Pumpkin Bread With Salted Brown Butter Glaze

Earthy, spiced pumpkin bread paired with a rich and nutty salted brown butter glaze is the perfect fall dessert.

By Kristina Razon
Updated September 25, 2024
A loaf of pumpkin bread topped with glaze on a tray. A few slices are on the tray next to the loaf.

Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

Why It Works

  • Malted milk powder and liquid milk deepen pumpkin’s earthy notes and add dairy richness, and the extra lactose improves browning.
  • The sweet nuttiness of the salted brown butter glaze complements the roasted, spiced flavor of the pumpkin bread.

In the fall, we're all about the classic combination of allspice, cinnamon, clove, ginger, and nutmeg, affectionately known as "pumpkin spice." We've served it up in pumpkin streusel muffins and in this pumpkin skillet coffee cake, and our take on pumpkin bread continues this tradition: a tender loaf that isn't cloying or heavy on the spices. To make this loaf even more exceptional, we finish it with a salted brown butter glaze. You don't have to use it—the pumpkin bread is excellent all on its own—but we strongly recommend you do.

Since it is, after all, pumpkin bread, it requires pumpkin purée, which adds moisture along with a mild sweetness and vegetal flavor (this is true of our other, yeasted pumpkin bread, too). We tested the purée in two forms: canned (using the popular Libby's brand) and homemade (in the form of puréed roasted butternut squash, because, more often than not, the canned stuff is butternut masquerading as pumpkin). Canned "pumpkin" produced a loaf with a toasty, earthy profile, while the freshly puréed butternut squash was more vibrantly colored, with a brighter, sweeter flavor. We liked both versions equally, so use whichever sounds better to you. Your pumpkin bread will be absolutely delicious either way.

We also add some malted milk powder, an ingredient Stella has famously called the "umami bomb of dessert," to enhance the overall flavor. Its mix of wheat flour, malted barley extracts, milk, salt, and sodium bicarbonate supplies toffee notes, a savory bite, and extra lactose to improve browning.

Once baked and cooled, you can eat it as-is or finish it with the rich brown-butter glaze, which we make by whisking nutty brown butter with powdered sugar, milk, salt, vanilla, and a pinch of cinnamon. Slowly drizzled over the finished loaf, the glaze beautifully coats the top and drips down the sides for a fall-worthy treat.

October 2020

Recipe Details

Pumpkin Bread With Salted Brown Butter Glaze Recipe

Prep 30 mins
Cook 60 mins
Active 30 mins
Cooling Time 60 mins
Total 2 hrs 30 mins
Serves 8 servings
Makes 1 loaf
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Ingredients

For the Bread:

  • 8 ounces all-purpose flour, such as Gold Medal (1 2/3 cups; 225g)

  • 1/2 ounce malted milk powder, such as Ovaltine (2 tablespoons; 15g)

  • 1 teaspoon baking powder

  • 1 teaspoon (4g) Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt, use the same weight or half as much by volume

  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

  • 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

  • 2 large eggs (3 1/2 ounces; 100g)

  • 8 ounces (1 cup; 225g) pumpkin or butternut squash purée, canned or homemade (see notes)

  • 5 ounces neutral oil, such as vegetable or canola oil (2/3 cup; 140g)

  • 4 ounces (1/2 cup; 115g) granulated sugar

  • 4 ounces (1/2 cup; 115g) light brown sugar

  • 2 ounces milk, any fat percentage (1/4 cup; 55g)

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Glaze:

  • 2 ounces (1/2 cup; 60g) powdered sugar, sifted

  • 1/4 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt, use half as much by volume

  • 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • 1 ounce (2 tablespoons; 30g) unsalted butter

  • 1/2 ounce milk, any fat percentage (1 tablespoon; 15g)

  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

  1. For the Bread: Grease an 8 1/2- by 4 1/2-inch loaf pan and line with a 7- by 13-inch sheet of parchment paper so that parchment hangs over the long sides of the pan to form a sling. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat to 350°F (177°C).

    A prepared greased loaf pan with a parchment paper "sling".

    Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, malted milk powder, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, baking soda, allspice, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger until well combined.

    An overhead view of a saucepan containing flour and spices, with a whisk at the ready.

    Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

  3. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, pumpkin/squash purée, oil, granulated sugar, brown sugar, milk, and vanilla until thoroughly combined and sugars are dissolved, about 1 minute.

    Overhead view of a saucepan containing combined wet ingredients for pumpkin bread: pumpkin puree, vegetable oil, and sugar.

    Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

  4. Add flour mixture to egg mixture. Whisk just until incorporated and no dry flour remains, about 1 minute.

    Combining wet and dry ingredients in a saucepan for pumpkin bread.

    Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

  5. Using a flexible spatula, scrape batter into prepared loaf pan. Bake until loaf is domed and golden brown and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out with few moist crumbs attached, or to an internal temperature of around 200°F (93°C), about 1 hour.

    Side-by-side collage of batter in loaf plan, and finished pumpkin loaf.

    Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

  6. Transfer pan to a wire rack set in rimmed baking sheet to cool for 30 minutes. Run a butter knife along edges to loosen, then lift loaf using overhanging parchment. Remove parchment and return loaf to wire rack.

    Finished pumpkin loaf on a wire rack.

    Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

  7. Meanwhile, for the Glaze: In a heatproof small bowl, combine powdered sugar, salt, and cinnamon.

  8. In a 1-quart stainless steel saucier, melt butter over medium-low heat. Increase heat to medium and simmer, stirring with a heat-resistant spatula while butter hisses and pops. Continue cooking and stirring until foaming subsides, scraping up brown bits that form on bottom, and butter is golden yellow and milk solids are chestnut brown in color, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.

    Overhead view of making browned butter.

    Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

  9. Add milk, vanilla, and butter, along with all the brown bits, to powdered sugar mixture and whisk until smooth. You should have 3 ounces (about 1/3 cup; 80g) of glaze.

    Overhead view of browned butter glaze in a bowl.

    Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

  10. Slowly drizzle glaze evenly over top of pumpkin bread, letting it drip down sides. Allow glaze to set for 10 minutes, then slice bread with serrated knife and serve.

    Drizzling glaze over pumpkin bread so it drips down the sides.

    Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

Special Equipment

8 1/2- by 4 1/2-inch loaf pan, wire rack, rimmed baking sheet, 1-quart stainless steel saucier

Notes

Roasting butternut squash deepens its natural butterscotch-like flavor and sweetness. To make butternut squash purée, adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat to 400°F (205°C). Split one small squash (about 2 pounds) in half lengthwise, remove seeds, and place cut-side down on an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet. Roast until tender when pierced with a knife, about 45 minutes. When cool, scrape pulp into a food processor (discarding skins) and purée until smooth. The purée can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

Make-Ahead and Storage

Wrapped tightly in foil or plastic, pumpkin bread will keep for up to 3 days at room temperature.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
461Calories
22gFat
61gCarbs
5gProtein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 8
Amount per serving
Calories461
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 22g29%
Saturated Fat 4g19%
Cholesterol 55mg18%
Sodium 402mg17%
Total Carbohydrate 61g22%
Dietary Fiber 2g7%
Total Sugars 37g
Protein 5g
Vitamin C 1mg6%
Calcium 83mg6%
Iron 2mg12%
Potassium 146mg3%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

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