Gluten-Free Pumpkin Bread is moist, tender, and warmly spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. A cozy fall favorite, it’s simple to make and loved by the whole family.
This Gluten-Free Pumpkin Bread is adapted from my grandmother’s Pumpkin Bread recipe and made because we found that recently our daughter Jersey might have a gluten intolerance. So quickly, I am going through our family’s favorite recipes and making adaptations.
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After years of dealing with Jersey’s dark circles, mood swings, and digestive issues, we finally tried eliminating gluten from her diet. Although her celiac test came back clear, I noticed a real difference once gluten was removed. Dairy elimination didn’t help, but going back to gluten-free did. She’s not 100% better yet, but her mood, digestion, and overall health have greatly improved.
I’ve started adapting all our family favorites to be gluten-free so Jersey can still enjoy the foods she loves. At just 8 years old, she doesn’t always understand the effects gluten has on her and sometimes feels sad about missing out, but she’s learning. We remind her that she can choose when to have it—like at a party—but she also knows it means she won’t feel her best afterward.
One of the first things I made for her was this Gluten-Free Pumpkin Bread, a family favorite we enjoy every fall.
The bread’s top crust has a delightful texture–slightly crunchy. The rest of the loaf is soft and moist, as my son Aiden and I discovered (along with Jersey) when we first tried it. We couldn’t stop eating it, nor could the rest of the family.
Thanks to this journey, Jersey’s life will be improved in a significant way with just a simple change. No medication is necessary- just a simple ingredient removed that her body isn’t processing.
Feeling grateful to friends that we have options for all sorts of people with allergies.
Recipe Tips
How long is gluten-free bread good for?
Pumpkin bread is one of those things that just makes Fall. Though it’s incredible how such a simple combination of ingredients creates something so delicious, the best part about pumpkin bread is how long it will last you.
Stored airtight, the loaf stays fresh 3–4 days at room temp or up to 3 months in the freezer.
Pair this With…
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Gluten-Free Pumpkin Bread
Ingredients
- 3 1/2 cups gluten-free flour I use Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 gluten free flour
- 2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon ground cloves
- 4 eggs
- 2/3 cup water
- 2 cups pumpkin I use canned pumpkin. Make sure that it is gluten-free if you are intolerant
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup oil
- 1 cup gluten-free chocolate chips optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350; grease 3 8-inch bread loaf pans or 2 larger loaf pans.
- Mix all dry ingredients together and set aside. Add all of the remaining ingredients and mix together until well combined. Mix in the flour mixture and still until well combined and you can't see any of the remaining flour. Mixture will seem thick but it will be fine.
- Pour into 2- 3 bread pans and bake at 350 for 1 hour. Insert toothpick in center of loaf, it is done baking if the toothpick comes out clean.
- Cooking time will vary dependant on oven and size of bread loaf pans.
Notes
How closely does it taste to a bread full of gluten? have you ever added nuts?
Mac – this is a great question. And I think nuts would be a delight to add, maybe try pecan they are my hot hubby’s favorite. And as far as this bread the biggest difference was the crust. This recipe vs gluten recipe was the crust was a bit crunchy on the top which my family enjoyed.
I make it for bake sales and no one can tell the difference. It’s DELICIOUS!
I’ve seen another recipe that sprinkles cinnamon & sugar on the top so it has a spiced crust on top after baking.
Would a flax egg work to replace the eggs? My girls can’t have eggs or gluten
I would try this, I think you would be just fine. xo San
Bless you on being so dedicated to your daughter! I, too, have had gluten intolerence since a child but didn’t know it until later in life. Another elimination you might try is night-shade plants, which potatoes are in and lots of time are used as filler in gluten free mixes. This recipe looks yummy. I love pumpkin bread and, if made with right ingredients, can share it with my dogs! Good luck on your journey.
Hi, I’m excited to try this, but we’re trying to lower our sugar intake too. 3 cups of sugar seems like a lot… Have you tried it with less sugar? Or maybe substituting pure maple syrup for part of the sugar? I know with baking, any tweaks in the ingredients can impact the final product, so just wondering if you’ve tried it with less sugar.
Thank you!
You could try it and let me know. San
I am also Gluten sensitive but I am even more sensitive to sugar which I only discovered when being tested for gluten. I am not diabetic just sugar sensitive and I agree that 3 cups of sugar seems like a lot. Maybe you could try deleting sugar from Jersey’s diet, but I warn you it isn’t easy!
I love pumpkin bread! This is such an amazing recipe !!
Thank you!!!
This pumpkin bread looks amazing!
Thank you!
Oh my! Took out of oven a hour ago. Let it cool. Just sliced it. Wow!!! I do not use bleached sugar. I use natural unbleached cane sugar. I cut both sugars in half. Followed rest of recipe to the “T”. Totally excellent. Will be taking to my friends who are GI. Me, I’m not but I like baking for my friends. Before COVID we would have “Goody Night” after our last Christian meeting of the month. I always brought GF. Now I have to call ahead and place at their door. I will bake two more loaves in a.m. to take to town with me.. They are going to flip out….
This looks SO delicious! I can’t wait for all things pumpkin!
Me too! Enjoy!
I need this in my life!!!
Enjoy!
One tsp each of cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves? Please clarify! Thank you!
Did the cinnamon, nutmeg, clove measurements get clarified? It looks so yummy!
Just clarified the recipe! One teaspoon of each. Enjoy!
Can’t wait to try, I was down after recently getting told I have a sensitivity about missing out on all the pumpkin goodies. Yay! Also, go Rams!:)
I totally feel you! I have issues with gluten as well and this bread makes me so happy. Be sure to check out our other gluten-free pumpkin recipes too! Pumpkin Spice Mousse Cake and 4-Ingredient Pumpkin Nutella Brownies.
You should know that gluten stays in your system for weeks after consuming. It should be an all or nothing lifestyle. In fact, you may do more harm than you realize by going off gluten for awhile and then back on. I learned this the hard way. It is harder on your body than a celiac diagnosis.
I actually have had celiac for 7 years, so I totally get it! It definitely feels worse when I accidentally eat something with gluten now than it did before I went gluten-free. The recipes I shared are both completely gluten-free, so no issues there. This is a great warning for those who are still learning about gluten-free diets, thank you for sharing!
My hubby was stricken with ceiliac symptoms at the age of 55 although he had been prone to a great sensitivity to what seemed like several foods over his lifetime, no one had given him any idea it might be gluten that was bothering his system, and at that time, his back, trunk, and arms became covered with angry, red, and devilishly itchy rash! His uncle, who has 2 children and 5 grandchildren who are gluten sensitive, wrote him to say he might be having trouble with gluten. He also sent him a book, in which we found the perfect picture and description of an ailment caused by the intolerance of gluten-a secondary presentation of ceiliac disease. He is no longer able to tolerate any ingestion of wheat or gluten and gets quite sick when he is accidentally exposed! His uncle died at the age of 73 in hospital, where they were testing him for cancer, but the authorities did not heed his wife’s instruction not to give him any gluten (at that time they did not take too much stock in such advice unless issued by a certified doctor, she was only a dietician) So because he couln’t keep any food down, they gave him Ensure…a kind of liquid food substitute,; he died of peritonitis about 17 hours later! So why I am telling you about this, is to warn you that there are serious implications of extended ignoring of celiac conditions. My husband thinks his uncle suffered all his life with it, but he thought if he just avoided the problem foods MOST of the time, he would be ok. We think that he was careful, but casual about it, and as he grew older, he got more sensitive. This is what has happened to my guy. He is now 79, and we are very careful that he is not challenged against gluten. We read that gluten will cause weakness in the wall of the gut of a person who is intolerant of it is exposed to it over extended periods, so I guess he thinks he had as much exposure as he needs for the rest of his life before he knew what ailed him! I’d also like to mention that dairy can cause stuffiness black eyes, tickling coughs, asthma-like symptoms…,just saying…. I through away my inhaler when I quit eating stuff with cream in it…bummer….but now I can breathe better, sleep better, and I am never gasping
for air when I get struck with an icy blast, or a strong cloud of diesel fumes.
I also have celiac, and it was so hard to diagnose for sure! It definitely is a big improvement eating only gluten-free, I totally understand what you mean. We have lots of gluten-free recipes that he would enjoy so be sure to check them out!
Your daughter is really lucky you found it so early in her life! I have Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity as well but I found out it only last year and I’m 41! So imagine 40 years of migrains 🙂 than have now disappeared.
I will definetely try the bread! Thank you!
Have you ever substituted using trivia? Their ratio 1/2 c trivia to 1c regular sugar. Just trying to figure out if I would need to adjust anything else??
We never have made this without regular sugar. You would have to replace the 2 c brown sugar as well I’m assuming, so you may lose a little bit of the molasses flavor.Let us know if you do give it a try!
Well I couldn’t wait so I went ahead and “winged” it, but didn’t want to mess with it too much. So I did 1 cup Truvia but kept the brown sugar the same at 1 cup (Kept everything else the same) and it’s FABULOUS! Thanks for putting out such a fabulous recipe!
I’m so glad it worked out for you!
This looks so good! Do you use this gf dough base for any other recipes?
Sorry, no we haven’t tried this base with any other recipe. You can certainly give it a try though! If you replace the pumpkin with bananas to make banana bread, be sure to cut down on the sugar added.
Thanks for sharing! Does it keep long?
It will keep around 2-3 days at room temp in a tightly sealed container, or a week in the fridge. You can also freeze it for up to 3 months. Enjoy!
Could I bake this recipe in a 9×13 or 8×8 pan? If so, which size would you recommend? Thanks!
I haven’t tried that but you could totally manage it, I would recommend a 9×9 🙂
I never use all of the sugar when making pumpkin bread. I used about 1 1/4 c and also about a half a cup of almond flour bc I ran out of my usual GF all purpose blend. It turned out delicious! And I paired my batter into muffin tins (30) and they baked fit about 30 minutes.
I made this yesterday . Our house smelled wonderful and it came out pretty good too . I think I took mine out 7 mins before 60 mins was over because it smelled like it was starting to be overcooked and possibly burn . I used a toothpick to see if it was done , it came out clean but when cooled down, I cut into it , it seemed too mushy in the middle, but the taste was still real good and I didn’t feel like putting it back in the oven and drying it out . I’m glad I didn’t because I just had a piece with my coffee, it wasn’t mushy anymore , it was moist instead. I followed the recipe except I didn’t use 3 cups of sugar , I used 1 cup coconut sugar and 3/8 of teaspoon monkfruit pure extract powder. Sweetness is perfect and I don’t feel guilty consuming too much sugar. Very good recipe will definitely use it again . Thanks for sharing ❤️
This Gluten-Free Pumpkin Bread looks totally awesome!
Thank you!
This bread recipe is seriously amazing!! Love how easy it is to make!
Thank you, so glad to hear you enjoyed it!
Yum! This looks so delicious and tasty! Can’t wait to make this!
Thank you, enjoy!
Such a soft, moist and beautiful loaf! I bet it tastes amazing!
Thank you, it’s definitely worth baking!