Grandpa's Classic Pumpkin Bread
Baker's Guild Rank 1The original recipe, taught kitchen-table style in Iowa — moist, lightly spiced, and the base for every variation on this site.
Origin: Iowa, USA
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 60 min
- Total
- 1 hr 15 min
- Servings
- 2 loaves (10 slices each)
- Difficulty
- Easy
- quick bread
- fall baking
- freezer-friendly
Shopping links are provided for convenience.
Ingredients
- 3 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup vegetable oilShop neutral baking oil ↗
- 15 oz canned pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
- 4 large eggs
- 3 1/3 cups all-purpose flourShop all-purpose flour ↗
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp ground cloves
- 2/3 cup water
Method
- 1
Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour two 9x5-inch loaf pans.
- 2
In a large bowl, beat sugar and oil together until combined, then mix in pumpkin puree and eggs.
- 3
In a separate bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, salt, and spices.
- 4
Add dry ingredients to the wet mixture alternately with the water, mixing just until combined — do not overmix.
- 5
Divide batter evenly between the two pans.
- 6
Bake 60–70 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- 7
Cool in pans for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.
Tips
- This is the base recipe — see the Chocolate Chip and Walnut variations for twists on the same batter.
- Loaves freeze well wrapped tightly in foil for up to 3 months.
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