This Super Moist Pumpkin Bread recipe is perfect for a breakfast on-the-go or a mid-afternoon snack. A delicious, dense loaf - with less sugar than most. Perfect to get you in the mood for fall🍂
This recipe for Super Moist Pumpkin Bread will have you wishing it was fall all year long.
Made with simple and wholesome ingredients, this pumpkin bread with olive oil is ready in about an hour.
And it has a lot less sugar than most other pumpkin loaf recipes out there.
Here's what you'll need to make this moist pumpkin bread recipe:
- Gluten-free all-purpose baking flour - Bob's Red Mill is my go-to
- Baking soda and baking powder
- Salt
- Cinnamon
- Nutmeg
- Brown sugar
- Olive oil
- Milk
- Canned pumpkin
- 1 lemon (for the zest)
- Pumpkin seeds (aka pepitas)
See recipe card below for quantities and instructions.
No fluffy loafs here, the moistness really comes through in this recipe.
Say "good-bye to dry" (pumpkin loaf, that is) thanks to the combo of the olive oil, a smidge of milk and of course, a generous amount of canned pumpkin.
How do you moisten dry pumpkin bread?
If you find this or any pumpkin bread dries out, you can warm it in the microwave for about 10-15 seconds on high and it tends to release some moisture.
To prevent dryness, keep the loaf sliced, wrapped in parchment paper in the freezer in an air-tight container.
Take out a slice and defrost as you need.
Why is my pumpkin bread gummy?
Gummy or undercooked pumpkin bread is usually caused by 1 of 2 things:
- Undercooking - not enough time in the oven, or
- Too much pumpkin, applesauce or other "wet" ingredients. To get a yummy (not gummy) loaf texture, you need the right balance between the wet (pumpkin, applesauce, oil, egg, etc) and dry ingredients (like flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, etc.)
Make sure you follow this, or any recipe for pumpkin bread, as per the instructions before you make adjustments to increase the chances you'll have a delicious result.
Why does my pumpkin bread not cook in the middle?
This is usually due to not enough time in the oven. Put the pumpkin bread back in the oven for about 10 minutes and it should finish up.
If it's still not fully cooked in the middle, your ratio of wet to dry ingredients may be off.
Check the recipe and make sure you don't add more of anything, especially from the "wet" ingredient category (anything like pumpkin, applesauce, mashed bananas, eggs, oil, etc.)
How do you know when pumpkin bread is done?
Use the 3s's to know when it's done: Sight, Smell and Springiness! Set your oven timer for 50 minutes and when it's getting close - take a look in the oven:
- How does it look? Is it browning slightly around the edges? Are there some cracks in the top? That's good!
- Can you smell the pumpkin goodness?
- And when you take it out of the oven, does the loaf spring back when slightly depressed with a finger? If you're checking the box to all these 3 and the time is up, you're good to go
You can also insert a toothpick - if it comes out and it's not covered in goopy loaf mixture, it's done.
How long is this does this pumpkin loaf keep?
On the counter in an air-tight container, this loaf will keep for about 3 days on the counter so eat it up by then or wrap it up and pop it in the freezer (sliced) to enjoy for up to another month.
Top Tips
Freezing
You can freeze this moist pumpkin bread recipe - and it'll stay moist!
Follow the instructions below for baking and then let the loaf cool.
Slice the loaf and wrap it up to freeze for up to 1 month.
This is a lower sugar pumpkin bread
Remember with much less sugar than regular pumpkin loafs, this will not be very sweet.
If you like sweeter baked goods, this may not be for you.
Looking for it to rise? Don't😉
This pumpkin bread will not rise very much in the oven. So don't be surprised.
It's dense and moist; hence, not a lot of rising going on!
A super moist pumpkin bread with olive oil makes for a delicious mid-afternoon snack
Filled with healthy-carbs, potassium and a kick of fibre, this pumpkin bread has been my quick and healthy breakfast these days when I pair it with a couple hard boiled eggs and Nespresso, of course☕
If you try this out, please rate and comment. I do love hearing from you.
~April
If you like the sound of this gluten-free pumpkin bread recipe, check out these yummy and healthy recipes too:
- Healthy Banana Bread with White Beans
- Puffed Quinoa Bars with Almond Butter
- Healthy Fall Vegetarian Curry
- Starbucks Chicken and Vegetables Protein Box Copycat
- Healthy Cranberry Oatmeal Muffins
- Healthy Gluten-Free Pumpkin Scones
Super Moist Pumpkin Bread
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups gluten-free all purpose 1:1 baking flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoon milk
- 1 cup canned pumpkin
- ½ teaspoon grated lemon zest
- ¼ cup pepitas
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.
- In a medium bowl, beat egg; whisk in brown sugar, oil and milk. Stir in pumpkin and lemon zest. Stir this pumpkin mixture into dry ingredients.
- Pour batter into loaf pan (8 inch by 4-inch (1.5L). Sprinkle the top with the pepitas.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Cool for about 10 minutes in the pan and carefully lift out onto rack to cool completely.
Mary Lee says
Hi April!
I am just about to start this recipe & see that you don’t have the oven temp on the recipe. Also there’s a typo where it still says to mix in the “zucchini” into the dry ingredients- that sent me into a bit of a puzzle for a minute, wondering if I had missed an ingredient - then I remembered that you said you had adapted a zucchini recipe. I’m going to guess at oven temp from a banana bread recipe I use. Here goes!
April says
Hi Mary!
Oh gosh, you think you proof read it enough and still those errors lol
I will fix all of that.
Thank you so much for commenting and letting me know - yes, oven at 350F
Let me know how it turns out for you?
Cheers,
April
Mary Lee says
Hi April - also the egg is missing from the list of ingredients on the printed recipe.
April says
Thank you Mary!????