Pumpkin Chai Bread
This pumpkin chai bread recipe is loaded with lots of chai spices like cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, clove, and nutmeg! These warming spices complement the pumpkin bread, resulting in a baked good that is neither too spicy or sweet. To top it off, the pumpkin bread is finished with a generous sprinkling of sugar to make its signature, crunchy sugar crust!
Why You Should Make Pumpkin Chai Bread
Now let’s talk about all the reasons why you should make this pumpkin chai bread recipe:
This pumpkin chai bread recipe is based on one of the most popular recipes in my cookbook, Weeknight Baking.
This recipe is based on the “Choose-Your-Own Pumpkin Spice Bread” recipe in my cookbook! The recipe is one of the most popular recipes in the book, with many readers sharing their take on the recipe on Instagram. I suspect that people love the recipe because it allows bakers to customize their pumpkin bread with different pumpkin spice mixes. You can choose to flavor your loaf with “Classic Pumpkin Spice”, “Vanilla Pumpkin Spice”, “Chai Pumpkin Spice”, and more.
Over the years, I saw that the most popular variation of the bread was the “Chai Pumpkin Spice” flavor. As a result, I decided to publish the recipe on hummingbirdhigh.com to share with the world for free!
My Weeknight Baking recipe was inspired by Tartine Bakery’s popular pumpkin tea cake recipe.
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that my recipe was inspired by a recipe from Tartine Bakery. Tartine is a famous bakery in San Francisco known for their croissants and breads. However, my favorite baked goods from their case were their lemon tart and pumpkin tea cake.
Their pumpkin tea cake is light and fluffy; it also tastes like pumpkin pie! And according to Tartine’s newest cookbook, this recipe is also one of the most popular in their original book. I’m not surprised—my friend Erika did a bake-off of popular pumpkin bread recipes, and Tartine’s recipe came out on top.
This pumpkin chai bread recipe comes together quickly.
Despite the recipe coming from a professional bakery, it comes together really quickly. Unlike most loaf cakes, this pumpkin chai bread uses oil instead of butter. That means you don’t need to cream butter and sugar together, saving you a few minutes in the kitchen.
In my cookbook, I instruct you to make the pumpkin bread in a stand mixer. But over the years, I discovered you can skip the stand mixer and just use a bowl and whisk! The recipe below is pretty minimalist and only uses two bowls, a whisk, and a rubber spatula to make the batter. Cool, right?
This pumpkin chai bread recipe stores well.
Because loaf cakes are pretty dense and compact, they stay fresh for longer than other cakes. And this pumpkin chai bread actually gets more flavorful the longer it sits! Its chai flavors become more pronounced the next day, while its crumb remains moist and light.
Pumpkin Chai Bread Ingredients and Substitutions
Now that I’ve convinced you to make this small batch pumpkin muffin recipe, here’s everything you need for it:
Shopping List For Pumpkin Chai Bread
Be sure to scroll down to the recipe card for the exact ingredient quantities:
- all-purpose flour
- cardamom (preferably ground)
- cinnamon (preferably ground)
- ginger (preferably ground)
- cloves (preferably ground)
- baking powder
- baking soda
- kosher salt
- canned pumpkin puree
- canola oil
- pure vanilla extract
- granulated sugar
- large eggs
And let’s talk about some key ingredients and potential substitutions:
All-Purpose Flour
You need 1 and ¾ cup plus 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour to make this pumpkin chai bread recipe.
Does a 1-1 gluten-free all-purpose flour work in this pumpkin chai bread recipe?
I’m sorry, but I don’t know. I rarely bake with those types of flour replacements because they’re expensive and my household is fortunate not to have any gluten restrictions! However, if you replace the flour in this recipe with any gluten-free alternatives, please leave a comment. I can update this post accordingly with your findings.
Canned Pumpkin Puree
You need 1 cup plus 2 Tablespoons canned pumpkin puree to make this pumpkin chai bread recipe.
What is canned pumpkin puree?
In the United States, most grocery stores sell canned pumpkin. Canned pumpkin consists of pumpkin (or sometimes, according to this Kitchn article about pumpkin puree, squash!) that is de-seeded, peeled, roasted, and pureed. Many American recipes instruct you to use this pumpkin puree in both sweet and savory recipes. My favorite brand of canned pumpkin puree is Libby’s 100% Pure Pumpkin.
I can’t get canned pumpkin puree where I live. What can I use instead?
According to my international readers, canned pumpkin puree can be difficult to get outside of the United States. But no worries! You can make your own pumpkin puree at home. Simply process a pumpkin or the yellow or orange squash of your choice (my favorite is butternut squash) by peeling its skin, slicing it in half, and carving out the pumpkin/squash seeds. Cut the pumpkin/squash into 1-inch chunks and place the chunks on an aluminum foil-lined sheet pan. Toss with 1 Tablespoon neutral oil. Bake at 400°F for 20 to 25 minutes, or until fork-tender. Then, use a food processor to puree the pumpkin/squash. Use the puree immediately, or refrigerate in a ziptop bag or an airtight container for up to 3 days. After that, freeze for up to 3 months.
If you plan on using homemade pumpkin puree to make this recipe, bring the pumpkin puree to room temperature. Using pumpkin puree that’s too cold will result in a lumpy cake batter that’s hard to whisk together. Alternatively, using a pumpkin puree that’s too hot could potentially scramble the eggs in the batter.
Canola Oil
You need 1 cup canola oil to make this pumpkin chai bread recipe.
Can I use another oil in this pumpkin chai bread recipe instead?
Yes! You can use whatever oil you have on hand instead. Vegetable oil, grapeseed oil, and peanut oil work best to replace the canola oil because they are also neutral in flavors. However, you can also use flavored oils like coconut in this recipe. Just note that your pumpkin bread might have a subtle coconut oil flavor to it, too.
Eggs
You need 3 large eggs to make this pumpkin chai bread recipe.
I don’t eat egg because of allergies and/or my diet. What can I use instead of egg?
I’m sorry, but I don’t 100% know. In general, my specialty lies in creating baking recipes with conventional ingredients.
That being said, if you’ve used an egg replacer like flax eggs or Bob’s Red Mill Egg Replacer in loaf cake recipes before with success, it’s likely they’ll work in this pumpkin chai bread recipe. Why? The pumpkin chai bread is made with a pretty standard loaf cake recipe. It’ll probably be pretty similar to what you’ve made in the past with the replacers.
However, since I’ve never tried the substitutions myself, I cannot 100% guarantee the results. If you replace the egg in this recipe with any of the options I provided, please leave a comment so I can update this post accordingly!
How To Make Pumpkin Chai Bread
Here are the basic steps to make pumpkin chai bread from scratch:
- Prep all the ingredients for the loaf cake. (Prep Time: 5 minutes)
Unless you’re making the pumpkin puree from scratch and grinding your own spices, prep for this recipe is fairly easy! All you need to do is measure out the ingredients to have them on hand. - Make the pumpkin chai bread batter. (Work Time: 10 minutes)
The batter comes together easily. All you need to do is prep the dry ingredients by whisking together the flour, spices, leaveners, and salt. Then, whisk together the pumpkin, oil, vanilla, sugar, and eggs. Gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing them into the batter by hand. - Assemble the pumpkin chai bread. (Work Time: <5 minutes)
Pour the batter into a parchment lined 9 x 5-inch loaf pan. If necessary, use an offset spatula to smooth its top. Now, make it pretty! Garnish the top with 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar. - Bake the pumpkin chai bread. (Bake Time: 60 minutes)
This recipe bakes for 1 hour. However, check for doneness at the 50 minute mark. If the top of the loaf cake and its edges look too brown, loosely cover it with aluminum foil until done baking. Check out the baker’s tips below for more tips and tricks!
FAQ: Baking Equipment To Make Pumpkin Chai Bread
Can I bake this pumpkin chai bread recipe in an 8 x 4-inch loaf pan instead?
Yes, with reservations. Baking this recipe in an 8 x 4-inch loaf pan results in a taller, more domed loaf cake. It’s pretty… but you’ll likely need to bake it for even longer than the time listed on the recipe. Why? You’re basically cramming batter made for a bigger pan into a smaller one. That means it’s going to take longer to bake. Be sure to set the loaf pan on a sheet pan, too! Doing so helps prevent the batter from overflowing out of the loaf pan and onto the bottom of your oven floor.
I don’t have any kind of loaf pan at all. Can I bake this pumpkin chai bread recipe in another kind of cake pan?
I’m sorry, but I don’t know—I’ve only ever made this recipe in a loaf pan!
FAQ: Pumpkin Chai Bread Recipe Techniques
Do I have to use pre-ground cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves? Can I grind my own spices instead?
Absolutely! If you want to score the extra credit points and end up with an even tastier baked good, grind whole cardamom pods, cinnamon sticks, nutmeg, and cloves to use in this recipe. Grind them right before making the batter, too. Doing so will ensure that the spices are at their strongest and most aromatic, infusing the bread with lots of flavor.
If you want to learn more about grinding spices, be sure to check out this recipe for Lavender Earl Grey Cookies. In the recipe FAQ, I talk about the different tools you can use to grind spices!
FAQ: Storing Pumpkin Chai Bread
How To Store Pumpkin Chai Bread
The pumpkin chai bread can be stored at room temperature, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, for up to 3 days.
Can you freeze pumpkin chai bread?
Yes, but I don’t recommend it. Why? The sugar garnish gives this loaf cake a crispy, flaky, sugary top. After freezing and thawing for reserving, this sugar top never recovers its crispiness. It’s best to serve this pumpkin chai bread as fresh as possible.
But if you insist, you can tightly wrap the entire cake or any leftover slices of cake in plastic wrap. Freeze for up to 3 months. To serve, transfer to the refrigerator overnight to thaw. The, let stand at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours before serving. Alternatively, rewarm individual slices in the microwave or toaster oven.
Best Pumpkin Chai Bread Recipe Tips
Best Baking Tip
- The Bake Time for this recipe is listed at 60 minutes. However, start checking for doneness at 50 minutes. The best way to test for doneness is to use a wooden skewer and stick it in the direct center of the loaf. The skewer should come out with few crumbs.
If you find that the skewer is plenty wet with batter but the top of the bread looks too browned to keep on baking, don’t panic! Simply cover the whole thing with a VERY loose sheet of aluminum foil. The aluminum foil will help prevent the top of the bread from browning further.
More Pumpkin Recipes
- Libby’s Pumpkin Pie Recipe, Elevated
- NOT Cakey Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread
- Small Batch Pumpkin Muffins
More Loaf Cake Recipes
- Banana Bread With Sour Cream
- Blood Orange Drizzle Cake
- Bourbon Butter Pound Cake
- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread
Get the Recipe: Pumpkin Chai Bread Recipe
Ingredients
For the Pumpkin Chai Bread
- 1 ¾ cup plus 1 Tablespoon (8.15 ounces or 231 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 Tablespoon ground cardamom
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup plus 2 Tablespoons (9 ounces or 255 grams) canned pumpkin puree
- 1 cup (8 ounces or 227 grams) canola oil
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 ⅓ cups (9.35 ounces or 265 grams) granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
For Garnish
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
Equipment
- a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan
Instructions
For the Pumpkin Chai Bread
- Prep your oven and pan. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray and line it with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on the long sides. Spray the parchment, too.
- Whisk the dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Whisk the wet ingredients. In another medium bowl, whisk together the pumpkin, oil, vanilla, sugar, and eggs.
- Make the muffin batter. Gradually mix in the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined.
- Assemble the loaf cake. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and use an offset spatula to smooth the top. Sprinkle with the remaining sugar for the garnish.
- Bake the loaf cake. Set the loaf pan on a sheet pan and bake for 60 to 70 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out with a few crumbs attached. There will still be patches of sugar on top, but that’s totally okay, I promise! In fact, that’s the look you want. Cool on a wire rack.
- Serve and store. Serve warm or at room temperature. The cake can be stored at room temperature, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, for up to 3 days.
Notes
- The Bake Time for this recipe is listed at 60 minutes. However, start checking for doneness at 50 minutes. The best way to test for doneness is to use a wooden skewer and stick it in the direct center of the loaf. The skewer should come out with few crumbs.
If you find that the skewer is plenty wet with batter but the top of the bread looks too browned to keep on baking, don’t panic! Simply cover the whole thing with a VERY loose sheet of aluminum foil. The aluminum foil will help prevent the top of the bread from browning further.
Did you make this recipe?
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Weeknight Baking:
Recipes to Fit your Schedule
Over the past several years of running Hummingbird High, I kept a crucial aspect of my life hidden from my readers: I had a full-time, extremely demanding job in the tech world. In my debut cookbook, Weeknight Baking, I finally reveal the secrets to baking delicious desserts on a tight schedule.
This looks great! Planning to make it in the next week
I made this tonight. Added in candied dates into the batter and rum raisins. I changed out the 1 1/3 sugar for 1/3 dark brown sugar and 1 cup granulated.
Topped it with homemade butter cream frosting that had cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, orange extract.
Let it rest on baker’s cooling rack for 30 minutes.
This recipie was fire and I’m happy I made a few changes. Tastes so good
Oh. My. Goodness. This bread is amazing. This recipe caught my eye because of the idea of the chai spice and it blew me away. After tasting the batter, I threw some of it in a mini muffin tin because I just didn’t want to wait for a whole loaf to finish baking and HOLY WOW. I really love how the flavors continue to develop on the palate. Can’t wait to enjoy this with a cup of pumpkin spice chai!
I made this recipe as mini loaves and it was *so good. The texture is perfect and the spices are well balanced. I am (personally) obsessed with cardamom and may experiment with adding more, but it was definitely good as is. I used the same ingredient amounts and they divided pretty perfectly into 5 mini loaves (size 14.5cm x 8.4cm x 4.7cm). Cook time was 35 min (give or take——I tested with a toothpick for doneness after 30 min).
My husband said this was one of the best breads I’ve ever made! Love the amount of spices that goes into it. It’s definitely a perfect baked good for the Fall.
Here are some changes I made with this recipe:
-I used 1/2 oil and the other half Greek yogurt
-Added 3/4 cups shredded carrot (leftover from another recipe)
-I believe I used ~240 g sugar
It was still very moist and delicious with added protein and some veggies.
I also made this in a 8×4 inch loaf and it came out ready in ~65 minutes. Had a sheet pan underneath but did not spill over :).
Thanks so much for this recipe!
Fantastic flavor. A nice alternative to pumpkin bread. I substituted allspice for cardamom (didn’t have it) – probably gave it a bit more of a clove flavor but it’s delicious. It’s a bit too sweet for me so I’ll reduce sugar to 1 cup. Otherwise this will definitely be on an annual fall rotation!
Made this almost exactly as listed. The sugar on the top hardened before the loaf was finished rising, so it had a bit of a crag on top as it lifted the crust up so mine wasn’t quite as pretty. Came out at exactly 60 minutes.
I was afraid of the 1T of cardamom, so I ended up putting 1T of whole cardamom in a spice grinder (also the cloves and some cinnamon bark). So I probably had 80% of the 1T, but that turned out lovely.
Can you use chai tea bags instead of chai spice mix?
Yes you can!
I made this yesterday and it tastes delicious! Although, it took mine 25 more minutes to cook and it is extremely crumbly. I followed the instructions completely and even measured down to the grams on my scale, so I’m not sure why? I’m wondering if I should try less oil next time? I love that it’s not super dense like most other recipes – it’s moist, but lighter and fluffier. I think I’ll add more spices next time to give it even more flavor.
Hmm, crumblyness is usually a sign of overbaking. When doing the toothpick test with the cake, it’s okay for it to come out with a few crumbs on the toothpick as opposed to completely clean! You can also use a meat thermometer. If the center of the cake reads between 200-205 F, you can pull it out of the oven!
I’ve spent this holiday season looking for the perfect pumpkin bread recipe… and this is it! A month ago, I made a double batch, ate the first batch, and froze the second. I’m just now eating the thawed, second batch and it is as delicious as the first! So flavorful, soft, and moist… a winner!