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This gluten-free pumpkin bread recipe combines the best of both worlds: the delicious flavors of a pumpkin pie and pound cake. The result is a light, fluffy bread that’s packed with flavor and not too sweet.
I never ate pumpkin bread while growing up, and when I told my family I was making a pumpkin bread recipe, they responded with doubt. “What do you know about pumpkin bread?”
So, I approached this recipe the same way I would make a delicious pound cake, easy to prepare and impossible to resist. With that in mind, even non-pumpkin bread eaters will be lovers by the end of their first slice.
Gluten-free eating wasn’t something I was particularly interested in, until a friend who follows a gluten free diet for health reasons talked to me about it. To my surprise, there wasn’t much of a difference that I could taste between regular food and baked goods and their gluten-free counterparts.
There’s also a restaurant near where I live that sells an incredible chocolate chip cookie, which just so happens to be gluten-free. So if you want to substitute all-purpose flour for gluten free flour in any recipe, go ahead—but keep in mind not all types of gluten free flour are created equal. That’s why selecting the right one is key to ensuring your desserts turn out perfectly every time.
Key Ingredients
Before you embark on your gluten-free pumpkin bread baking journey, take a look at this list of ingredients to make sure you have everything you need for some delicious pumpkin bread.
- Pumpkin: To make this delicious dish, you’ll need a can of pumpkin puree. Make sure to get the canned pumpkin puree and not the pumpkin pie filling! If you have the time, roast your own sugar pumpkin in a 400°F oven for 35-45 minutes, but canned will do just fine.
- Gluten-Free Flour: It’s common for gluten free flours to have an aftertaste, but Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 gluten-free baking flour is different. It shouldn’t be confused with their regular gluten-free flour.
- Leaveners: As I mentioned, my method was comparable to pound cake, so you can’t have a beautiful cake without baking soda and baking powder. These two leaveners, when combined, raise the height of the pumpkin bread and give it a great crust.
- Sugar: You’ll need light brown and powdered sugar. I love using light brown sugar in the pumpkin bread batter.
- Oil: When I make pumpkin bread, I like to use neutral flavored oils such as avocado or coconut oil. This helps make moist pumpkin bread.
- Pumpkin Pie Spice: I use a little of my own blend (which includes cinnamon, nutmeg, and ground ginger) in each batch to give it more spice. The combination works well with pumpkin flavor and brings out it’s warm and delicate sweet notes.
How to make gluten-free pumpkin bread recipe
Here are the steps you need to follow to pull off this pumpkin bread recipe like a seasoned pro.
For the gluten free pumpkin bread: The first thing you always do when baking is preheat your oven. Our oven needs to be 350°F. While the oven is heating, sift the gluten-free flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg over a medium bowl. Then stir in kosher salt.
Next, in another large bowl, mix eggs, light brown sugar, oil and buttermilk with a hand mixer on low speed for 2 minutes, until smooth. Add pumpkin puree and vanilla extract, mix until smooth. Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed for 1 minute.
Pour pumpkin batter into a greased 1 ½ quart loaf pan, and bake for 50-60 minutes, until pumpkin bread is golden brown or a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool completely before icing.
For the lemon icing: In a medium bowl, whisk powdered sugar and lemon juice until smooth and thick. Spoon icing over cooled pumpkin loaf. Icing will harden in 5 minutes. Slice and serve.
This recipe is really easy to make; essentially, you’re dumping and mixing all the ingredients together and end up with an incredible fall dessert
Recipe Tips & Tricks
Here are a few notes I had from making this outstanding gluten free pumpkin bread recipe.
- Make your own pumpkin pie spice. It would probably take 1-2 tablespoons of pumpkin pie spice to add this much flavor to the pumpkin bread. So I just recommend buying the cinnamon, nutmeg, and ground ginger separately to make your own.
- Buttermilk is my secret weapon. Although buttermilk isn’t typically used in many pumpkin bread recipes online, because of my southern-style baking approach, everything can be accommodated with the tang buttermilk that is added to baked goods. Feel free to substitute any milk you have on hand, whether it’s dairy (whole milk) or non-dairy (almond milk.)
- Dark brown sugar or granulated sugar will work great as a swap for light brown sugar.
- Always use fresh lemon juice, 1 medium size lemon should yield lemon juice for this recipe.
- Avocado oil and coconut oil are 100 times healthier than canola or vegetable oil, so invest in your health for a better oil.
- You can add chocolate chips and pumpkin seeds or both to your pumpkin bread.
FAQs
Here are the top question I found readers have about making easy gluten-free pumpkin bread.
Yes, canned pumpkin is gluten free. You can also use fresh pumpkin, to make your own pumpkin puree. You will need to bake it in a 400°F oven for 35-45 minutes until soft, then scoop the flesh in a food blender and blend until smooth.
For this recipe, I recommend using a gluten free all purpose flour. A good option is Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free 1 to 1 baking flour which can be found at most grocery stores. I like it the best because it has the xanthan gum already blended in.
Xanthan gum role in gluten-free baking is to help with the texture and structure. It’s a gluten free binding agent that helps to mimic gluten. Without it, gluten free baked goods can often be crumbly or dense.
Yes, with some minor adjustments, you can use gluten-free flour instead of all-purpose flour in this recipe. You may need to add a little more liquid or oil depending on the gluten-free flour blend you are using.
There are three favorites I like to use for substituting eggs the first is aquafaba (canned chickpea liquid) 3 tablespoons whipped chickpea liquid equals 1 egg. The second is apple sauce, 1/4 cup apple sauce per egg. Third, flax seed egg, 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed + 2.5 tablespoons water per egg.
Pumpkin bread is best 2 days after baking but will be fresh for 7 days in an airtight container in the fridge. Keep in a freezer-safe storage bag for 3 months.
Reheat pumpkin bread by zapping it in the microwave for 10 seconds.
More Fall Recipes
Here are so more awesome recipes to add to your fall table spread! Using gluten-free flour will work in all of these recipes.
Latest Recipe Video:
Before You Begin
Before getting started, here are the steps I use to get organized.
Step 1: Get all ingredients for the gluten free pumpkin bread on the counter.
Step 2: To save time, measure all ingredients into separate bowls before beginning to bake.
Step 3: We don’t want to be caught off guard, so after your oven has heated to the proper temperature, insert an oven thermometer in its center for 10-15 minutes to ensure it is. Adjust/calibrate your oven temperature by the difference in temperatures.
Step 4: Start following the recipe and get ready for the best gluten free pumpkin bread you’ve ever enjoyed.
This gluten-free pumpkin bread recipe is the perfect way to celebrate fall. It’s easy to make, and it’s a great way to use up leftover pumpkin puree. The light, fluffy texture is perfect for breakfast or dessert. Give this recipe a try, and let me know what you think!
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Gluten Free Pumpkin Bread
Ingredients
Pumpkin Bread:
- 1 ½ cups gluten-free baking flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup Imperial Sugar light brown sugar
- ¼ cup oil
- ¼ cup buttermilk
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Lemon Icing:
- 2 ¼ cup Imperial Sugar powdered sugar
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
Instructions
Pumpkin Bread:
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Over a large bowl sift gluten-free flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg. Stir in kosher salt.
- In a large bowl mix eggs, light brown sugar, oil and buttermilk, with a hand mixer on low speed for 2 minutes until smooth. Add pumpkin and vanilla, mix until smooth. Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed for 1 minute.
- Pour batter into a greased 1 ½ quart loaf pan, bake for 50-60 minutes, until pumpkin bread is golden brown or a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Lemon Icing:
- While pumpkin loaf bakes; in a medium bowl, whisk powdered sugar and lemon juice until smooth and thick. Spoon icing over cooled loaf. Icing will harden in 5 minutes. Slice and serve.
Notes
- Make your own pumpkin pie spice. It would probably take 1-2 tablespoons of pumpkin pie spice to add this much flavor to the pumpkin bread. So I just recommend buying the cinnamon, nutmeg, and ground ginger separately to make your own.
- Buttermilk is my secret weapon. Although buttermilk isn’t typically used in many pumpkin bread recipes online, because of my southern-style baking approach, everything can be accommodated with the tang buttermilk that is added to baked goods. Feel free to substitute any milk you have on hand, whether it’s dairy (whole milk) or non-dairy (almond milk.)
- Dark brown sugar or granulated sugar will work great as a swap for light brown sugar.
- Always use fresh lemon juice, 1 medium size lemon should yield lemon juice for this recipe.
- Avocado oil and coconut oil are 100 times healthier than canola or vegetable oil, so invest in your health for a better oil.
- You can add chocolate chips and pumpkin seeds or both to your pumpkin bread.
