA
Joyce 🙂- Reply
yes
- Reply
- Joyce Prendergast
I thought so. Thank you. 🙂
Have a great day & keep on cooking!- Reply
- Tammy
Made this with Sweet Potato puree instead and changed out the nuts to pistachios left the rest of the way you have it. Huge Hit!!! Thank you for the recipe.
- Reply
