Whole Wheat Pumpkin Bread

Wholesome, moist, and tasty, this Whole Wheat Pumpkin Bread is simple to put together (just one bowl needed!) with just the right amount of spice. It uses whole grains, maple syrup, and olive oil to make it just a wee bit healthier, while still keeping the flavor and texture exactly how you'd expect pumpkin bread to be.

Healthy Pumpkin Bread

In our home, pumpkin is a fall and winter affair because everyone in our family just loves it. So pumpkin bread is something I make during all those long cold-weather months and have on hand for an afterschool snack or to serve with breakfast.

Because it's served so frequently, I like to have a bit more wholesome ingredients in it. This version uses all whole wheat flour, olive oil, and maple syrup to make it slightly healthier, but it still has that classic pumpkin bread flavor you expect. It's super moist, tender, and really all about the spiced pumpkin flavor.

So let's get to making it! The text below offers some tips for making it, or you can scroll down to the bottom for the complete recipe.

Ingredients Needed and Substitutions

Here is a brief overview of the ingredients needed for this recipe. The full recipe with quantities is listed below this text in the recipe card. If substitutions are available for this recipe, they'll be listed here. If you don't see a substitution you are looking for, feel free to leave a comment below.

• whole wheat flour (you can use traditional whole wheat flour or white whole wheat flour)
• canned pumpkin puree (make sure to use 100% pumpkin puree)
• eggs
• light olive oil (this is a flavorless olive oil that I use in place of canola oil or vegetable oil, but you can sub in those if you need to)
• light brown sugar
• pure maple syrup (make sure you are using the real deal maple syrup here)
• baking soda + baking powder
• pumpkin pie spice (if you don't have pumpkin pie spice you can use 1 teaspoon cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg and a pinch of cloves in place...or really any other spice combination you'd like)

Optional Add-Ins

Feel free to add in ½ cup of chopped nuts, chocolate chips or raisins to the bread if desired.

Tools Needed

Here are the tools used in this recipe. You won't necessarily choose to use them all, but sometimes tools make for quicker work in the kitchen! Some of these links may contain affiliate links.

• large mixing bowl
• whisk
• spatula
• 9x5" loaf pan
• parchment paper

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How to Make One-Bowl Baking Work

Many baking recipes can be easily made using only one bowl, but often times recipes call for using two bowls; one being used to mix the "wet" ingredients and one being used to mix the "dry" ingredients. This is so that the leaveners and other dry ingredients can be whisked together without overworking the batter.

But, there is still a way to do that using just one bowl! The trick is to add the dry ingredients that need to be evenly distributed (we are talking about the baking soda and baking powder) in with the wet ingredients, and then, after they are all mixed thoroughly together, add in the flour.

One small tip is to add the dry ingredients on top of the brown sugar. This will help ensure there is no clumping of the baking soda or baking powder in the wet mixture.

And as always, once you add your flour into the wet ingredients, do not over mix. Overmixing will result in gluten build-up which will then translate to tough bread.

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How to Tell When It's Done

The pumpkin bread takes just about an hour to bake in the oven. You'll know it's done when you insert a toothpick or butter knife in the middle and there is no wet batter left behind. Or an instant-read thermometer inserted in the middle of the bread reaches above 200ºF (this is my favorite method of checking for the doneness of quickbreads).

How to Store Whole Wheat Pumpkin Bread

This bread will keep well, covered in an air-tight container for a few days at room temperature. As the days go on, it will get moister.

This bread also freezes extremely well. It can be frozen in slices, or in loaf form. Wrap in plastic wrap tightly. When ready to eat, let it defrost at room temperature for a few hours.

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Making the recipe? Be sure to leave a comment with a star review on your experience! Have a question? Leave a comment below and I’ll get back to you as quickly as I can!

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