Make one or two loaves

I have a lot of opinions about pumpkin bread. I have a lot of opinions about a lot of things but we’re talking about pumpkin bread here. I don’t think it should have a streusel, a glaze, or cream cheese frosting. I don’t want it to be too sweet or have too many spices. All these things have a time and place and that’s in muffins or cake. 

I’ve been searching for a recipe that reminds me of the pumpkin bread we had growing up, a special treat from a family friend, and of course it needed to be one that still met my criteria about what pumpkin bread should be (see above). After years of begging our family friend, she did finally share her recipe with me and although I love it, it makes 5 loaves! I tried to divide all the ingredients into one loaf but I was quickly defeated when I had to divide 6 (eggs) by 5. This recipe below is simple yet perfect and is only very slightly adapted from Alexandra Stafford’s recipe (i.e. spices). You can find her recipe here. I hope you love it! 

I’ve also included the ingredients if you’d like to make one loaf. I often prefer to make one loaf so we get to enjoy the smell of freshly baked pumpkin bread much more often. If you want to make just one loaf too, you can always use the leftover pumpkin puree to make pumpkin alla vodka pasta! 

Ingredients for two loaves

• 2 cups (424 g) of sugar
• 1 cup (215 g) of neutral oil 
• 4 large eggs, room temperature 
• 15-ounce can (425 g) of pumpkin puree 
• 3/4 cup (177 g) of water, room temperature
• 2 teaspoons of baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoon (7 grams) of fine sea salt or kosher salt
• 3 teaspoons of cinnamon
• Less than 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
• 3 cups (384 g) of AP flour

Directions for two loaves

1. Heat the oven to 350 with a rack in the middle. Spray two standard loaf pans with nonstick spray. You can line it with parchment paper if you like. Set them aside. 
2. In a stand mixer, add the sugar, oil, pumpkin puree, and water and mix to combine. Now add in the eggs one at a time. Keep mixing until well combined. Add the salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and baking soda to the wet ingredients and mix well. Use a spatula to make sure the batter is thoroughly combined. With the mixer running on low, slowly add in the flour and mix until just combined (you don’t want to over-mix). 
3. Alternatively, you can do this all by hand, as I often do. Whisk together the sugar and oil together until combined. Then add the eggs, one at a time, whisking until fully combined. Add the pumpkin puree and water and mix again. Add the salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and baking soda, and mix thoroughly. Whisk in the flour and mix until just combined, you don’t want to over-mix, but you want to make sure no flour pockets remain. I usually take a spatula to scrape the bottom and make sure no flour is hiding.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pans. 
5. Bake for about 45 minutes to an hour until a toothpick comes out batter-free, including the top center which usually takes the longest to bake (see note). 
6. Remove them from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool for about 10 minutes. Remove the breads from their pans and place them directly on a wire rack. Allow them to cool completely before slicing and serving. 

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Ingredients for one loaf  

• 1 cup (212 g) of sugar
• 1/2 cup (108 g) of neutral oil
• Half of a 15-ounce can of pumpkin puree (213 grams)
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons, or 6 tablespoons (89 g) of water, room temperature
• 2 large eggs, room temperature 
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon of sea salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon
• Less than a 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg
• 1 1/2 cups (192 g) of AP flour

Directions for one loaf

1. Heat the oven to 350 with a rack in the middle. Spray one standard loaf pan with nonstick spray. You can line it with parchment paper if you like. Set it aside. 
2. In a stand mixer, add the sugar, oil, pumpkin puree, and water and mix to combine. Now add in the eggs one at a time. Keep mixing until well combined. Add the salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and baking soda to the wet ingredients and mix well. Use a spatula to make sure the batter is thoroughly combined. With the mixer running on low, slowly add in the flour and mix until just combined (you don’t want to over-mix). 
3. Alternatively, you can do this all by hand, as I often do. Whisk together the sugar and oil together until combined. Then add the eggs, one at a time, whisking until fully combined. Add the pumpkin puree and water and mix again. Add the salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and baking soda, and mix thoroughly. Whisk in the flour and mix until just combined, you don’t want to over-mix, but you want to make sure no flour pockets remain. I usually take a spatula to scrape the bottom and make sure no flour is hiding.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. 
5. Bake for about 45 minutes to an hour until a toothpick comes out batter-free, including the top center which usually takes the longest to bake (see note). 
6. Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool for about 10 minutes. Remove the bread from the pan and place it directly on the wire rack. Allow the bread to cool completely before slicing and serving. 

Notes

• If you find your loaf or loaves are browning on one side more than the other, turn your pan(s) halfway through baking to ensure they brown evenly.