Fall in love with this healthy and easy gluten free pumpkin bread that’s fluffy and filled with pumpkin and pumpkin spice in every bite!
In my opinion pumpkin bread is the most quintessential fall thing you can make to kick off the fall season! If you’re like me then come September 1st no matter how hot it may still be outside, you’re ready for all things pumpkin!
This healthy gluten free pumpkin bread made with a blend of almond and oat flour has an incredibly soft and spongey texture that you’d never know was gluten free. As a dietitian, I love making pumpkin recipes that are a bit healthier, fit a wide variety of diets, but also don’t skip on flavor and texture.
This is my go-to easy gluten free pumpkin bread to bring to a get together, make for a friend or just whip up on a Sunday to enjoy all week long. It’s everything you want and more in a slice of pumpkin — spongey texture, hints of cinnamon and nutmeg and a slightly crisp top that tastes like it’s from a bakery.
You can’t go wrong with a slice for breakfast and I’ve included a few suggestions below on different ways you could top it and add things into it.
Time to light a pumpkin candle, preheat the oven and bake this incredibly moist and fluffy healthy pumpkin bread that tastes like everything we love about fall!
Ingredients for a Healthy Gluten Free Pumpkin Bread
- Oat flour – be sure to look for gluten free oat flour to keep this recipe gluten free.
- Blanched almond flour – I do not recommend substituting this flour for another as the oat and almond flour combination will give you the intended taste and texture.
- Pumpkin spice
- Cinnamon
- Baking soda
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Light brown sugar – alternatively you can substitute brown sugar for coconut sugar.
- Butter or coconut oil– I haven’t tested it with vegan butter but that could be an option if you’re looking to keep this loaf dairy free.
- Eggs
- Vanilla extract
- Pumpkin puree – just like it all my recipes, I used Libby’s 100% Pure Pumpkin — always make sure it’s not pumpkin pie mix.
Equipment / utensils:
- 9X5 bread baking pan
- mixing bowls
- hand-held mixer
Is Pumpkin Bread Wheat Free?
Many pumpkin bread recipes are made with whole wheat. However, there are many other flour substitutes to use instead of wheat, such as almond flour and oat flour (used in this recipe), all purpose gluten-free flour, and more.
Tips for Making Amazing Gluten Free Pumpkin Bread
- Measure the Flour Correctly – In the case of this pumpkin bread, it’s important to make sure you scoop the flour into the measuring cup using a scoop or spoon and that they are not packed into the measuring cup as this will give you too much flour.
- Don’t Spray the Entire Pan with Baking Spray. Just lightly spray the bottom of the pan. Too much moisture on the sides of the pan might cause the loaf to cave in. I like to spray the bottom of the pan and then line it with a sheet of parchment paper so that I can easily lift out the loaf.
- Make Sure Your Baking Soda and Baking Powder are Fresh – this is a sneaky little thing that might be causing your baked goods to not rise properly. Although baking soda and baking powder last a while, if they’re over a few months old this might be the reason why your baked goods aren’t cooking properly.
- Don’t Over Mix the Batter – When combining the wet ingredients and the dry ingredients mix together using a wooden spoon until just combined. Over mixing can cause the loaf to be rubbery and not as light and fluffy.
Storing Your Pumpkin Bread
I typically store this easy gluten free pumpkin bread on my counter for a day before popping it into the fridge so it stays moist and fresh.
Best Ways To Enjoy This Gluten Free Pumpkin Bread
You can’t go wrong no matter how you slice it — this pumpkin bread is amazing as is, but here are a few of my favorite ways to eat it:
- with peanut butter or almond butter on top
- with pumpkin seeds on top
- with chocolate chips folded into the batter
- with a pumpkin spice cream cheese frosting spread on top (beat together 4 tbsp of softened cream cheese with 4 tbsp room temperature butter 2 tsp. cinnamon or pumpkin spice, 1/2 cup powdered sugar and a pinch of salt)
- with this pumpkin cashew cream cheese spread on top
Best Healthy Gluten Free Pumpkin Bread
Equipment
- Oven
- Medium-sized mixing bowl
- Hand-held mixer
- Bread pan
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup oat flour GF is desired
- 1 1/2 cup blanched almond flour not packed
- 2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 2 tsp. baking power
- 1/2 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. salt
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar
- 1/3 cup butter melted
- 2 eggs room temperature
- 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 heaping cup pumpkin puree
Pumpkin Spice Cream Cheese Frosting (optional)
- 4 tbsp softened cream cheese
- 4 tbsp softened butter
- 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
- 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the oat flour, almond flour, pumpkin spice, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- In a separate medium-sized bowl using a hand-held mixer cream together the butter and sugar. Add the vanilla and 1 egg at a time beating on low until combined.
- Lastly, add the pumpkin puree and mix until combined.
- Use a wooden spoon to combine the wet and the dry ingredients until just mixed together careful not to over mix.
- Pour the batter into a bread pan that is lined with parchment paper or light coated with baking spray.
- Bake for approximately 50 minutes until a toothpick comes out with little to no crumbs. Let cool completely and enjoy!
Notes
And if you’re not already, I’d love for you to be a part of the Once Upon a Pumpkin community on Instagram!
More Healthy Pumpkin Recipes You’re Sure to Fall in Love With
- Copycat Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew (DF)
- Pumpkin Chickpea Blondies (GF & DF)
- Pumpkin S’mores Cookies (GF & DF)
- Pumpkin Pie Cinnamon Rolls
- Frozen Pumpkin Pie Smoothie (GF & DF)
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excellent, moist bread! I made a few subs because of what I had it was just fine: all almond flour, olive oil for butter, and I cut the sugar by 2/3 and used monkfruit sweetener instead.
I don’t know how I don’t have your cookbook yet because your recipes are amazing! I just made this with a cinnamon cream cheese and it’s so good! Thanks for sharing.
For the healthy pumpkin bread recipe, is there a flour we can use to substitute the almond and make the recipe nut free?? Thanks so much!!!
You could try cassava flour, or perhaps a GF flour blend. I haven’t tried substituting any of the ingredients in this recipe so I don’t know how well anything else would work but I hope that helps!