Moist, soft pumpkin spice loaf topped with homemade cream cheese frosting. This frosted pumpkin bread is the perfect Fall treat.

As soon as September hits, I am making pumpkin bread on repeat. I love my pumpkin bread recipe with brown sugar streusel and it has been super popular.

But I wanted to take it up a notch with a creamy homemade vanilla bean cream cheese frosting which pairs perfectly with pumpkin spice. Since pumpkin spice is full of warm, robust spices, the delicate, tangy yet sweet cream cheese frosting is the perfect balance.

Why you will love this Frosted Pumpkin Loaf:

• It is perfectly moist with the addition of oil, cream cheese, and buttermilk.
• The velvety smooth cream cheese frosting is literally the icing on the cake and just elevates this frosted pumpkin bread recipe.
• This is so easy to make ahead of time and stays fresh for days. It freezes beautifully so you can take it out when your guests arrive.

Frosted Pumpkin Bread Ingredients:

It all starts off with a moist pumpkin spiced loaf and topped with a simple homemade cream cheese frosting.

Pumpkin Loaf Ingredients:

• Pure Pumpkin Puree — when making this frosted pumpkin bread, use pure pumpkin puree rather than pumpkin pie filling. Pumpkin puree is just pumpkin, while pumpkin pie filling contains added sugars and spices.
• Cinnamon — adds warmth and aromatics to the pumpkin bread so add more if you want more depth of flavor.
• Pumpkin Pie Spice — adjust the spices to your taste. If you prefer a spicier bread, you can increase the amount of pumpkin pie spice.
• Brown Sugar
• Sugar
• Oil — makes this the perfect moist pumpkin bread. I suggest using your favorite type of oil.
• Cream Cheese — this adds a rich, creaminess to the pumpkin bread. I suggest using room-temperature cream cheese so it easily mixes into the batter.
• Eggs
• Buttermilk — this helps to create a tender texture in the pumpkin bread.
• Flour
• Baking Powder
• Baking Soda
• Salt

Cream Cheese Frosting:

• Butter — use softened, salted butter in this recipe.
• Cream Cheese — use softened, full-fat cream cheese.
• Powdered Sugar — for a stiffer, sweeter frosting, you may add more powdered sugar
• Vanilla Extract or Vanilla Bean Paste — I love to use vanilla bean paste or scraped vanilla beans from a vanilla bean pod for the most pronounced vanilla flavor.

Embrace the pumpkin spice!

If you love pumpkin spice, feel free to add 1/4 teaspoon extra pumpkin pie spice for extra warm, aromatic flavor.

Instructions:

Substitutions and Variations:

If you don’t love cream cheese frosting, you can make a classic vanilla frosting instead with just butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and a touch of cream

Storing, Making Ahead, and Freezing:

This pumpkin loaf with cream cheese frosting can be made ahead of time. Since it is topped with cream cheese frosting, I suggest covering it well and refrigerating it.

This pumpkin loaf freezes beautifully in a freezer-safe container.

Popular Pumpkin Recipes:

If you love pumpkin recipes, check out my best pumpkin bread, pumpkin bars, award-winning pumpkin pie, and pumpkin layered cake recipe.

Pin this now to find it later

Cream Cheese Frosting:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium saucepan, heat pumpkin puree, cinnamon, and pumpkin spice over medium heat. Stir often for about 4-5 minutes. 

• Remove from heat and stir in sugar, brown sugar, oil, and cream cheese. Whisk for several minutes until all of the cream cheese is mixed in. Let sit for 5 minutes to cool before adding the eggs.

• Whisk in eggs and buttermilk until fully mixed together. After it is completely smooth, fold in flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix just until combined. 

• Grease two 8 1/2 inch x 4 1/2 inch loaf pans with non-stick cooking spray or butter. Pour batter into pans. 

• Bake for 40-44 minutes or until the center is cooked through. Check by placing a toothpick in the center to make sure it comes out clean. Let pumpkin loaves cool for 20 minutes and then turn out onto a wire rack. Let cool. 

Cream Cheese Frosting:

• In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes.

• Add powdered sugar and vanilla bean paste and mix for 1-2 minutes longer.

• Spread on cooled pumpkin loaf. Cover and refrigerate.

Pure Pumpkin Puree — when making this frosted pumpkin bread, use pure pumpkin puree rather than pumpkin pie filling. Pumpkin puree is just pumpkin, while pumpkin pie filling contains added sugars and spices.

Calories: 624kcal, Carbohydrates: 88g, Protein: 6g, Fat: 29g, Saturated Fat: 12g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g, Monounsaturated Fat: 11g, Trans Fat: 0.4g, Cholesterol: 112mg, Sodium: 471mg, Potassium: 153mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 70g, Vitamin A: 729IU, Vitamin C: 0.03mg, Calcium: 81mg, Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7rrvDnqmnoJ%2Bjsrp6wqikaJ6ipMC1scNmp66loKC2r3nLqJifZaeewal5wqucmqVdmLWmsdKeZJ%2Bqn6jBqrrGaA%3D%3D