Brown sugar lends a wonderful hint of caramel flavor to this pumpkin bread. It is perfect with an afternoon cup of coffee or tea. A bit less sweet than many other versions, it also makes an excellent on-the-go breakfast. Fluffy, moist, and downright adorable, these pixie sized loaves are a staple on my kitchen counter in the autumn, but they are lovely year round.
Ingredients for Pumpkin Bread
- all purpose flour
- baking powder
- baking soda
- kosher salt
- cinnamon
- ginger
- nutmeg
- light brown sugar
- unsalted butter
- eggs
- pumpkin puree
- milk
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Heat the oven to 350 degrees F and thoroughly grease four miniature loaf pans with butter. (For purposes of gracefully maneuvering these tiny tins in and out of the oven, it is quite helpful to place them on a rimmed cookie sheet when baking the bread.)
Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg together. Set aside this mixture of dry ingredients while you mix together the wet ingredients.
Place the brown sugar and softened butter into a large bowl.
Cream together the brown sugar and butter with a wooden spoon until they form a thick, soft mixture.
Then add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
The mixture may look slightly curdled at this point, but not to worry.
Next add the pumpkin and the milk, stirring everything together very gently to avoid sloshing any of the wet ingredients out of the bowl.
The mixture will look quite curdled at this point, but seriously, no need to fret.
Add the mixture of dry ingredients to the wet ingredients all at once. Then stir everything together just until the batter is smooth.
Divide and spoon the batter evenly into the pans, coaxing it into the corners and smoothing across the tops with a rubber spatula.
Bake the loaves for about 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the edges are beginning to turn golden brown.
Once removed from the oven, let the loaves sit for about 10 minutes before turning them out of their pans and cooling on racks.
Hint: These little loaves make perfect edible gifts.
Variations
- With Nuts - stir a cup of chopped walnuts or pecans into the batter just before spooning it into the loaf pans
- With Additional Spices - add a quarter teaspoon of ground allspice, a pinch of ground cloves, or both
- Regular Sized - this pumpkin bread can also be baked in one standard sized loaf pan...simply increase the baking time to about an hour
Equipment
The only tool that you really need for mixing up this batter is a sturdy wooden spoon. But if you prefer, using an electric mixer requires less effort when it comes to creaming together the butter and sugar.
Storage
The loaves can be stored individually, covered well in plastic wrap, either at room temperature for a few days or frozen for a few months.
📖 Recipe
Pumpkin Bread
Equipment
- 4 miniature loaf pans 3 x 5 inch
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 cup light brown sugar packed
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- 2 eggs large
- 15 oz pumpkin puree
- ¼ cup milk
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 350°F and thoroughly grease the loaf pans with butter.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. Set the dry ingredients aside.
- In a large bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar with a wooden spoon.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- Stir the pumpkin and the milk into the wet ingredients.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients all at once and mix just until the batter is smooth.
- Divide and spoon the batter into the greased loaf pans, coaxing it into the corners and smoothing the tops.
- Bake the loaves for about 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the edges are beginning to turn golden brown.
- Let the loaves sit in their pans for 10 minutes before turning them out and cooling on metal racks.
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