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I love a good pumpkin bread recipe and this is certainly that, made extra good with the maple frosting on top! This easy pumpkin bread with maple glaze will become your new fall BFF: it’s moist and perfectly spiced and the frosting is one of the best things ever!
I’ve been eating and making pumpkin bread my entire life: it’s an easy quick bread made with pumpkin puree and lots of pumpkin pie spice. It smells amazing and one bite transports you to a crisp fall morning (even if it’s the middle of June).
What makes this pumpkin bread recipe better? A crisp fall morning needs a sweater and so does this bread: a nice maple frosting cardigan on top of the best moist bread! The combination of the spiced pumpkin bread and the maple icing is a fall match made in heaven.
The secret to making maple anything: use maple extract! It’s where all the actual maple flavor comes from (that just syrup can’t give). You’ll never want to eat pumpkin muffins or bread without this frosting once you’ve tried it!
Maple Pumpkin Bread Ingredients
- Pumpkin Puree is the backbone of the bread. Be sure to use puree, not pumpkin pie mix.
- I always use vegetable oil in my quick bread recipes to keep them extra moist. Canola oil can be substituted.
- My quick breads are leavened with a combination of baking soda and acid. Sometimes that means using buttermilk, but usually I just add a teaspoon of white vinegar and use regular milk.
- When it comes to milk, you can use any kind: whole, 2%, fat free or even nondairy milk.
- Quick breads are great to make gluten free with GF AP 1:1 flour.
- The maple glaze needs traditional frosting ingredients except we start with melted butter which makes it more spreadable and get a nice crust on top as the butter hardens.
- You also need maple extract for the glaze. While you could use maple syrup, it’s not going to give you the punch of maple flavor you want for this recipe.
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Dorothy’s Expert Tips
- Feel free to use buttermilk and omit the vinegar, but if you’re using milk or nondairy milk, you must use it (or lemon juice) to act as the acid to activate the baking soda. This makes a tall bread that’s super moist!
- You know quick bread is done baking when a toothpick comes out from the very center of the crack with just a few crumbs. If it’s wet, give it a few more minutes. Once the toothpick is dry, it’s over baked.
- Remember, when making the glaze, that the fat content of liquid affects how much you need to add. The more fat (i.e whipping cream) in the liquid, the more you’ll need. The less fat (i.e. 2% or fat free), you’ll need much less. This is why a range is given; start lower and add as you go.
- The frosting will not fully harden, but the top will dry.
Pumpkin Bread with Maple Glaze Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (50g) brown sugar
- ⅓ cup (79ml) vegetable oil, or coconut oil
- 1 cup (244g) pumpkin puree
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ⅓ cup (79ml) buttermilk, (or add 1 tsp vinegar to ⅓ cup any kind of milk)
- 2 cups (248g) all-purpose flour, (or 1:1 GF flour or 1 cup each whole wheat and all-purpose)
- 3 tablespoons (42g) unalted butter, melted
- 1 cup (113g) powdered sugar
- Pinch salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon maple extract
- 1-2 tablespoons (5-10ml) heavy whipping cream, (or any milk)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×5-inch metal loaf pan with nonstick baking spray.
- Stir granulated sugar and brown sugar with oil and pumpkin. Stir in the eggs, pumpkin pie spice, salt, and baking soda. Stir until combined.
- Stir in buttermilk (or milk + vinegar) and flour.
- Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 40-50 minutes. A toothpick will come out with just a few crumbs from the center of the crack. (Size of pan can adjust baking time, as can type of pan, i.e. glass or porcelain).
- Let the bread cool before glazing.
- Make the glaze: whisk melted butter and powdered sugar. Mixture will be thick and gloppy. Whisk in extracts and 1 tablespoon heavy whipping cream. It will smooth out, just keep whisking. Add more cream, up to 1 extra tablespoon, for desired consistency. Spread on bread, let dry before serving.
Notes
- Use any kind of milk when making the glaze, but you’ll need much less the less fat in the milk. (i.e. Heavy cream you might need 2 T but 2% milk would need 1 T, etc).
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Storing Pumpkin Bread
- Because this is frosted, store it loosely covered at room temp for up to 3 days or in the fridge up to 5 days.
- Freeze the cooled bread, unfrosted, wrapped well in plastic wrap. Freeze frosted bread then wrap well once frozen (unwrap before thawing).
How to make Pumpkin Bread with Maple Glaze
- No need to use a mixer unless you want to. Otherwise, just stir all the ingredients together.
- The batter will be thick and spread easily in pan. Always bake in a metal pan for best results.
- You want the proper thickness of frosting so it spreads and doesn’t drip. It should be stiff.
- Frost the bread and let it set.
