The Best Vegan Pumpkin Bread
The Best Vegan Pumpkin Bread- made in one bowl with simple wholesome ingredients, this pumpkin bread is perfectly moist and full of delicious flavor. It truly is the best!
Each year I find myself struggling to hold off with the pumpkin recipes. Fall decor, no problem. But I just can’t help myself in the food department. The spices fill the house with the most comforting scent and instantly makes me feel all cozy inside. Even if it’s still sweltering hot outside.
So far I’ve made pumpkin waffles, pumpkin granola, pumpkin baked oatmeal, pumpkin butter and alas, this vegan pumpkin bread AKA pumpkin bread perfection. Yep, our house has been smelling mighty fine lately.
The Best Vegan Pumpkin Bread Ingredients
- Ground Flax Seed- Ground flax is used to help bind the bread and provide moisture. You simply combine one tablespoon with 4 tablespoons of water and set aside to thicken. If you are able to eat eggs you can substitute one egg in place of the ground flax and water.
- Flour– I like to use spelt flour to keep the recipe whole grain but you can use all-purpose flour, whole wheat pastry flour or gluten-free all-purpose.
- Baking Powder and Baking Soda- I frequently use both powder and soda as I find the combination gives the best rise, especially with vegan recipes.
- Pumpkin Pie Spice and Salt- By using pumpkin pie spice we can avoid having to buy a long list of spices. That said, if you prefer to make your own
- Pumpkin Puree– Be sure that you have pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie mix. Farmers Market is my go-to brand but it tends to be a bit watery compared to other brands so you may need to add a few tablespoons of water to compensate when using thicker purees.
- Pure Maple Syrup- This is the main sweetener for the recipe and using a liquid sweetener allows us to avoid adding milk or water to the recipe. Agave nectar, honey or date syrup would be reasonable substitutes. If you choose to use a granulated sweetener you will need to add liquid to the recipe.
- Vanilla Extract– Just a hint of vanilla takes baked goods over the top.
- Melted Coconut Oil– Coconut oil works best in this recipe but you could also use olive oil or any neutral flavored vegetable oil that you prefer. If you wanted to make it oil-free I would suggest using a drippy tahini or almond butter. I haven’t tested it this way myself but my suspicion is that it would work well.
How to Make The Best Vegan Pumpkin Bread
- Combine ground flax and water. Set aside to thicken.
- Combine wet ingredients in a large bowl (pumpkin puree, maple syrup, melted oil, and vanilla). Add flax mixture.
- To the same bowl, add the flour, baking soda, powder, salt and pumpkin pie spice. Stir until a batter forms.
- Transfer to a lightly greased loaf pan. Bake for 60-70 minutes. Allow to cool, serve and enjoy!
Options for Frosting
I like to top it with the cashew cream cheese frosting from my carrot banana bread recipe but feel free to skip the frosting if you want it to be more like a bread rather than a cake.
Looking for more pumpkin deliciousness?
- Double Chocolate Pumpkin Blender Muffins
- Pumpkin Chia Pudding
- Vegan Pumpkin Blender Muffins
- How to Make Pumpkin Butter
- Vegan Thai Pumpkin Curry
- Healthy Flourless Pumpkin Muffins
- Pumpkin Spice Smoothie
- Vegan Pumpkin Pancakes
- Pumpkin Spice Granola
- The Best Pumpkin Macaroni and ‘Cheese’
The Best Vegan Pumpkin Bread
Made in one bowl with simple pantry ingredients, this pumpkin bread is perfectly moist and packed with pumpkin flavor.
Servings: 8 slices
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon ground flax seed, combined with 4 tablespoons water
- 1 cup pumpkin puree*, from a can
- ½ cup pure maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup melted coconut oil**
- 1½ cups flour***
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1½ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice****
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F then lightly grease a standard 9-inch loaf pan. In a measuring cup, combine the flax and water. Stir together then set aside to thicken.
- In a large bowl, add the pumpkin puree, maple syrup, vanilla extract, melted coconut oil and flax mixture.
- To the same bowl, add the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and pumpkin pie spice. Stir together until a batter forms. Transfer to the batter to the loaf pan and smooth down across the edges.
- Bake in the oven for about 60-70 minutes, or until firm and dark brown on the edges. Set aside to cool for at least an hour before serving. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days (or longer if refrigerated).
Notes
Nutrition Facts are an estimate and will vary depending on specific ingredients you choose. They do not include the frosting.
*Be sure that you have pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie mix. Farmers Market is my go-to brand but it tends to be a bit watery compared to other brands so you may need to add a few tablespoons of water to the recipe to compensate when using thicker purees.
**Coconut oil works best in this recipe but you could also use olive oil or any neutral flavored vegetable oil that you prefer. I haven’t tried replacing or reducing the oil because I feel like this amount is necessary for the most desirable result. If you experiment and have good results please let us know in the comments below!
***Spelt flour can be substituted with all purpose flour, whole wheat pastry flour or gluten-free all-purpose.
****Pumpkin pie spice can be replaced with 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger, ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg, and ¼ teaspoon cloves.
I topped mine with cashew cream cheese frosting from my carrot banana bread but that’s totally optional if you want to leave it plain :)
Nutrition
Calories: 239kcal, Carbohydrates: 34g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 10g, Saturated Fat: 8g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g, Monounsaturated Fat: 1g, Sodium: 219mg, Potassium: 220mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 13g, Vitamin A: 4767IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 78mg, Iron: 2mg
Did you try this recipe? Please let me know how it turned out by leaving a comment below or sharing a picture on Instagram with the hashtag #makingthymeforhealth. I love hearing your feedback!
haha I’m with you – I’ve been doing tons of fall baking lately even though it’s still hot out! That’s what AC is for right?? lol I even lit my favorite fall candle. Makes me so happy.
And spelt flour for the win! This pumpkin loaf looks just perfect!
I love pumpkin bread. Any chance you would be willing to share the icing recipe? Icing is a big win in my household for sure and it looks delicious!
Yes! I shared it in the blog post but I’ll leave the link here for easy access :)
https://www.makingthymeforhealth.com/vegan-banana-carrot-bread-cashew-cream-cheese-icing/
It’s raining and there’s a cold front coming through. Some pumpkin bread sounds just about perfect right now! It’s the ultimate fall comfort food.
I’ve been on a major vegan baking kick lately using flax eggs! : )
This looks amazing Sarah!! I was actually JUST on the hunt for a pumpkin bread recipe a few weeks ago so I’m glad I saw this! I’ll be making this over the weekend :)
Yay! I hope you enjoy it, Liz!
Hi Sarah, I love all you vegan recipes! I was wondering if the vegan pumpkin bread can be made with cassava flour instead of spelt? Thanks Mary
Hi Mary! I’ve actually never experimented with cassava flour so I’m not sure. Please let me know if you decide to give it a try!
I actually went to starbucks today JUST to buy some pumpkin bread! it’d definitely be a better option to make it myself though. I like the frosting recipe you recommended as well but by any chance do you have a chocolate one instead?
It sure looks like it could be the best! I’ll have to buy some more spelt flour and give it a try soon! I’ve made pumpkin waffles already but I am ready to move on to pumpkin pancakes and pumpkin bread.
Tis the season for ALL the pumpkin ;)
Oh Sarah… could we talk. Gluten free AND vegan baking is no joke. I’m on my fourth round of gf + v oat pumpkin bread – I’ve been testing muffins and bread, with and without nuts, chocolate, more pumpkin, less pumpkin… I think I’m getting there but sheesh!!! I’ve been eating so much do I dare make another batch? This spelt flour loaf looks sooo good. Perfect. And that creamy cashew frosting is a delicious way to top this beauty off! Sending my best for a beautiful Fall weekend!
The struggle is so real! Hopefully your hard work pays off soon! :)
Wow!
Absolutely Delicious!
Thank you so very much!
Penny
Love ittt! So good. Gonna be making this weekly — haha. I didn’t do the frosting because I was in a hurry. I imagine it’s even better with but this way makes me feel not guilty. Camryn is enjoying her piece right now for snack time. :)
I’m so glad you and Camryn like it! :)
Wowow tried to this yesterday and the entire loaf is gone. Perfectly moist and so flavourful I’m so impressed thank you!!
Thanks for the awesome review, Julia! I’m so happy you like it!
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Perfect recipe! So moist and the mix of spices was perfect.
I subbed just a little less than 1/2 cup of the spelt flour with almond flour to add more protein. I reduced the maple syrup by 1/8 cup – not sweet enough. The extra 1/8 cup would have made it sweet enough. Added 1/2 cup of walnuts too.
Thank you for this recipe! Definitely making again!
This was easy and delicious. Thanks very much!
I was trying to print this recipe then I read “Did you try this recipe pls rate” lol
5 out of 5, flurry, yummy, soft!
Thank you so much for sharing, I had no maple syrup so I used 1/3cup honey, and gave it to 3 people including myself, they all loved it! 1 of them was a pastry Chef/cook. So well done, please keep adding more yummy recipes….
Blessings…
Aw thank you so much! I really appreciate you taking the time to write the review! :)
I just made this and it smells so good! Can it be frozen?
Yes! Just make sure it’s cooled completely and stored in an airtight container. It should last a few months in the freezer! :)
Made this today. Very moist and delicious. For some reason 60 minutes was enough to cook mine. Will make it again with the frosting. Thank you.
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Do you know if I could use oat flour?
You could but the texture will be different. When I use oat flour on it’s own without eggs the texture tends to be gummy.
This recipe is fantastic! I ended up subbing honey for the maple syrup and canola oil for the coconut oil since I didn’t have enough of either one. I added 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips. This smelled amazing while it was baking. It sliced up nice, and it tasted terrific. I will definitely be keeping this recipe to make. I keep homegrown pureed pumpkin in my freezer pre-measured. I used that and it worked great. Love this recipe!!
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DEEEEELICIOUS!!! Tasty & super moist! Made without the icing and will continue to make… It’s soooo good! Thank you for sharing your recipes!
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Love all your recipes!!!! Can you please make a sweet potato bread? We dislike the flavour in savory applications, but we know they are really good for you – so it would fit the bill for us.
Thank you for all you do!