Skip to Content

Homemade Fresh Pumpkin Bread Recipe

Homemade Pumpkin bread is always a welcome fall treat. This pumpkin bread recipe uses coconut oil and canned, fresh or frozen pumpkin with adjustments.

Pumpkin Bread

This fragrant tasty bread make a good addition to the lunchbox. A loaf won’t last long if kept on the counter for snacks or on a party tray. It’s very good.

Homemade Pumpkin Bread. This recipe includes instructions for pureeing your own fresh pumpkin!Our family has loved this moist, tasty pumpkin bread for generations.

We make is usually from fresh or frozen pumpkin puree from our garden crop. Fresh pumpkins are baked or steamed, pureed and transformed into fragrant cookies, pies and pumpkin bread.

More Pumpkin Recipes:

This Pumpkin bread recipe includes instructions for pureeing fresh pumpkin. Very handy for gardeners like us, that grow their own pumpkins. Or maybe you don’t garden yourself but you know a gardener.

Do you love visiting a favorite pumpkin patch every fall like my daughters do with their kids? Grab a sugar pumpkin from the patch if they have one. 

It’s so fun to cook pies, cookies and breads made from pumpkins picked or grown together with your family members. Kids especially gain so much value out of farm to table experiences! They learn where their food comes from  and have so much fun.

Pumpkin Bread

Pumpkin Bread Recipe Notes:

This bread is a good lunch box addition, Holiday appetizer or after school snack. It’s been loved by our family for generations and we hope you love it too!

This recipe makes one loaf as written. It doubles Easily. This recipe is meant for fresh or frozen pumpkin puree but canned pumpkin can be used as noted below.

The baking times change depending on the looseness of your batter. Use the toothpick test to determine doneness.

To make pumpkin purée

Homemade Roasted Pumpkin Puree

This is a quick run down of the steps to making pumpkin puree. Here is the full roast pumpkin puree recipe post

  • Cut a pumpkin in half,
  • Scoop out the sides and stringy stuff,
  • Lay both halves face down on a baking sheet and bake at 350º until soft when poked with a sharp knife, About 45 minutes.
  • Cool, scoop out the flesh and put into a large bowl.
  • Beat thoroughly with an electric mixer, food processor or potato masher until it’s evenly pureed with no lumps.
  • Freeze any extra for future use.

For this pumpkin bread with fresh pumpkin you will get a very different consistency in the batter from using canned pumpkin.

Fresh pureed and especially fresh frozen pumpkin puree will give you a wetter, looser batter. 

Adjustments for Canned Pumpkin

For a truly Easy pumpkin bread recipe you won’t want to make your own puree. If you have some handy that great. Otherwise grab a can of store bought pumpkin puree. Watch the labels. Don’t use pumpkin pie filling.

For canned pumpkin puree adjust the water called for in the recipe to make your batch consistency no thicker than you see pictured. 

The picture below is the consistency you’re going for. A little looser is ok, but no denser or it won’t bake thoroughly!

Pumpkin Bread Batter

This is a simple, delicious pumpkin quick bread. It’s moist and full of pumpkin and spices.

Pumpkin Bread Batter
Pumpkin bread batter

You can see this is a moist pumpkin bread. Feel Free to adjust the wet ingredients to your desired moistness for this easy pumpkin bread..

Pumpkin Bread

Baking tips:

You must bake this bread until a toothpick comes out clean. Add time to your baking in 5 or ten minutes additions until your bread is completely done.

Cover the loaf with a loose tinfoil tent if you see the edges of the bread getting done before the middle is completely cooked.

Can You Freeze Pumpkin Bread?

Yes! I love to freeze homemade pumpkin bread. It makes a cozy winter snack or handy party food in a hurry.

  • Cool the bread completely.
  • DO NOT ICE the bread before freezing it.
  • Wrap the loaf tightly in heavy duty tinfoil.
  • Put the wrapped bread in a heavy plastic bag or ziplock freezer bag.
  • Suck out all the air (OR vacuum pack it)
  • Label with the date and recipe name
  • Freeze for up to 6 months
  • Defrost at room temperature. Cut bread when completely thawed.

Icing for Pumpkin Bread

I also use this icing on my homemade cinnamon rolls. It’s delish!

Icing is optional. I rarely ice my pumpkin bread. Keep this icing recipe handy for dressing this pumpkin quick bread up for a Thanksgiving dessert or Fall party tray.

  • 2/3 Cup melted butter
  • 4 Cups powdered sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
  • 2 tsp. vanilla
  • 4 to 8 Tablespoons hot water
  1. In a medium bowl, mix melted butter, powdered sugar and vanilla.
  2. Add 1 Tablespoon hot water or more a little at a time until the glaze reaches a good consistency.
  3. Spread or drizzle over the cooled pumpkin bread.

Your Printable Recipe Card:

Pumpkin Bread
Yield: 16 slices

Homemade Pumpkin Bread Recipe

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Homemade Pumpkin bread is always a huge fall treat around here. This recipes uses coconut oil and canned, fresh or frozen pumpkin with adjustments.  A loaf won't last long if kept on the counter for snacks.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 C flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 C sugar
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 C pumpkin puree*
  • 1/2 C coconut oil
  • 2 eggs beaten
  • 1/4 C water, adjust as needed for canned pumpkin
  • 1/2 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp allspice
  • 1/2 C walnuts, opt.

Instructions

  1. Preheat Oven to 350 degrees
  2. Sift together the flour, salt, sugar and baking soda. Set aside
  3. In a separate, larger bowl, mix the pumpkin, oil, eggs, 1/4 Cup of water and spices together
  4. Add the dry ingredients, and mix together gently with a large wooden spoon. Small lumps are fine. Add the walnuts if you use them and stir together.
  5. Pour into a well-greased loaf pan, size 9x5x3.
  6. Bake 50 to 60 minute

Notes

This recipe assumes you are using fresh pumpkin and taking the time to puree it. If you are using canned pumpkin the prep time to make this recipe is reduced to about 10 minutes.

This recipes doubles easily for two loaves.

Freeze this bread once it it completely cooled by wrapping tightly in plastic wrap and then in tinfoil. Freeze for up to a month. Defrost by removing tinfoil and setting on the counter at room temperature.

Optional Icing Recipe:

Ingredients:

  • 2/3 Cup melted butter
  • 4 Cups powdered sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
  • 2 tsp. vanilla
  • 4 to 8 Tablespoons hot water

Instructions:

  1. In a medium bowl, mix melted butter, powdered sugar and vanilla.
  2. Add 1 Tablespoon hot water or more a little at a time until the glaze reaches a good consistency to spread or drizzle over the cooled pumpkin bread.

Nutrition Information

Yield

12

Serving Size

1

Amount Per Serving Calories 258Total Fat 13gSaturated Fat 8gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 4gCholesterol 31mgSodium 217mgCarbohydrates 33gFiber 2gSugar 18gProtein 4g

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Instagram

Prairie Gal Cookin'

Monday 12th of October 2015

Thanks for joining the #TryABite Tuesday Link-up! Please come join us again on Prairie Gal Cookin for this week's next link-up!

Tina Marie

Tuesday 6th of October 2015

This looks so scrumptious. I love how you added instructions for cooking down your own pumpkin. I do need to try this!

homemadefoodjunkie

Thursday 8th of October 2015

Thanks Tina. I included the fresh pumpkin directions because I always needed them and could never find a recipe designed for fresh pumpkin. That's why I mentioned the differences in the outcome using canned pumpkin or frozen. So glad you stopped by and I hope you love this pumpkin bread!

Skip to Recipe