Healthy Pumpkin Bread

“Try this pumpkin bread,” I offered to Alex’s family. They took a moist, pumpkin-spiced bite and started to murmur their approval as I threw in, “It’s made of all oats, too! No flour.” They looked at me in astonishment. “What? This is amazing.” Yes, this actually happened with this Healthy Pumpkin Bread (paraphrased, of course!). It’s so moist, so cozy spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg, you’ll hardly notice that’s made purely of oats…no flour at all. We don’t exclusively eat gluten-free, but we do love eating a treat that’s made of heart-healthy oats and tastes incredible. Here are all the tricks to making this tasty quick bread at home!

Ingredients in healthy pumpkin bread

Pumpkin bread is the best fall treat, but many of the recipes are just like eating glorified cake! That’s where this healthy pumpkin bread comes in. Let’s be honest though: you can’t ever really state that pumpkin bread is a health food, because it’s full of sugar. However, this one is healthier than the rest! It’s made of just whole grain rolled oats, meaning you get the health benefits of oats in every piece. (More on that below.) Here’s what you’ll need for this gluten free dairy free pumpkin bread:

Old Fashioned rolled oats: Do not substitute steel cut oats or instant oats! You need good ol’ rolled oats here. But you’ll be blending it into flour, so you can also substitute store-bought oat flour. Sugar or coconut sugar: Use your dry sugar of choice. Baking powder, baking soda, vanilla, and salt: the usual suspects for baking Pumpkin pie spice: Grab a bottle of store-bought or use our homemade blend. Eggs: These are important because they bind the oats together. See more about vegan substitutes below. Pumpkin puree: Use plain old pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling! (That’s different.)\ Neutral oil: Use organic vegetable oil, organic canola oil or grapeseed oil.

Make it all up in a blender!

Here’s the secret to this recipe: you make it all up in a blender! Many of our recipe testers mentioned how easy it is to just throw all the ingredients in a blender for this recipe. Here’s what to know:

It’s easiest with a high speed blender or quality blender. It also works with a not so good blender…you just need to work harder! Having some blender power behind you helps, but it’s not required. Know it might take a little longer to blend if your blender is not up to snuff. First blend the oats into oat flour. You’ll throw in Old Fashioned rolled oats to the blender and turn it on. Watch as it turns into powdery oat flour! If your blender is not so great, you can also use store-bought oat flour. Then add everything else and blend! The blender is the key to the fluffy and moist texture. It comes out so light and fluffy, you’ll be amazed it’s all oats.

A note about texture, cooling and cutting slices

After baking this healthy pumpkin bread, you’re going to want to eat it right away. Don’t do it! It’s important to let it cool down so the texture sets. If you cut it right away, the pieces will fall apart! Promise. Another tip: cut the bread into fairly thick slices. This bread is beautifully moist and fluffy, but it is made with no gluten to hold it together. The texture is a little different from the normal pumpkin bread, so the best way to keep it together is to use thick slices (as you’ll see in the photos). If you’d like, you can top it with a maple glaze to make it a little sweeter!

What people are saying about this healthy pumpkin bread

This healthy pumpkin bread comes out so beautifully moist and fluffy, you won’t really know it’s healthy! The only thing to note is that it’s slightly less sweet and oily than the normal pumpkin bread. That’s intended: because it’s designed to be healthier! We ran this recipe by lots of recipe testers, and here’s what a few had to say:

“WOW! I would have never guessed this was gluten free! The last pumpkin bread recipe I made with oats was SO dense and lacked pumpkin flavor! Honestly just tasted like oats! This one though – the pumpkin flavor is superb and it’s so light! LOVE!” “Made the bread for a party and everyone loved it. Loved how it is healthy with all natural ingredients.”

Vegan variation!

As it is, this healthy pumpkin bread is gluten free and dairy free. Want to make it vegan? You can do that too! Here are a few options:

Substitute flax eggs. Use the recipe below and substitute flax eggs for the eggs: this is just ground flax seed mixed with water. It changes the texture of the bread slightly, but it works well as a binder in vegan baked goods. Use our Vegan Pumpkin Bread recipe. Try our Vegan Pumpkin Bread: it’s incredibly moist and delicious. It’s made using refined flour so it’s not gluten-free, but it is vegan.

Are oats healthy?

One of the main ingredients that makes this healthy pumpkin bread is that it’s build on oats, not flour. That means you get all the benefits of oats that flour lacks. Here are some of the nutritional benefits of oats (source):

Oats are high in protein and fiber. 1 cup of raw oats has 11 grams protein (about 20% your daily need) and 8 grams of fiber (about 30% your daily need). Oats have beta glucans, a type of soluble fiber that has potential benefits like lower cholesterol, better heart health, and reduced blood sugar and insulin responses. Oats are very filling: they may reduce appetite and help you eat less calories.

For more benefits, go to Oats 101: Nutrition Facts.

More healthy pumpkin recipes

When it’s pumpkin season…the craving strikes! Here are all our favorite pumpkin recipes:

Pumpkin Smoothie Tastes like pie…but it’s loads healthier! This tasty drink features yogurt, fruit and pumpkin pie spices. Perfect Pumpkin Cake Moist, spiced, and perfect with cream cheese frosting. Or try or other Pumpkin Desserts! Pumpkin Bread Pudding Incredible topped with a bourbon butter sauce! Pumpkin Banana Bread Another great spin on the classic sweet bread. Cozy Pumpkin Oatmeal or Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal The perfect fall breakfast idea! It’s got just the right spice and sweetness to make mornings cozy. Pumpkin Waffles Lightly spiced and made with real pumpkin puree for a cozy special breakfast. Healthy Pumpkin Muffins or Pumpkin Spice Muffins The pumpkin spiced inside plus sweet crunch is downright heavenly. Pumpkin Dip This healthy dip is perfect for apples!