My cinnamon swirl pumpkin loaf is the ultimate fall treat. Moist and tender, with a ton of pumpkin flavor and a sweet, buttery cinnamon swirl throughout, this delicious quick bread is ready in under an hour and perfect for any time of day.
It’s fall, y’all! Well, it’s technically fall, anyway. Here in Texas, you wouldn’t know it, but I won’t let that deter me from jumping headfirst into fall desserts for my favorite time of year!
When fall finally arrives, you’ll find fiery-colored wreaths on my doors, pumpkins on the porch, and an oven that always smells of pumpkin and apple.
I’m all about that pumpkin life during autumn and winter, and I routinely serve dishes like my pumpkin pecan cake for dessert or pumpkin spice pancakes for breakfast.
Now, I’ve added a dish that can be a breakfast, dessert, or afternoon snack. It’s easy, chock full of fall flavor, and it’s always a big hit. My cinnamon swirl pumpkin loaf is just about as fall as you can get, and you’ll fall for it with one bite!
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Simple Ingredients: This is a basic recipe that uses equally basic ingredients. If you do any amount of baking at all, you probably have everything except the pumpkin puree in your kitchen right now.
- Easy to Make: All you have to do is mix, swirl, and bake. This is an incredibly easy recipe that even beginners can make with zero issues.
- Moist and Tender: This pumpkin loaf is wonderfully dense and so moist and tender.
- Full of Fall Flavor: Every bite of this loaf is loaded with the warm, spiced pumpkin flavors of fall and an added cinnamon swirl to make everything pop even more.
- Customizable: You can easily change this recipe to create new flavor combinations.
- Versatile: This loaf is perfect as a sweet breakfast, an afternoon snack, a dessert, or an addition to potlucks and gatherings.
- Great for Meal Prep: This is a freezer-friendly recipe, so you can multiply the recipe as much as you like and save baked loaves for future use.
Ingredients
You’ll find a complete list of the ingredients and their exact amounts in the recipe card at the end of the post.
Variations
- Sweet Potato Loaf: For another classic fall flavor, use sweet potato puree instead of pumpkin.
- Chocolate Chips: Chocolate and pumpkin are a great combo, so try adding milk, semi-sweet, or dark chocolate chips to your loaf. Even white chocolate chips are great.
- Add Nuts: Chopped walnuts or pecans add a nice crunch and an earthy flavor that complements the pumpkin well.
- Individual Treats: Use mini loaf pans to make individual mini pumpkin loaves.
- Gluten-Free: If you have gluten issues or know someone who does, you can use a high-quality 1:1 gluten-free flour to make a gluten-free version that tastes just as delicious.
How to Make Cinnamon Swirl Pumpkin Bread
Whisk the dry loaf ingredients in a medium bowl.
Beat the wet ingredients in a large bowl until fully combined.
Gradually mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined.
Mix the cinnamon swirl ingredients in a small bowl.
Divide ¼ of the batter equally between two prepared loaf pans. Then, divide half the cinnamon mixture between the two pans and swirl with a knife or a toothpick.
Divide the remaining batter and cinnamon mixture between the two pans as before and swirl in the same way.
Bake uncovered at 350°F until the tops of the loaves are golden brown. Then, cover them loosely with foil and continue baking until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Cool for a few minutes. Then, turn the loaves out onto a wire rack to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Tips
- Be sure you buy pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling. They are generally sold next to or near one another, and it can be easy to grab the wrong one.
- Be sure your baking soda and powder are fresh. Expired leaveners don’t work as well or at all, resulting in dense loaves that don’t rise.
- Bring your eggs to room temperature for easier and more complete mixing.
- Mix your loaf batter until the ingredients are just combined, meaning everything is moistened. Overmixing will result in dense, tough bread.
- Swirl your bread with just a few large, sweeping, circular motions. Don’t overdo it, or you’ll end up with a muddy look rather than swirls.
Cinnamon Swirl Pumpkin Loaf FAQ
A dry pumpkin loaf is usually the result of using too much flour. It’s a common mistake that generally occurs when the flour is scooped out directly with the measuring cup. This results in the flour compacting in the cup and too much being used.
There are two main causes of a mushy pumpkin loaf. One, too much puree or other wet ingredietns were used. Second, the loaf was underbaked. Be sure to measure your wet ingredients accurately and bake the loaf until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean to avoid a mushy pumpkin loaf.
Begin baking your pumpkin loaf uncovered. After it takes on a deep, golden color, cover it loosely with foil. This allows you to finish baking the loaf without burning the top.
More Tasty Pumpkin Recipes
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Cinnamon Swirl Pumpkin Loaf
Ingredients
Pumpkin Loaf
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ginger
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 4 large eggs
- 15 ounces pumpkin puree
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅔ cup vegetable oil
Cinnamon Swirl
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar packed
- ¼ cup butter melted
- 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray (2) 8×4 loaf pans with non-stick cooking spray.
Pumpkin Loaf
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, and pumpkin pie spice.
- In a large bowl, beat eggs, pumpkin puree, sugar, brown sugar, vanilla extract, and vegetable oil, until well combined.
- Gradually add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and beat until well combined.
Cinnamon Swirl
- In a small bowl, stir brown sugar, melted butter, and cinnamon together.
Assembling the Loaves
- Pour equally ¼ of the batter into the bottom of each prepared loaf pan.
- Next, take a quarter of the cinnamon swirl mixture and put on top of the batter in each pan. Using a toothpick, swirl it into the batter.
- Then divide the remaining batter in half, and top each with the remaining cinnamon swirl mixture. Use the toothpick to swirl the cinnamon mixture on top.
- Bake uncovered, in the preheated oven, for 45 minutes, then lightly cover each loaf pan with aluminum foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Notes
- Be sure you buy pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling. They are generally sold next to or near one another, and it can be easy to grab the wrong one.
- Be sure your baking soda and powder are fresh. Expired leaveners don’t work as well or at all, resulting in dense loaves that don’t rise.
- Bring your eggs to room temperature for easier and more complete mixing.
- Mix your loaf batter until the ingredients are just combined, meaning everything is moistened. Overmixing will result in dense, tough bread.
- Swirl your bread with just a few large, sweeping, circular motions. Don’t overdo it, or you’ll end up with a muddy look rather than swirls.
Nutrition
What is a 1/4 butter in the swirl?
I love the addition of cinnamon to this pumpkin loaf! It was so flavorul, defintiely making it over and over again.
I baked this today and it came out so soft and moist. The cinnamon swirl melted into the pumpkin just right and made the whole kitchen smell amazing!
This loaf is everything I love about fall. I made mini loaves to share and they disappeared fast. Thank you for the cozy recipe!
This was so yummy! I love that cinnamon swirl in the middle. The kids absolutely devoured it.
This is so, so good! I made it last night for dessert and had it again this morning with more butter than I probably should have and a cup of coffee. YUM!