Pumpkin Bread
A perfectly spiced, moist Fall Pumpkin Bread with a brown sugar streusel topping. This is the best pumpkin bread recipe!
Stop what you are doing right now. Put on your shoes. Grab your wallet. Drive to the nearest grocery store. Go straight to the baking aisle and load up your grocery cart with canned pumpkin.
It's that time of year, y'all!
BRING ON the PUMPKIN DESSERTS! This is the time of year to light the warm cider or pumpkin candle, crank up your oven, and devour all things pumpkin.
I set out to find the best pumpkin bread recipe. First of all, it had to be moist. It had to have some warm spice to it with notes of cinnamon and pumpkin spice without being too overpowering. It had to slice well and hold up to a dab of softened butter. Oh, and it had to have a topping. A streusel topping put this pumpkin loaf over the top!
This pumpkin bread is the best I have ever tasted. I test and re-test to find the perfect pumpkin bread recipe. This has a mixture of oil, which makes it extra soft and moist, cream cheese, which gives it a creamy tangy flavor, and buttermilk, which creates a tender texture.
The spices used in this pumpkin bread are simple -- cinnamon and pumpkin spice. I wanted to simplify it so you don't have to buy six different spices at the grocery store.
This pumpkin streusel bread has a brown sugar topping that is made with simple ingredients -- butter, brown sugar, and flour. It creates a crunchy, sugary topping that makes this pumpkin bread so heavenly. If you love a lot of topping, feel free to double the ingredients to make twice as much topping.
How to make the BEST PUMPKIN BREAD:
- Start off by cooking pumpkin puree over medium heat. This helps to create a perfect pumpkin flavor since it is the star ingredient. Let it cook for about 6 minutes, stirring often.
- Add a mixture of oil, cream cheese, and buttermilk to add moisture and create a tender texture. This is the trifecta of ingredients that will make soft pumpkin bread.
- Add cinnamon and pumpkin spice to compliment the flavor of the pumpkin.
- Pour into greased pans and bake just until a toothpick comes out clean in the center. If the sides of becoming overbaked, cover the bread with foil until the center completely bakes through.
This recipe makes two loaves so it is perfect to keep one for yourself and give the other one away. This loaf of pumpkin bread is perfect to give away as teacher gifts, run to a neighbor, or give to a friend. It stays moist for days and can be eaten for breakfast, snack, dessert, or any time in between.
Can you freeze pumpkin bread?
This pumpkin bread can also be frozen in a freezer-safe resealable bag and it will stay good for weeks. It may take all of your willpower to not go to the freezer and eat it all up.
If you love pumpkin recipes, check out some of my most popular pumpkin recipes:
- Pumpkin Sheet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Pumpkin Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Frosting - Pumpkin Dump Cake
- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
- The BEST Pumpkin Pie Recipe
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Pumpkin Bread
Equipment
Ingredients
Pumpkin Bread:
- (1) 15-ounce can Pumpkin Puree
- 1 ½ teaspoons Cinnamon
- ½-1 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice
- 1 cup Brown Sugar
- 1 cup Sugar
- ½ cup Oil
- 4 ounces Cream Cheese (softened, cut into cubes)
- 4 large Eggs
- ¼ cup Buttermilk
- 2 cups Flour
- 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 teaspoon Salt
Streusel Topping:
- ⅓ cup Brown Sugar
- 2 Tablespoons Salted Butter (softened)
- 2 Tablespoons Flour
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium saucepan, heat pumpkin puree, cinnamon, and pumpkin spice over medium heat. Stir often for about 5-7 minutes.
- Remove from heat and stir in sugar, brown sugar, oil, and cream cheese. Whisk for several minutes until all of the cream cheese is mixed in. Let sit for 5 minutes to cool before adding the eggs.
- Whisk in eggs and buttermilk until fully mixed together. After it is completely smooth, fold in flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix just until combined.
- Grease two 8 ½ inch x 4 ½ inch loaf pans with non-stick cooking spray or butter. Pour batter into pans.
To make streusel topping:
- In a small bowl, add brown sugar, softened butter, and flour. Using a fork, press together until combined.
- Sprinkle topping evenly over pumpkin bread batter. Bake for 44-48 minutes or until the center is cooked through. Check by placing a toothpick in the center to make sure it comes out clean.
- Let pumpkin loaves cool for 20 minutes and then turn out onto a wire rack. Let cool.
- Serve with butter.
Notes
Happy Baking!
Julie T Katzman
I have been making pumpkin bread for years and loved my recipe but this is better - the whole family loved it. I changed the spices because my family is quite particular but otherwise followed the recipe using 1.5x the topping, which I loved though some folks preferred it without the topping. I will be making this recipe every year going forward. Another Melissa triumph.
Julie
I just made this and it’s great. However, I would switch to unsalted butter in the topping. It made them too salty I felt. I made two batches - one using the suggested loaf pan size and one with pans a bit smaller. That left enough for five muffins. They took 15 minutes to cook perfectly.
Kerrie
My friend told me that she just made this recipe for her family and it was so good that they can't stop talking about it. I am making little loaves today for my Sunday School class of 16 year olds.....very excited!
Donna
I just got back from the store. I can't wait to make this bread. It looks so delicious and rich and moist. I will also be one of those gals that will make a double streusel . I like that alt too.I know it's goig to be amazing...all of your recipes are. Thanks so much. Happy Halloween.....
Sal
What can be substituted for eggs?