This pumpkin bread with cream cheese frosting makes 2 loaves, which is exactly how I like it: one topped with toasted pecans for me, and one plain, because my kids prefer it without. The bread is moist and spiced with cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves, and I add the cinnamon cream cheese frosting once the loaves are completely cool.

Pumpkin bread with cream cheese topped with pecans sliced on white plates.

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It tastes even better the next day, once the spices settle in, so it’s great to bake ahead. If you’d rather have pumpkin in muffin form, try my pumpkin banana muffins.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Two loaves from one batch. Frost both, or keep one for the house and give one away.
Moist for days. Pumpkin, oil, and buttermilk keep the crumb tender.
No mixer needed for the bread. Two bowls and a whisk.
Frosting that matches. A little cinnamon in the cream cheese frosting ties it to the bread’s spices.

Ingredients

Pure pumpkin: use 100% pure pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling, which is already sweetened and spiced. I use Libby’s.
Buttermilk: it adds tang and keeps the bread tender. If you can’t find it, full-fat plain yogurt or sour cream works. I’d skip the milk-and-lemon trick here.
Brown sugar: light or dark both work. It adds a little caramel flavor and keeps the bread moist.
Room-temperature eggs and cream cheese: they mix in smoothly. If your eggs are cold, set them in a bowl of warm water for a few minutes.

Substitutions and Variations

Spices: use 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice instead of the ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Keep the 2 teaspoons of cinnamon.
Homemade pumpkin puree: it’s wetter than canned. Measure it, then press out some of the moisture with paper towels.
Mix-ins: fold in 1 cup toasted pecans, chopped walnuts, chocolate chips, or white chocolate chips.
Skip the frosting: sprinkle cinnamon sugar over the batter before baking, as I do on my cinnamon crunch banana bread.
Glaze instead of frosting: thin the frosting with milk, 1 teaspoon at a time, until it drizzles.

This recipe has not been tested with other substitutions or variations. If you replace or add any ingredients, please let us know how it turned out in the comments below!

Step-by-step instructions

Flour and spices whisked together in a glass bowl.

Heat the oven to 350°F and grease two 8×4-inch loaf pans. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves.

Pumpkin, sugar, eggs, and oil whisked smooth in a glass bowl.

In a medium bowl, whisk the granulated sugar, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla for about 35 seconds, until lighter in color. Whisk in the pumpkin, oil, and buttermilk.

Thick pumpkin bread batter with a whisk.

Pour the pumpkin mixture into the dry ingredients and whisk just until combined (about 20 seconds). The batter will be thick, and a few lumps are fine.

Two metal loaf pans filled with pumpkin bread batter.

Divide the batter between the two pans and smooth the tops.

Two baked pumpkin bread loaves in their pans on a wire rack.

Bake for 44–54 minutes, until a toothpick in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs.

Two pumpkin bread loaves cooling on a wire rack.

Cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then turn the loaves out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Cinnamon cream cheese frosting beaten with a hand mixer.

For the frosting, beat the cream cheese and butter with a hand mixer until smooth. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt, and mix on low until combined, then on medium until light and fluffy.

Two loaves of moist pumpkin bread with cream cheese frosting on a wooden board, with one loaf topped with chopped pecans.

Spread the frosting over the cooled loaves and top one or both with toasted pecans. Slice and serve.

Cream cheese frosting for pumpkin bread

Cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon for pumpkin bread frosting.

This small batch uses 4 ounces cream cheese, 4 tablespoons butter, and 1½ cups powdered sugar, plus cinnamon, vanilla, and a pinch of salt. It’s enough for a generous layer on the tops of both loaves.
Wait until the loaves are completely cool before frosting. Warm bread melts cream cheese frosting, and it slides right off the sides.

Sarah’s Tips

Weigh your flour. A kitchen scale is the most accurate way to measure. If you use cups, spoon the flour in and level it off instead of scooping, or the bread turns out dry.
Don’t overmix. Stop whisking as soon as you can’t see dry flour. Overmixing makes quick bread tough and gummy.
Bring everything to room temperature. Eggs, buttermilk, cream cheese, and butter all mix more evenly when they’re not cold.
Check early. Ovens vary, so start checking at 44 minutes. You want a few moist crumbs on the toothpick, not wet batter.
Measure the pumpkin. Too much puree leaves the center underbaked and the top sticky.

Recipe FAQs

Usually it’s too much moisture: extra pumpkin, homemade puree that wasn’t blotted, or a loaf that came out of the oven a few minutes early. Measure the wet ingredients carefully, then bake until a toothpick comes out with only a few moist crumbs.

Yes. Once it’s frosted, refrigerate it in an airtight container. Unfrosted bread is fine at room temperature for a few days.

Yes. Freeze it uncovered until the frosting is firm, then wrap it well. Details are in the storage section below.

sliced pumpkin bread with cream cheese icing on a gray plate.

Storage

Unfrosted: keep it in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, then in the fridge for 2 more.

Frosted: keep it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Freezer: for slices, freeze them on a parchment-lined sheet pan for an hour, then move them to a zip-top bag. For a whole loaf, freeze it uncovered until the frosting is firm, then wrap it in 2 layers of plastic wrap and 1 layer of foil. It keeps for up to 3 months. Thaw on the counter or in the fridge overnight.

Make ahead: bake the loaves up to 2 days early, cover them well, and frost the day you serve them. Over the holidays, that frees your oven for my honeycrisp apple pie.