This loaf will turn any pumpkin-hating skeptic into a pumpkin spice fiend (it converted my partner who strongly disliked pumpkin desserts before). It's almost *impossible* to stop at just one slice!
The combination of brown sugar, pumpkin, non-dairy buttermilk, and olive oil gives the most incredible fluffy crumb. I tested several combinations before this one eg. maple syrup, less sugar, less oil, and egg replacers, but those changes always resulted in a drier loaf.
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The bread is finished with a drizzle of biscoff glaze - I promise you, biscoff and pumpkin are THE combo you need to try this pumpkin season!
🧾 Ingredients Needed
While it may look like you need a lot of ingredients to make this homemade pumpkin bread vegan, you may find that you already have a lot of them in your pantry. Here's what to grab:
Ingredient Notes
Find the complete list of ingredients, quantities, and instructions in the recipe card at the end of this post.
- Canned Pumpkin Purée: Using canned 100% pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling) is key to making the best vegan pumpkin bread. It's made from a specific pumpkin variety that has a much lower water content than the large field pumpkins available in the store. Also, steer clear of pumpkin pie filling, pure pumpkin is the way to go.
- Soy Milk: This is mixed with apple cider vinegar and acts as a buttermilk substitute. You can use almond milk or oat milk if needed and swap the vinegar with lemon juice depending on what you have on hand.
- Olive Oil: I love using this to bake. The flavor doesn't shine through very strongly but if you don't like olive oil, swap it for a neutral oil such as canola oil or sunflower oil.
- Pecans: They add a beautiful crunch to the top of this pumpkin loaf. If you're intolerant to nuts, you can replace them with additional flour or pumpkin seeds.
- Brown Sugar: I use light muscovado sugar, it has a slight caramel taste and works well with fall-flavored bakes. I also add some dark muscovado, as it adds depth of flavor and moisture. I recommend it, but you can just replace it with more light brown sugar or even coconut sugar.
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🥣 Instructions
Here are step-by-step images showing how to make this vegan pumpkin bread recipe. Please refer to the detailed printable recipe card at the end of this page for full measurements and written instructions:
Step 1: Add the pecans, brown sugar, flour, and spices to a bowl and rub the melted vegan butter into the dry ingredients using your fingers until it resembles a crumble consistency. Chill until ready to use.
Step 2: Whisk together the wet ingredients (pumpkin puree, non-dairy milk, vinegar, olive oil, and vanilla extract) in a separate large mixing bowl.
Step 3: Fold the dry ingredients into the wet in 2-3 parts. Do not overmix, fold until there are no streaks of flour and you have a uniform batter.
Step 4: Transfer the batter to a prepared loaf pan. You can use an ice cream scoop or simply pour it in. Gently smooth out the surface with an offset spatula or knife.
Step 5: Crumble the streusel topping over the batter in an even layer. Cover the entire surface of the loaf, then bake!
Step 6: In a medium bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the glaze (that's powdered sugar, biscoff spread, vanilla, and plant-based milk).
Step 7: When ready, let it sit in the pan for 10 minutes and then place it on a cooling rack to cool completely.
Step 8: Once completely cooled, drizzle cookie butter glaze over the top before serving.
🎃 Variations
- Pumpkin Seeds: If you want to make a CopyCat Starbucks pumpkin bread, simply skip the streusel and scatter a handful of pumpkin seeds on top before baking.
- Pumpkin Walnut Bread: Swap out the pecans for ground walnuts.
- Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread: Add a cup of dairy-free chocolate chips to the batter.
- Vegan Cream Cheese Icing: Whip up half a batch of this vanilla cream cheese frosting in place of the cookie butter glaze. Or serve with a slather of pumpkin butter!
💭 Recipe Tips
Remove sugar clumps before mixing. If you're using a less refined sugar such as muscovado, the downside is it tends to stick together due to the molasses content. This can result in pockets of caramelized sugar in your baked loaf. To stop this, run your fingers through the sugar to remove any lumps before mixing.
Sift the dry ingredients together. It adds an extra step but will give you an even mixture, remove any lumps or impurities, and add aeration to the batter.
Prepare the loaf pan. Line the pan with a parchment sling so that you can easily lift the loaf from the tin once baked. To make a sling, sightly grease your pan but also cut a sheet of parchment paper and leave an overhang on both sides of the loaf pan.
How to remove the loaf from the pan. Once the loaf has cooled inside the pan for 10 minutes. Gently run a knife down each side which does not have parchment. Remember, the loaf will easily lift out as you've already greased the pan, but because we don't want to disturb the delicate crumb topping it's best to be careful.
💬 FAQs
To make pumpkin pie spice mix from scratch simply mix together 2 tsp ground cinnamon, ½ tsp ground ginger, ½ tsp allspice, and ¼ tsp ground cloves. You can prepare a larger batch and store it in an airtight jar so that you always have some pumpkin spice to hand for your fall bakes!
I like to bake the pumpkin bread on an aluminum baking sheet which conducts heat and helps bake the cake evenly from underneath.
But it doesn't stop there, how you cool the bread is essential to preventing a soggy bottom! Once baked, allow the bread the cool slightly in the pan for 10 minutes, and then remove it from the pan and transfer to a cooling rack to cool further. If you leave it in the pan, it will steam, and that can create a gummy bottom layer in the pumpkin bread.
This cake stays wonderfully moist for up to a week when stored correctly. When your cake has cooled, wrap any leftovers tightly in plastic wrap or foil or place it in an airtight container. It will keep at room temperature for up to 5 days - provided your environment is not too warm. In the fridge, it will be good for 7 days.
You can also freeze it for up to a month. Cut the bread into individual slices and separate them with sheets of parchment. Make sure they are wrapped well or place them in a sealed container. That way, you can defrost a slice whenever you're craving some with your coffee! To defrost, let it thaw at room temperature for a couple of hours.
I strongly recommend opting for storebought if you can, as it's created specifically for baking and has a lower water content. If you can't get your hands on it, you can make your own puree using butternut squash, as it has a very similar flavor but is much sweeter and not as watery.
You could also try my vegan sweet potato bread, which is equally delicious!
Try my recipe for vegan pumpkin muffins, instead, they are just as moist and flavorful as this bread!
🍞 More Quick Bread Recipes
📖 Recipe
Moist Vegan Pumpkin Bread With Streusel Topping
Equipment
Ingredients
Pecan Streusel
- 50 g (½ cup) pecans roughly chopped *see note 1
- 25 g (3 ½ tbsp) all-purpose flour (plain flour)
- 20 g (5 tsp) brown sugar I use light Muscovado
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin spice mix *see note 2
- 4 teaspoons vegan butter melted
Pumpkin Bread
- 118 ml (½ cup) soy milk *see note 3
- 1 ½ teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- 250 g (1 cup) canned pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
- 200 g (1 cup) light brown sugar I use light Muscovado
- 30 g (2 ½ tbsp) dark brown sugar I use dark Muscovado *see note 4
- 118 ml (½ cup) olive oil *see note 5
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 250 g (2 cups + 4 tsp) all-purpose flour (plain flour)
- 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin spice mix *see note 2
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
Biscoff Glaze
- 80 g (⅔ cup) powdered sugar (icing sugar)
- 50 g (⅕ cup) biscoff spread melted
- 3 tablespoons soy milk *see note 3
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Tip: I highly recommend using a digital scale and measuring in grams for the most accurate results. Also, check out the post above for tips and tricks!
- Prepare: Preheat your oven to fan-forced 160°C/320°F or conventional 180°C/356°F.Lightly grease a 1-pound loaf pan with some oil or vegan butter and line it with a sling of parchment paper - leaving an overhang on the sides.To prepare the vegan "buttermilk" add the soy milk and apple cider vinegar to a jug, stir, and allow to sit for 10 minutes.Prepare the pumpkin spice if using homemade (see recipe note 2).
- Make the pecan streusel: Add the chopped pecans, brown sugar, flour, pumpkin spice, and melted butter to a medium bowl. Rub the butter into the dry ingredients until it resembles a crumb consistency. Set aside (in the fridge if your kitchen is warm).
- Mix the wet ingredients: Add the prepared vegan buttermilk, pumpkin puree, light and dark brown sugar, olive oil, and vanilla extract to a large mixing bowl and whisk to combine.
- Mix the dry ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, pumpkin spice mix, cinnamon, and salt.
- Make the batter: Sift the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in 2 parts. Fold the ingredients into the batter between each increment until there are no pockets or streaks of flour. Do not be tempted to overmix!
- Assemble: Add the batter to the prepared loaf pan and smooth out the top of it with a spatula or knife. Sprinkle the pecan streusel mixture on top in an even layer, coating every part of the batter.
- Bake: Bake for 50-60 minutes on an aluminum baking sheet or baking tray. The loaf will rise and the top will be golden brown. Check the cake is done at the 50-minute mark by piercing it with a toothpick or a knife, the knife should come out clean with a few crumbs on it. Continue to bake in 5-minute increments as and if needed until baked through. Allow the cake to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before transferring it to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Make the glaze: In a medium bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, biscoff spread, non-dairy milk, and vanilla extract until smooth. Cover and set aside until ready to use.Once the loaf is completely cool, transfer it to a tray or sheet of parchment paper and drizzle the glaze all over the top.
- Storage: When your cake has cooled, wrap any leftovers tightly in plastic wrap or foil, or place it in an airtight container. It can be kept at room temperature for up to 5 days (provided your environment is not too warm) or in the fridge for up to 7 days. To freeze, cut the bread into individual slices and separate them with sheets of parchment. Make sure they are wrapped well or place them in a sealed container and freeze for up to a month. To defrost, let it thaw at room temperature for a couple of hours.
Notes
- Pecans: Use walnuts instead if preferred.
- Homemade Pumpkin Spice: Mix together the following: (2 ½ tsp ground cinnamon, ½ tsp ground ginger, ½ tsp allspice, and ¼ tsp ground cloves).
- Soy milk: Sub with oat milk or almond milk if needed.
- Dark Muscovado Sugar: Replace this with additional light brown sugar if needed. You can also omit it for a slightly reduced sugar content but note that the loaf won't be quite as moist.
- Olive Oil: Replace with a neutral oil such as sunflower or rapeseed if preferred.
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This recipe was originally posted in October 2021. It has since been modified and improved.
