Super Moist Pumpkin Bread (Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free)

This super moist pumpkin bread is deliciously fragrant, amazingly tasty, and topped with toasted pumpkin seeds for a crunchy bite. It’s the perfect fall recipe. Yields a large loaf that you can share with family and friends to celebrate fall! Gluten-free and dairy-free.

Pumpkin Bread: A Fall Favorite

Each time fall rolls along and pumpkins start appearing at farmers’ markets, lining the front porches in the neighborhood, and overflowing from their corner in the supermarket, I feel a huge rush of excitement. Fall is synonymous with so many things – from the crisp autumn air, to the auburn leaves falling from the trees, to wearing sweaters on a daily basis, and most importantly, everything pumpkin.

I love cooking with pumpkin – from savory foods such as creamy pumpkin soup, delicious pumpkin risotto, or easy pumpkin gnocchi, to sweet recipes such as pumpkin cheesecake, crustless pumpkin pie, pumpkin muffins, and tender pumpkin scones – I’ve made them all.

Of all the pumpkin recipes I’ve made, my favorite has probably got to be pumpkin bread, because baking a fresh loaf and smelling the aroma of pumpkin fill the house as it bakes, and then pulling it out of the oven to feel the heat rush in your face is just heavenly.

Why This Recipe Works

Some gluten-free pumpkin bread recipes turn out a little dry, but this amazing recipe yields a large loaf of super moist pumpkin bread. Soft, tender and bursting with the flavors of fall, with toasted pumpkin seeds sprinkled on top for a perfectly crunchy contrast, this is just so good you’ll want to eat it over and over again!

Best of all, this is also dairy-free, which means even those who are lactose-intolerant can also enjoy it! It’s also extremely filling, great for a crowd and perfect for the chillier days that are headed our way.

Ingredients You’ll Need + Notes/Substitutes

• Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour: I like to use a gluten-free all-purpose flour that is made up of lighter flours and starches (such as rice flour, corn starch, tapioca starch) and that comes with xanthan gum (which is the replacement for gluten). I do NOT recommend using a gluten-free flour blend made up with heavier flours such as bean flours as these will result in baked goods with a denser texture.
• Baking Powder
• Salt
• Pumpkin Pie Spice: Pumpkin pie spice can be easily found in major supermarkets, but if you don’t have access to that, you can simply make your own pumpkin pie spice or substitute it with equal amounts of ground cinnamon.
• Brown Sugar: I used light brown cane sugar in this recipe, but you can also use dark brown sugar or coconut sugar if you prefer.
• Eggs: Feel free to replace the eggs with an egg-replacer or aquafaba or even flax eggs.
• Mashed Bananas: The mashed bananas are what make this loaf so moist and tender, but feel free to substitute it with equal amounts of applesauce if you prefer.
• Pumpkin Puree: I always recommend using fresh homemade pumpkin puree (because it doesn’t contain the nasty additives and preservatives that come with the canned version). However, if you only have canned pumpkin available, that will work just as well.
• Pumpkin Seeds: These are optional, but feel free to swap out the pumpkin seeds for chopped nuts (such as walnuts, pecans, or almonds) if you prefer.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Preheat Oven and Prepare Loaf Pan

Pre-heat oven to 375 deg. Fahrenheit (190 deg. Celsius) and line a large loaf pan with parchment paper.

2. Prepare the Batter

In a medium-sized bowl, combine the gluten-free flour, baking powder, salt, pumpkin pie spice. Whisk the dry ingredients well and then set the bowl aside. In a large bowl, mix the mashed bananas, eggs, pumpkin puree and the brown sugar together, then beat well with a hand mixer or whisk until smooth.

Pour the dry ingredients bit by bit into the wet ingredients, and stir together until just combined. Slowly fold in the 1/3 cup of the pumpkin seeds with a spatula until evenly distributed.

3. Pour Batter in Pan, Top with Seeds and Bake

Pour batter into prepared loaf pan, and sprinkle extra raw pumpkin seeds on top. Bake in oven for 60 mins or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

4. Let Cool Before Slicing and Enjoy!

Let the pumpkin bread to sit in the pan for 10 minutes before removing and allowing to cool on cooling rack. Allow the pumpkin bread bread to fully cool before slicing (remember: a warm loaf is a fragile loaf).

Expert Tips/Tricks:

• Tent with Foil: If you inserted a toothpick in the middle of the bread and it comes out slightly wet, it means you need to keep baking the bread some more. However, if the top of bread starts to get really brown, simply tent the pan with aluminium foil (cover it with aluminium foil), which will prevent the crust from browning further, but will still allow the bread to continue cooking on the inside.
• Let Bread Cool Fully: I understand that it’s very tempting to want to slice the bread immediately after taking it out from the oven. However, bear in mind that this recipe yields an extremely moist loaf – and that a warm loaf is a fragile loaf. Letting the bread cool totally allows the bread to continue cooking with the residual heat, and if you slice it too early, it may fall apart.

Recipe FAQs:

Other Pumpkin Recipes You’ll Love:

• Homemade Pumpkin Puree (Gluten-Free, Vegan)
• Crustless Pumpkin Pie (Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free)
• Easy Pumpkin Bread (Gluten-Free, Vegan)
• Easy Gluten-Free Pumpkin Scones
• No-Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake (Gluten-Free, Vegan)
• Easy Gluten-Free Pumpkin Muffins (Vegan)
• Creamy Pumpkin Soup (Gluten-Free, Vegan)
• Easy Pumpkin Gnocchi (Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free)
• Creamy Pumpkin Risotto (Gluten-Free, Vegan)

P.S. If you try this recipe, I’d love for you to leave a star rating below, and/or a review in the comment section further down the page. I always appreciate your feedback. Be sure to check out my entire Recipe Index for all the recipes on the blog. You can also follow me on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram! Sign up for my Email List to get fresh recipes in your inbox each week!

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