Sourdough Pumpkin Bread
This sourdough pumpkin bread is so moist and it's packed with delicious fall flavors! Pumpkin spice lovers unite!
This pumpkin bread is made with pumpkin puree, sourdough discard and a twist of orange juice for a brightened up version of the classic.
If you're like me, you don't want to waste any of your sourdough discard. I always keep a separate jar of it in my fridge to use in recipes like sourdough pumpkin cinnamon rolls, sourdough banana bread and sourdough banana nut muffins.
You'll love the flavor that your sourdough starter discard gives this pumpkin bread!
Because this is a quick bread recipe and we are using baking powder and baking soda as leavening agents, the sourdough discard is added for it's wonderful, tangy flavor!
Step by step instructions
This recipe couldn't be easier so let's jump right into the details!
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease a 9" x 5" loaf pan with butter or oil.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and pumpkin pie spice. Set aside.
- Melt the butter in a bowl and add the sugar. Use a spatula to cream them together. Add the remaining wet ingredients and mix until well combined.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients bowl and stir until just combined. (Don't over mix!)
- Pour the batter into the loaf pan and bake on the center rack for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool for 15 minutes before transferring the pumpkin bread to a wire rack.
Tips for success
When using baking soda and baking powder it's best to incorporated them into the dry ingredients before mixing everything together.
This will ensure that the leavening agents are not activated until mixed with the wet ingredients, right before they go into the oven.
Make sure that you use pumpkin puree. Some people make the mistake of using pumpkin pie filling which has extra ingredients.
The longer your sourdough discard has been in the fridge, "aging", the more flavor it will add to the bread!
Avoid over-mixing the batter when you combine the wet and dry ingredients so that the sourdough pumpkin bread will be nice and tender.
Don't have a kitchen scale to measure flour?
Use the scoop and level technique to measure your flour if you do not have a kitchen scale. To do this, use a spoon to fluff up the flour in the bag. Use a spoon to scoop the flour into a measuring cup until it is heaped on top. Take a butterknife and level off the top. This should give you the most accurate measurement for flour.
Because flour is measured by weight in these recipes, if the flour is scooped straight out of the bag with the measuring cup, there will be more flour than is called for in the recipe.
When measuring ground spices like cinnamon, it's hard to weigh them with a scale because the measurement is so small. Use measuring spoons so that you don't add too much!
How to store and freeze leftovers
Store leftovers at room temperature for up to 4 days loosely covered.
Freeze sourdough pumpkin bread in slices, loaves or half loaves. After the bread has cooled completely, wrap tightly with plastic wrap and then with foil. Keep frozen up to 3 months.
How to make pumpkin pie spice
Substitute ground cinnamon for pumpkin pie spice if you don't have any, or make your own!
Make your own homemade pumpkin pie spice by combining:
- 3 tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
- 1.5 teaspoons ground allspice
- 1.5 teaspoons ground cloves
Mix in a small bowl and store in an air-tight container like this weck jar.
Other recipes you may like:
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do! Let us know in the comment section below!
Sourdough Pumpkin Bread Recipe
EQUIPMENT
INGREDIENTS
Wet Ingredients
- 8 tablespoons (113 g) unsalted butter
- 1 ½ cups (300 g) light brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup (125 g) sourdough starter (discard)
- ¼ cup (60 g) fresh orange juice (optional)
- 1 teaspoon (5 g) vanilla extract
- 1 (15oz.) can (425 g) pumpkin puree
Dry Ingredients
- 2 cups (240 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 ½ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (see notes)
- 1 teaspoon (5 g) fine sea salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (176°C) and lightly grease a 9" x 5" loaf pan with butter or oil.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and pumpkin pie spice. Set aside.
- Melt the butter in a bowl and add the sugar. Use a spatula to cream them together until smooth. Add the egg, vanilla extract, orange juice, sourdough discard and pumpkin and mix until well combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients bowl and stir until just combined. (Don't over mix!)
- Pour the batter into the loaf pan and bake on the center rack for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool for 15 minutes before transferring the pumpkin bread to a wire rack.
NOTES
- Use the scoop and level technique to measure your flour if you do not have a kitchen scale. To do this, use a spoon to fluff up the flour in the bag. Use a spoon to scoop the flour into a measuring cup until it is heaped on top. Take a butterknife and level off the top. This should give you the most accurate measurement for flour.
- Store leftovers loosely covered at room temperature for up to 4 days.
- Freeze leftovers wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and foil for up to 3 months.
- When measuring ground spices, it's hard to use a scale to weigh them because the measurement is so small. Use measuring spoons so that you don't add too much.
Made part of this recipe as cupcakes and topped with vanilla buttercream for our Thanksgiving dessert. 10/10 from my husband - everyone loved them! Made two mini loaves with the rest of the batter and those are also delicious. Love all of your recipes and you are one of my go-to sites for sourdough. Thank you!
By far my favorite pumpkin bread recipe!!! It’s to die for!!
Beyond yummy!
Wow! Absolutely delicious pumpkin bread. I’m always looking for a way to use up my sourdough discard, and boy, did I hit the jackpot with this recipe!!
I have been making the Libby's Pumpkin Bread recipe for years and decided to make this one so I could use my sourdough starter (discard). Following the directions exactly, I must say that this is the most favorable and exciting pumpkin bread that my mouth has tasted in a long time. Feel-good endorphins were soaring through my body with just one bite! I am forever changed! I also made the homemade pumpkin pie spice recipe provided, and this a was tremendous bonus to the pumpkin bread, no doubt.
Thank you Little Spoon Farm for sharing your simple pleasure of baking with me. Life is great!
Hands down this is the BEST pumpkin bread I have ever made; and my first ever use of sourdough cast off. Not sure any of this loaf will make it to the freezer!!
I made it vegan with Earth Balance butter and a flax egg and it turned out fabulous! I also did not have all the spices on hand to mix up some pumpkin pie spice, so I just did straight up cinnamon and left out the orange juice. I was worried about some of the commenters who said they couldn't get it to cook all the way through, but my cook time ended up being 50 minutes with a convection oven and it turned out moist and fluffy. Definitely a keeper recipe for me as long as I still have sourdough starter around!
LOVE this bread! I made a two minor substitutions (dark brown sugar, my own spice mix), and used three mini-loaf pans (40-45 minutes in the oven). I love the not-too-sweet flavor and the texture of the crumb is perfect. It's also the most photogenic loaf of bread I've ever made! Definitely a Keeper. Thanks!
So yummy! I added a half cup of chopped pecans and used coconut sugar as a sub for brown. Mine cooked for 1 hour 5 minutes and was perfect! I'm so happy to have found this yummy recipe to use up my sourdough discard. I can't decide which I like better - this one or the sourdough banana bread recipe. Thanks so much!
Turned out awesome! Made this in my bundt pan and added approximately 1/2 cup mini choc chips. It was done baking in 45-48 min! Will be making again!
Taste is fantastic! Mine spilled over in my pan though, not sure what happened? I think I’ll either split into two bread pans next time or make a few muffins along with it. I’d like to use whole wheat flour next time, do I need to adjust anything on the recipe to do so?