Pumpkin Swirl Bread

5 from 7 votes
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Oh. My. Stars. This Pumpkin Swirl Bread has it all! Amazing pumpkin spice flavor, a sprinkle of walnuts and raisins, plus an indulgent swirl of sweetened cream cheese – it’s amazing! You’ll absolutely love how easy it is to make and how cravably delicious the flavors are.

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side shot of pumpkin swirl bread cut in slices

Easy Pumpkin Swirl Bread with Cream Cheese

This recipe for pumpkin bread is literally everything you could want in a warm, yummy loaf. The base of the recipe is a deeply flavorful, richly textured quick bread with a heaping helping of pumpkin puree for moistness.

In addition to that, a generous amount of crunchy chopped walnuts, luscious raisins, and pumpkin spice adds taste and texture.

Finally, a sweet cream cheese filling is swirled through the loaf. The result? A quick bread that you’ll turn to again and again. Everyone will love this pumpkin bread recipe.

What is Quick Bread?

Quick breads are breads that don’t require yeast. Instead, they use baking powder or baking soda for leavening. That’s why they’re quick!

Yeast breads typically require a lot of kneading and rising, but quick breads come together much more quickly, no kneading or rising required. Some are savory and sandwich-y, like Irish soda bread. Others are more like a dense loaf cake: think banana bread, zucchini bread, and of course this yummy pumpkin bread!

pumpkin filling for pumpkin bread in a mixing bowl

Recipe Ingredients

For the Bread:

  • Canned Pumpkin: You can substitute homemade pumpkin puree, but don’t use pumpkin pie filling, which is different and contains a lot of other ingredients.
  • Granulated Sugar
  • Light Brown Sugar: You can substitute raw sugar for any or all of the white and brown sugar.
  • Egg Whites: You’ll need 3 egg whites. To easily separate the whites and yolks, bring the eggs to room temperature first. Cold eggs are harder to separate.
  • Milk: You can use any milk or milk substitute that you like.
  • Canola Oil: I typically use this oil for this recipe, but you can also substitute other oils, melted butter, or even applesauce. The texture and flavor may vary depending on the substitute.
  • Flour: Any all-purpose flour is fine.
  • Baking Powder
  • Pumpkin Pie Spice, Nutmeg, and Salt
  • Chopped Walnuts: Optional.
  • Raisins: Optional.

For the Cream Cheese Filling:

  • Cream Cheese: One 8 ounce block, softened
  • Sugar: White or raw sugar is fine.
  • Egg White

How to Make Pumpkin Swirl Bread

How to Make the Pumpkin Bread

  1. In a large bowl beat pumpkin, sugars, 3 egg whites, milk, and oil until well incorporated.
  2. In a separate bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, pie spice, salt, and nutmeg; slowly beat flour mixture into the pumpkin mixture. Beat until completely combined.
  3. Stir in walnuts and raisins.

How to Make the Cream Cheese Filling

  1. In a separate bowl combine cream cheese, 2 tablespoons sugar, and 1 egg white; beat until completely blended.
pumpkin filling for pumpkin bread in a loaf pan

How to Bake Pumpkin Swirl Bread

  1. Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Grease and flour a 9×5-inch nonstick loaf pan.
  2. Spoon half of the pumpkin batter into the previously prepared loaf pan. Spoon cream cheese filling over the batter. Top with remaining pumpkin batter.
  3. Bake for 65 to 75 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool in the pan for 10 minutes.
    Remove from the pan and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Wrap in foil, and refrigerate until ready to serve.
overhead shot of a slice of pumpkin bread stuffed with cream cheese

Tips for the Best Pumpkin Bread

  • Don’t Over Mix. Unlike with yeast breads, where kneading thoroughly is crucial, quick breads do better when they’re mixed until just combined. Otherwise, you’ll over-activate the gluten in the flour, creating a tough texture instead of a tender, moist texture.
  • Center Your Oven Rack. Since the pumpkin bread will bake for an hour or even more, you don’t want it too near the top or bottom of the oven. Putting your oven rack in the middle will keep the top and/or bottom of the loaf from getting overdone.
  • Let it Cool. We all love bread fresh from the oven – in theory, at least. However, moist breads like this one tend to fall apart if you try to slice them right out of the oven. Instead, try thoroughly cooling the loaf before slicing, and if you want it warmed up, place slices in the toaster briefly before serving!

How to Store Leftovers

  • Because of the cream cheese filling, this bread should be stored in the refrigerator, wrapped tightly or sealed in an airtight container to avoid absorbing odors and flavors from other foods.
  • Pumpkin Swirl Bread will keep for up to 5 days in the refrigerator.
overhead shot of pumpkin bread with a swirl of cream cheese and raisins

Can You Freeze Pumpkin Swirl Bread?

  • Yes, you can! To freeze, wrap in a double layer of plastic wrap, or plastic wrap and foil, or place in a freezer bag, pushing out as much air as possible before sealing.
  • This bread will keep in the freezer for up to six weeks.
5 from 7 votes

Pumpkin Swirl Bread

A moist and flavorful pumpkin loaf with raisins, walnuts, and a sweet cream cheese filling.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Cooling Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Servings: 16 slices

Ingredients 

For the Pumpkin Bread:

  • 1 cup canned 100% pumpkin,, (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • ½ cup packed light brown sugar
  • 3 egg whites,, (take eggs out of fridge 30 minutes before starting to work on the recipe; room temperature eggs are much easier to separate.)
  • ½ cup milk
  • ¼ cup canola oil
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
  • 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ½ cup chopped walnuts
  • ½ cup raisins

For the Cream Cheese Swirl:

  • 8 ounces cream cheese,, softened
  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 1 egg white
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Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 350˚F.
  • Generously grease and flour a 9×5-inch nonstick loaf pan; set aside.
  • In a large bowl beat pumpkin, sugars, 3 egg whites, milk, and oil until well incorporated.
  • In a separate bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, pie spice, salt, and nutmeg; slowly beat flour mixture into the pumpkin mixture. Beat until completely combined.
    pumpkin filling for pumpkin bread in a mixing bowl
  • Stir in walnuts and raisins.
  • In a separate bowl combine cream cheese, 2 tablespoons sugar, and 1 egg white; beat until completely blended and smooth. Make sure the cream cheese is softened beforehand.
  • Spoon half of pumpkin batter into previously prepared loaf pan.
  • Spoon cream cheese filling over the batter.
    pumpkin filling for pumpkin bread in a loaf pan
  • Top with remaining pumpkin batter.
  • Bake for 65 to 75 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  • Remove from oven and cool in pan for 10 minutes.
  • Remove from pan and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
  • Wrap in foil.
  • Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Nutrition

Serving: 1slice | Calories: 269kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 16mg | Sodium: 168mg | Potassium: 153mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 22g | Vitamin A: 2586IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 78mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.

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14 Comments

  1. Toni says:

    5 stars
    I have a second loaf in the oven right now and my kitchen smells amazing! Thanks you for this delicious easy recipe.

    1. Katerina Petrovska says:

      SO happy to hear that! I am very glad you and your family enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂

  2. Beth says:

    5 stars
    Yummy! This is my daughter and husband’s favorite bread! It was definitely a big hit here at the house! So delicious and scrumptious!

    1. Katerina Petrovska says:

      That’s wonderful! I am very glad you and your family enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂

  3. Amanda says:

    5 stars
    My family enjoyed every bite of this, we couldn’t get enough!

    1. Katerina Petrovska says:

      That’s great! I’m very glad you and your family enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂

  4. Vikki says:

    5 stars
    Beautiful bread, every bite screams fall

    1. Katerina Petrovska says:

      Thank YOU! I hope you enjoy it! 🙂

  5. Kevin says:

    5 stars
    This bread makes my house smell so good! I cannot wait to make it again!

    1. Katerina Petrovska says:

      That’s great! I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂

  6. Catalina says:

    5 stars
    This bread looks very good! Perfect with a huge cup of tea!

    1. Katerina Petrovska says:

      Thank YOU! I hope you enjoy it! 🙂

  7. Sara Welch says:

    5 stars
    What a great pumpkin recipe and perfect for fall! Adding this to my Thanksgiving menu, indeed!

    1. Katerina Petrovska says:

      I hope you enjoy it! Thank YOU! 🙂