Name: Easy Pumpkin Bread {One Bowl Recipe}
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 80 min
Ingredients: 3 1/3 cups all purpose flour; 3 cups granulated sugar; 3 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon; 1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger; 3/4 teaspoon ground cloves; 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg; 2 teaspoons baking soda; 1 1/2 teaspoons salt; 1 cup vegetable oil (or canola or coconut oil); 4 eggs (lightly beaten); 2/3 cup orange juice (or water); 15 oz can pure pumpkin puree

This Easy Pumpkin Bread recipe comes together in a single bowl, with only 20 minutes of prep. It makes two gorgeous loaves, so it’s absolutely perfect for freezing or gifting!

Loaf of pumpkin bread on a cutting board, surrounded by coffee mug and cream.

Table of Contents

Easy Pumpkin Bread That Makes Two Loaves

For most of the year, my go-to quick bread recipe is this sour cream banana bread, but there’s always a day, usually in late September, when I get a craving for pumpkin bread that can only be described as urgent.

It’s always on a day when the windows are open and the temperatures are hovering in that rare sweet spot where neither air conditioning or heat is required. Suddenly, all other plans are thrown out the window, because the most important item on the agenda is making a loaf of warm spiced pumpkin bread.

I’ve tried several pumpkin bread recipes over the years–some studded with nuts or chocolate chips, others piled high with crumb toppings or swirled with cream cheese–but this easy pumpkin bread is the one I come back to year after year.

This one bowl recipe can be in the oven in about 20 minutes, and best of all, it makes two loaves! Enjoy one right away and freeze the other, or gift it to a neighbor or friend who could use a pick-me-up.

A slice of this moist, tender, spiced pumpkin bread is the best treat on an Autumn day. Both the kids and adults in our family gobble this up! I hope it becomes as much a part of your family’s fall traditions as it is ours.

Courtney

Key Ingredients + Substitutions

Pantry staples, including flour, baking soda, and salt.
Spices, including cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg. You can also substitute 4 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice, but be sure to add an extra teaspoon of cinnamon.
Vegetable oil– Canola oil or coconut oil are great substitutes. The bread will be the most moist made with oil, not butter.
Eggs– You’ll need four large eggs for this recipe, to bind the ingredients and keep everything nice and (again) moist.
Water– My family’s recipe called for water, but these days I like to use orange juice or apple juice. Any of these options will work great.
Pure pumpkin– One of my favorite things about this recipe is that it uses a whole can of pumpkin. No leftovers! Look for 100% pure pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling.
Vanilla extract– Just a splash improves almost any baking recipe.

How to Make Easy Pumpkin Bread

Flour, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves in a glass mixing bowl.

Step 1: Whisk dry ingredients. Grab a big bowl and whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and spices.

Pumpkin puree, vegetable oil, eggs, and water mixed with flour and spices in a glass bowl.

Step 2: Add wet ingredients. Pour in the oil, eggs, water, and pumpkin puree. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to gently stir the batter together until no white streaks remain. This will take 1-2 minutes.

Two loaf pans filled with pumpkin batter.

Step 3: Pour into prepared pans. Grease two 9 inch loaf pans and line them with a parchment paper sling, if desired. Divide the batter evenly between the two pans.

Two freshly baked loaves of pumpkin bread in loaf pans.

Step 4: Bake. Bake for 60-70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs. Cool in the pans for 5-10 minutes then remove to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Sliced loaf of pumpkin bread on a cutting board.

Storage and Make-Ahead Instructions

Storage: Pumpkin bread keeps very well at room temperature for 5-6 days. Store leftover bread wrapped tightly in saran wrap and store at room temperature.
Make ahead: Pumpkin bread is great made ahead of time! I actually feel like the flavors are even better the next day (if you can wait that long!)
Freezing: Allow the bread to cool completely, then wrap it tightly in plastic wrap. Place the loaf in a freezer bag, and freeze for up to 3 months. To thaw, place bread on the counter at room temperature for several hours or overnight.

Pumpkin Bread Variations

This is an easy pumpkin bread recipe to experiment with! Use this recipe as a base, then try these variations:

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread: Stir in 1-1 1/2 cups semi sweet or milk chocolate chips before pouring the batter into the pans.
Pumpkin Bread with Nuts: I love adding walnuts or pecans to pumpkin bread. You can either stir them into the batter (about 1 cup for two loaves), or just gently spread coarsely chopped nuts over the top of the loaves before baking. This creates a lovely craggly crust!
Cranberry Pumpkin Bread: Stir in 1 1/2 cups dried cranberries to the prepared batter before transferring to pans.
Frosted Pumpkin Bread: Add a layer of cream cheese frosting to the top after the loaves have cooled.

Easy pumpkin bread recipe, shown sliced on a cutting board.

Recipe and Serving Tips from Courtney

Customize your spice level. I like my pumpkin bread to be a little less nutmeg-y and a little more gingery, so you’ll see that reflected in the amount of spices in this recipe. Feel free to adjust them to your own taste buds!
Stir gently. Over-mixing can make for tough bread. It takes some time for the dry and wet ingredients to come together, but just keep going with gentle stirs. This is why I don’t recommend using a stand mixer.
Make pumpkin muffins. This recipe is great for muffins. A full batch will yield about 2 dozen muffins, or you can make 1 loaf and 12 muffins. To bake, increase the temperature to 375 degrees, and check at 20 minutes.
Add some sides and smears. My favorite way to enjoy pumpkin bread is to eat it warm with a smear of salted butter. HEAVEN. It’s also lovely with whipped cream cheese or apple butter. If you’re serving this for brunch, you could pair it with Crustless Quiche Lorraine or a Ham and Cheese Frittata. Double down on the Autumn vibes with one of these Fall Drinks.

Slices of pumpkin bread slathered with cream cheese.

More Pumpkin Recipes to Try This Fall

We absolutely love serving this Pumpkin Spice Crumb Cake for fall brunches, and this Pumpkin Cream Cheese Roll is a staple on our Thanksgiving table.

These Pumpkin Dirt Pudding Graveyard Parfaits make a great Halloween treat. For a healthier pumpkin treat, be sure to try these super easy Healthy Pumpkin Muffins that are made in the blender! And of course, no fall would be complete without a batch of our Soft Frosted Pumpkin Cookies.

If you need more inspiration, you can also check out this huge collection of Leftover Pumpkin Puree Recipes!

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