Nothing says Fall like the smell of pumpkin baking in the oven. In this seasonal recipe savory spices and pureed pumpkin combine and create the most delicious bread (or muffins) and makes a memorable dessert to share with family and friends.
Pumpkin Bread Adds a Little Joy to Life
The combination of seasonal spices in pumpkin pie or similarly, pumpkin bread cannot be beat. Really, I don’t think I have ever come across one person who claims to dislike pumpkin bread, have you? I absolutely love this bread and make it throughout both Fall and Winter seasons because it is such a winner.
The recipe makes 3 loaves which may seem like too many, but once you take your first bite you will see how quickly that first loaf disappears and be thankful you have another loaf. That second loaf you will savor a little more than the first, and so that you don’t seem like a glutton you may give the third loaf to a friend.
On the other hand, rather than give the third loaf away, you may decide to wrap it up and put it in the freezer. These loaves freeze very well and since you can’t stop thinking about that third loaf of scrumptious pumpkin bread in the freezer, it won’t be in there long. Believe me.
Muffins or Bread, Bread or Muffins
Don’t have 3 loaf pans? No need to worry. You can pour batter into 1 loaf pan and make the rest into muffins. It will yield about 1 dozen standard size muffins when split this way.
If you do not want so many loaves around to tempt you, you can cut the recipe in half. When I do that I make 1 loaf and then scoop the rest of the batter into muffin cups. You will get about 6 muffins and 1 loaf of bread. In my experience the muffins are gone in the blink of an eye.
Baking Tips for Beginners
- Always read a recipe all the way through before you begin to be sure you have all the ingredients
- Ideally eggs, butter and dairy should be room temperature when used for baking
- Darker cookie sheets and pans tend to result in faster baking times
- Baking soda starts to activate as soon as it comes in contact with liquid, so plan to get your baked goods in the oven quickly
- Before you begin adding your own creative tweaks to a recipe, make it once the way the recipe reads and then the next rendition add your personal edits and additions
For this recipe you will need
Best Pumpkin Bread
- October 7, 2018
- 3 Loaves
- 1 hr 30 min
- Print this
Ingredients
- 2 sticks butter, softened
- 2 3/4 c sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 3 c all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground cloves
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1 16 oz. can of pureed pumpkin
Directions
- Step 1
- Preheat oven 350 °
- Step 2
- Grease and flour 3 9x5x3 loaf pans
- Step 3
- In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar
- Step 4
- Add eggs one at a time and beat together until smooth
- Step 5
- Add vanilla and blend well
- Step 6
- In a separate bowl mix together the flour and next 6 ingredients
- Step 7
- Add dry ingredients to butter mixture, alternating with the pureed pumpkin and mixing well after each addition
- Step 8
- Pour into greased loaf pans or muffin cups 3/4 full.
- Step 9
- For loaves: bake 1 hour or until tester inserted in comes out clean.For muffins: bake 10 minutes or until tester comes out clean
- Step 10
- Cool loaves in pan 15 minutes then use a knife to loosen bread from sides of pan and turn onto wire rack to cool completely
