How to Make Pumpkin Bread from Fresh Pumpkin Naturally Sweetened

Fall is here. The leaves are changing, there’s that cold crisp in the air, and I’m ready to make pumpkin recipes. We’ll start it off with this delicious pumpkin bread. This pumpkin bread is naturally sweetened with notes of cinnamon, pumpkin, nutmeg, maple, and honey. Learn how to make pumpkin bread that is healthy, moist, and can be made from real pumpkin.

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What I love about this Recipe

If you’re not new to the Duvall Homestead blog, you will know that I try to make recipes that are naturally sweetened and made from whole, healthy ingredients. So this is no exception. With the pumpkin, notes of cinnamon and nutmeg, and sweetened with honey and maple syrup, this bread is a little slice of fall.

Now that doesn’t mean you can’t add any sugar. Personally I love chocolate on just about anything, so I spread a handful of chocolate chips on the top of the bread before baking. It gives it just a crunch of chocolate without using so much processed sugar in the bread itself.

I do this on everything.. french toast, sourdough pancakes, or sometimes I just eat a handful one night for dessert 🙂

Pumpkin is also just plain healthy. What farm fresh vegetable isn’t? Pumpkins are rich in vitamin A and contain high amounts of antioxidants (source). Another reason to find yourself some fresh pumpkins, chop them up, and get several jars of homemade pumpkin puree for your fridge and freezer.

More Fall-Inspired Recipes + Crafts

I was invited to participate in a fall blog hop! Me and 4 other bloggers are sharing fall inspired recipes and crafts. Be sure to check out their recipes below!

Easy Pumpkin Dip with Cream Cheese

Affordable Nontoxic Candles

DIY Fall Foraged Wreath

Easy & Delicious Apple Fritters

Tools Needed for Pumpkin Bread

Small mixing bowl

Large mixing bowl

Measuring cups and spoons

9×13 inch bread pan

Mixer (we like the stand up kind)

Ingredients

Dry Ingredients:

2 cups flour

two teaspoons baking soda

1/2 t salt

Wet Ingredients & spices:

2 eggs

1 cup pumpkin puree (see instructions below)

1/2 cup coconut oil, melted, plus more for greasing the baking dish

half cup honey

half cup maple syrup

1 T vanilla

1 teaspoon each cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice

1/2 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp clove (in the video I ran out of ground clove so I used clove essential oil)

Toppings

Handful chocolate chips – optional

The Process

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a small bowl, combine the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, salt)

Next in a mixing bowl, combine your wet ingredients and spices. I like to use a stand up mixer. Makes it easy to cook while holding a little one too. Mix until combined.

Add the dry ingredients slowly, emptying half into the wet ingredients at a time. Mix until just combined and do not overmix.

Oil up a 9×13 inch bread baking dish. I use up the rest of my coconut oil for this. Pour the mixture in and add a handful of chocolate chips to the top (as desired – another good option is pumpkin seeds or pecans).

Bake for 45 minutes. At this point, pull the bread out and add a layer of tin foil over the top. This helps the crust not burn but still allows the bread to cook in the middle. Return the bread to the oven and cook 10 more minutes.

Remove bread and let it cool completely before cutting. Store in the fridge for one week or the freezer for up to 3 months.

How to Make Pumpkin Bread from Fresh Pumpkin

When you’re at the grocery store, grab a sugar pie pumpkin or two. Chop it up and turn it into pumpkin puree that you can use in many fall recipes all season long. Learn more at the blog post here.

INGREDIENTS

• One sugar pie pumpkin (makes about 4 cups of pumpkin puree)
• Olive oil (could also use coconut or avocado oil)
• Salt (optional – if you don’t use salt then just keep in mind when you’re baking with the pumpkin that it is unsalted so it will need salt later)

INSTRUCTIONS FOR MAKING PUMPKIN PUREE

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Carve a circle around the stem of the pumpkin. Pull the top off using the stem.
3. Insert your knife into the center of the pumpkin where the opening is, and carefully cut the pumpkin in half right down the middle. So you have two halves.
4. Use a big spoon to gut the pumpkin, removing all the insides. Save the seeds for roasting later!
5. Next using a good squash peeler (this is the one I use – do not use a potato peeler, I hurt myself doing this one time, lol), peel the skin off the pumpkin. Then, with a large knife, chop the pumpkin into chunks.
6. Place the pumpkin chunks on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Drizzle with olive oil and roast at 375 F for 30 minutes (this time may vary depending on your oven and the size of the pumpkin pieces, but the idea is to soften them enough to be blended later).
7. Remove when finished and let cool. Then place in a food processor or whatever blender you have. Mash the pumpkin up until soft (you could also do this with a spoon or potato masher, if you want).
8. Store the pumpkin puree in the fridge for one week or freezer for up to 3 months.

Tips for Making the Best Pumpkin Bread

Use a farm fresh pumpkin if you have one. Here’s a tutorial on how to make your own pumpkin puree from a real pumpkin. The best part is you’ll have lots of pumpkin to use up in fall and even into winter.

Swap out the processed sugar for natural sugar, like honey and maple syrup. And if you prefer one flavor over another, add more maple syrup or more honey to customize the flavor of the bread to your liking.

A sprinkle of chocolate chips on top gives the bread a little something special without being overwhelmingly sweet.

Feel free to use your essential oils in this recipe. You could swap out the dried spices of cinnamon, ginger, or clove for a food-safe essential oil option. Always make sure you are buying essential oils that are safe for consumption and do your research to make sure they are pure and third party tested. Read more about how we use essential oils at the homestead here. Note: get essential oils at a wholesale discount here.

How to Make Pumpkin Bread Moist

Removing the dry sugar and substituting with natural, wet sugar is how this pumpkin bread stays moist. I have become more and more of a fan of using maple syrup and honey to sweeten food as opposed to processed sugar. And, it actually makes the bread more moist which is a plus!

How do I Use Leftover Canned Pumpkin?

I find that you can really throw canned pumpkin into just about anything. Add it to your favorite pancake recipe, or try making this pumpkin chili. Or combine it with cream cheese for a delicious topping to this pumpkin bread.

More Cozy Fall Recipes

How to Make Pumpkin Puree from Scratch

Homemade Pumpkin Chili Recipe

Breakfast Pumpkin Pie Recipe

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