This easy pumpkin bread recipe mixes up in one bowl and bakes into a moist and cozy loaf. Top it with a quick maple glaze for my family’s favorite fall bake!
A good pumpkin bread recipe is an essential for any home cook. As a cookbook author and professional recipe developer, I’ve made more pumpkin bread recipes than I can count. But this one is my very favorite.
It’s so cozy-spiced and moist, with the perfect tender texture. And it’s so simple to whip up: all you need is one bowl, no special equipment: just dump and stir! When I’m feeling fancy, I top it with this maple glaze to take it over the top.
5 Star Reader Reviews
“So very yummy! This recipe was in this week’s email and I had to make it immediately! We devoured it! The glaze – lip smacking good!” -Jeni
“The best pumpkin bread! Thank you” -Cher
Ingredients You’ll Need
There are many ways to make a great pumpkin bread. I created this one to be ultra moist, with the perfect sweet, cozy spiced flavor and soft, tender crumb. There’s no need for a mixer or waiting for butter to come to room temperature: you can mix it all up in one bowl! Here are a few ingredient notes:
Pumpkin puree: Use canned or homemade; the most consistent brand I’ve found is Libby’s (we’re not affiliated).
Eggs: These bind the bread together. For egg-free, go to our Vegan Pumpkin Bread.
Granulated sugar: You can substitute the solid sweetener of your choice; I don’t recommend using maple syrup here.
Neutral oil: Oil makes a moister quick bread than butter; it also allows the recipe to be made in a bowl with no stand mixer.
Cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice (or ginger, allspice, and nutmeg): Individual spices make the boldest flavor, but you can also use pumpkin pie spice.
All purpose flour: You can substitute up to ¼ of the flour with whole wheat flour. For a gluten-free option, go to our Gluten Free Pumpkin Bread.
How to Make Pumpkin Bread, Step by Step
Here’s an overview of how to make this pumpkin bread recipe (or jump to the recipe card for quantities):
Prep the oven and pan. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan and line it with parchment paper.
Whisk the wet ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, then whisk in the pumpkin puree, sugar, oil, and vanilla.
Add the spices and baking powder. Whisk these in first. This method of adding the dry ingredients in two batches eliminates the need for a separate bowl.
Fold in the flour. Sprinkle in the flour half at a time, mixing with a spatula.
Bake. Pour the batter into the pan and bake 60 to 65 minutes, until the top is set and a toothpick comes out with a few clinging crumbs. Cool at least 30 minutes, and longer if you’d like to add a glaze.
Tips For A Perfectly Baked Loaf
Here are a few things to keep in mind for baking success with this pumpkin bread recipe:
Use an aluminum baking pan for best results (9 x 5-inch). Ceramic and glass pans don’t cook as evenly. This recipe is optimized for a 9 x 5 inch pan, but also works in a 8 x 4 inch pan.
Don’t overmix. Overmixing a quick bread can lead to holes in the texture of the crumb.
Let it cool fully before serving. This bread has an even more developed flavor once it is fully cooled: eating it after 2 hours is ideal.
Try It With Maple Glaze
This easy pumpkin bread is delicious plain, but we like it best with a glaze! This maple glaze is simple to whip up and has a sweet, maple-forward flavor.
Using maple glaze adds a pop of maple-forward flavor. It’s easy to find at the grocery store and it’s worth buying. However, the glaze tastes delicious without it!
Butter is helpful for storage. One advantage of the maple glaze is that the butter helps to make for a more solidified glaze that holds up better over time.
Want a solid glaze? Make double the glaze recipe below and glaze the cooled bread in the pan, so the glaze doesn’t run down the sides.
A gift: Wrap a cooled, unglazed loaf for a neighbor or teacher.
How to Store and Freeze Pumpkin Bread
This pumpkin bread recipe tastes even better the next day, because it picks up moisture during storage. Here are a few tips for storage of this quick bread:
Stores at room temperature for 4 days, wrapped tightly in aluminum foil.
Stores refrigerated for 10 days. Cold temperatures can make it taste dryer, so bring to room temperature before serving.
Stores frozen for up to 3 months. Slice the cooled bread, then freeze it in slices for up to 3 months. Freezing works best without the glaze.
This easy pumpkin bread recipe mixes up in one bowl and bakes into a moist and cozy loaf. I love topping it with maple glaze for my family’s favorite fall bake!
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 x 5 inch aluminum bread pan, then add parchment paper cut so that it fits the width and extends on both long sides, to easily remove the bread once its baked.
In a bowl, whisk the eggs. Then whisk in the pumpkin puree, sugar, oil, and vanilla.
Whisk in the cinnamon, ginger, allspice, nutmeg, and kosher salt. Then whisk in the baking powder and baking soda. Sprinkle in the flour, half at a time, and mix with a spatula until just combined and there are no more dry bits (don’t over-stir).
Pour the batter into the bread pan.
Bake 60 to 65 minutes, until the top is set and a toothpick comes out with a few clinging crumbs. Allow to cool in the pan for 30 minutes, then run a knife around the edges and pull up on the parchment paper to remove the bread. Allow to cool to room temperature if glazing.
If making the glaze, heat the butter and maple syrup in a small saucepan until the butter melts. In a medium bowl, slowly whisk the powdered sugar, butter and maple syrup, salt and maple extract until a thick glaze forms. Gradually add the milk to make a smooth, pourable glaze. If the glaze is too sticky, add a teaspoon more milk until it comes to a smooth, thick consistency. Use a fork to drizzle across the bread.
Slice into pieces and serve. Stores for 4 days at room temperature wrapped in foil, 10 days in the refrigerator (bring to room temperature before serving), or freeze in slices for a few months (freezing works best without the glaze).
This Instant Pot wild rice soup recipe is cozy and naturally creamy, a delicious and filling dinner that pleases everyone. It has become a fan favorite recipe with many positive reviews from readers!
Over the years, the Instant Pot become a well-used tool in our house! While it doesn’t cook food in an instant, it does provide an easy, hands-off way to make soup: no stovetop babysitting required!
This Instant Pot wild rice soup recipe is a spin on my classic wild rice soup that’s a reader favorite! Everyone I’ve served it to positively raves about it. Even better, the Instant Pot cooks dried beans in the same time as the rice (wow!). When I took the first bite after Alex made this recipe for me, I was blown away!
5 Star Reader Reviews
“This soup was so delicious and warming! A perfect soup for fall or winter with the combination of aromatic herbs, ingredients, and creaminess. Oooh, it was so good! This will become a fall/winter favorite!” -Jan
“OMG this is so tasty! This will be on repeat. Thank you!” -Helen
“This was so great! I wasn’t sure I would be able to sell the meatless version to my family and they are crazy about it!” -Michelle
Key Ingredients for Wild Rice Soup
Here are the key ingredients you’ll need for this soup:
Wild rice: Wild rice isn’t actually rice, if we’re being technical! It’s the seed of a type of grass, with a nutty flavor and chewy texture. Here it’s important to use 100% wild rice, not a wild rice blend which includes different types of rice.
Dried Great Northern beans: Here’s the great part: this soup uses dried beans! The Instant Pot cooks the dried beans way quicker than on the stove, and they taste even better than canned beans.
Mushrooms and vegetables: I always use baby bella mushrooms (also called cremini) for a savory, meaty flavor, but you can also use white button mushrooms. Onion, celery, and carrots make the classic mirepoix base, plus a bunch of garlic.
Vegetable broth: Use any type of broth you have on hand..
Dried thyme, oregano, and sage: This soup is boldly seasoned on purpose, because the Instant Pot can kill the flavors (similar to a Crock Pot). It will turn out delicious: I promise!
Cashews: Raw or roasted cashews both work: they make a creamy body without the use of cream.
Soy sauce or tamari: A splash at the end adds savory depth to the flavors!
How to Make Wild Rice Soup in the Instant Pot
This wild rice soup recipe is a bit different than most, since it’s made in a pressure cooker not the stovetop! Also, I decided to create this wild rice soup without using meat or dairy, so it’s naturally creamy. I’ve made lots of Instant Pot soup recipes, but this one remains a favorite!
While the soup is cooking, you’ll soak some cashews.
Once the soup is done, you’ll blend together the cashews with some of the soup and some dried sage to create a naturally creamy base without cream.
Why Make Instant Pot Soup
The advantage of cooking this soup in an Instant Pot instead of the stovetop is that it’s totally hands off once the cooking starts. You can throw the soup in the pot and then go do other things, until your dinner is done! Because this recipe takes over 1 hour to make, we made the serving size large: it serves about 8. That way, you can have plenty for leftovers.
Tips For Soup With Dried Beans
For this wild rice soup recipe, I’ve used dried white beans in the Instant Pot. In a normal stovetop soup recipe, you would typically use canned or already cooked beans and add them to the soup.
Because the wild rice takes so long to cook already, I decided to add dried white beans to this soup recipe. They’re cheaper and taste even better than canned, and they also add a filling protein to the soup. Keep in mind that that you may need a few extra minutes on the cook time if the beans are not fully tender after the timing in the recipe below.
Substitutions and Variations
Chicken: Stir in cooked shredded chicken (pre-cooked), after the soup is done. Rotisserie chicken is a nice swap.
Nut-free: For a nut-free variation, you can swap the cashews for ½ cup heavy ream. (As you know, it will no longer be vegan!)
Add greens: Stir in a few handfuls of spinach at the end until wilted.
You can store leftover soup in the fridge for up to 4 days. It will become much thicker as it sits, so when you reheat it you can add a splash of broth or water. The soup also freeze for up to 3 months.
Dietary Notes
This Instant Pot wild rice soup recipe is vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free (with tamari).
This Instant Pot wild rice soup recipe is cozy and naturally creamy, so it’s a 100% plant based dinner. Serve with crusty bread. For a stovetop version, go to Best Wild Rice Soup.
Add the olive oil to the Instant Pot and turn on Saute mode. Add the onion, celery and carrot and cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes until lightly browned. Add mushrooms and saute for 2 minutes. Add garlic, thyme and oregano and stir for 2 minutes.
Add the broth, wild rice, dried white beans, 2 teaspoons kosher salt, and black pepper. Lock the lid of the Instant Pot. Place the pressure release handle (vent) in the “Sealing” position.
Cook onHigh Pressure for 45 minutes: Press the Pressure Cook button, making sure the “High Pressure” setting is selected, and set the time. Note that it takes about 5 to 10 minutes for the pot to “preheat” and come up to pressure before it starts cooking. (During cooking, avoid touching the metal part of the lid.)
Quick release: Vent the remaining steam from the Instant Pot by moving the pressure release handle to “Venting”, covering your hand with a towel or hot pad. Never put your hands or face near the vent when releasing steam. Open the pressure cooker lid. Taste a bean to see if it is tender (bean brands can vary). If not, cook on High Pressure for another 5 minutes and do a quick release.
Using a liquid measuring cup, carefully remove 2 cups of the hot soup (including the broth, veggies and rice) to a blender. Drain the cashews and add them to the blender with the dried sage. Blend on high for about 1 minute until creamy. Then pour back into the soup.
Add ½ teaspoon kosher salt and the soy sauce. Taste, and adjust seasonings as desired. Garnish with a drizzle of olive oil and fresh ground pepper.
Notes
*If you use roasted salted cashews, omit the soy sauce at the end; then add it to taste. If you have a cashew allergy, try using the same amount of whole milk or cream to make a creamy base.
More Instant Pot recipes
Outside of this wild rice soup recipe, here are some of our favorite Instant Pot soups:
This easy ground chicken chili recipe is a cozy one-pot dinner with beans, tomatoes and smoky spices. It’s the healthy dinner my family asks for on repeat!
After a decade of writing recipes, I’ve created almost a dozen vegan and vegetarian chili recipes. But now that I eat the Mediterranean diet (and wrote a cookbook about it), I decided it was time for a chicken chili. Enter, my new easy ground chicken chili recipe!
This chili is so hearty and delicious, with the tomato-y cozy vibe of a classic red chili but a little lighter than the classic ground beef version. My son will eat 2 bowls in one sitting, which is a huge win! I also love that this chicken chili is a great way to eat lots of beans, so it delivers 23 grams protein and 13 fiber per serving.
Why You’ll Love This Ground Chicken Chili
It’s pretty fast. The ground chicken cooks quickly, so you can get this done in under an hour (versus much longer for beef chilis).
It’s lighter than beef chili. Ground chicken, beans, and Greek yogurt make this a Mediterranean diet friendly meal.
It uses one pot and pantry staples. It’s so easy to whip up, and leftover save well for meal prep.
Video: Watch me make this chili!
Key Ingredients You’ll Need
Here are a few notes on the important ingredients (or refer to my instructional video for more):
Ground chicken: Look for a 93/7 blend if you can find it. You can also swap in ground turkey (though I’m not a huge fan of the flavor of turkey, which is why I love using ground chicken!).
Onion, green pepper and garlic: These aromatic vegetables build the base and add texture.
Fire roasted tomatoes and tomato sauce: Canned fire roasted tomatoes have a smoky flavor that tastes sweet right out of the can. The tomato sauce lends body.
Kidney beans, black beans and corn: I like using two kinds of beans; you can also use pinto beans here.
Spices: My secret chili spices are chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and a pinch of cinnamon.
Adobo sauce: The secret ingredient! This is the smoky sauce from a can of chipotle peppers in adobo and it adds major flavor depth. Don’t leave it out!
Red Vs. White Chicken Chili
When many people think of a chicken chili recipe, they think of white chicken chili with shredded chicken and white beans and green chiles.
This recipe is the other kind: it’s a red chili recipe built on tomatoes and chili powder, with ground chicken standing in for ground beef. If you love classic chili flavor but want it to be a healthy chili recipe, this is your recipe.
How To Make Ground Chicken Chili
Here’s the basic method (or jump to the recipe for exact quantities):
Cook the ground chicken. Add the chicken, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Cook for about 5 minutes, until no longer pink.
Add the remaining ingredients. Stir in the tomato sauce, fire roasted tomatoes, beans, corn, water, spices, adobo sauce and salt.
Simmer 30 minutes (or more if you have time). Technically you can simmer for 15 or so minutes, if you’re in a rush. But I’ve found the flavor is more developed at 30 minutes. It’s even better at 45 minutes, if you have time for that!
Taste and serve. Add more adobo sauce if you’d like, then ladle into bowls and pile on the toppings.
Easy Variations To Try
Vegetarian: I love making this into a healthy vegetarian chili too! I like adding 1 diced sweet potato in with the onion and green pepper, then adding a third can of black beans or pinto beans. You can also use a 12-ounce package of veggie crumbles in place of the chicken.
Ground turkey: Swap it for the ground chicken. Again, I’m not a big ground turkey person so I prefer the chicken, but if you love it it’s a great swap!
Extra smoky: Add 1 minced chipotle pepper in adobo for some extra heat.
Sweet and smoky: Stir in 1 cup diced sweet potato or butternut squash with the onions.
Favorite Toppings And Sides
To me, there are certain toppings that are required for chili! For this one, I love it with a little whole milk Greek yogurt stirred in, and a hint of shredded cheese. To me, this keeps it as a healthy chili recipe that still has body and flavor. Here’s what I recommend:
Greek yogurt, whole milk (you can also use sour cream or Mexican crema)
Shredded cheese: Mexican blend or Monterey Jack cheese
Sliced green onions and chopped cilantro
Pickled red onionsor pickled jalapeños (to me, pickled onions complete the look with the pop of bright pink)
This chicken chili stores refrigerated for up to 4 days. Reheat it on the stovetop or in the microwave, adding a splash of water if you need to loosen the texture. You can also freeze it for up to 3 months; the texture holds up well after thawing.
Dietary Notes
This ground chicken chili recipe is gluten-free and dairy-free (with dairy-free toppings noted above). It’s also Mediterranean diet friendly.
This easy ground chicken chili is a cozy one-pot dinner with beans, tomatoes and smoky spices. It’s the red chicken chili recipe my family asks for on repeat!
For topping: shredded cheese, Greek yogurt (or cashew cream), sliced green onions or pickled red onions, or Mexican hot sauce (I like Cholula)
Instructions
Heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and green pepper and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until translucent. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more.
Stir in the ground chicken and cook for about 5 minutes, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until it is no longer pink.
Add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes and their juices, kidney beans, black beans, corn, water, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, smoked paprika, cinnamon, adobo sauce and kosher salt. Stir until well combined.
Bring the chili to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for30 minutes, stirring occasionally (or up to 45 minutes if you have time). If it becomes very thick, stir in ¼ cup more water (since brands of diced tomatoes vary quite a bit in moisture).
Taste and add additional adobo sauce if desired. Serve warm, garnished with your favorite chili toppings. I think the Greek yogurt (or cashew cream) and a tiny bit of cheese are required here, but do what you love! Leftovers store refrigerated for up to 4 days.
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