Cream Cheese Pumpkin Bread: Rich Holiday Treat
A moist, spiced pumpkin bread with tangy cream cheese swirled throughout creating beautiful marbling and irresistible flavor in every slice.
Equipment
- 9x5-inch loaf pan
- Electric mixer
- Mixing bowls
- Rubber spatula
Ingredients
For the Pumpkin Bread:
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 cup brown sugar packed
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Cream Cheese Swirl:
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan with butter or spray.
- In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar, egg, and vanilla until smooth and fluffy for the swirl filling.
- Whisk flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt together in a large mixing bowl.
- Mix pumpkin puree, brown sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla in another bowl until well combined.
- Fold dry ingredients into wet mixture until just combined, avoiding overmixing for tender texture.
- Pour half pumpkin batter into pan, spread cream cheese mixture, then top with remaining batter.
- Use a knife to create swirls by making figure-eight patterns through the layered batters gently.
- Bake for 60-70 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with moist crumbs only.
- Cool in the pan for 15 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Slice and serve once completely cooled for the cleanest cuts and best texture throughout.
Notes
- Use pure pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling, for the best authentic flavor results.
- Cream cheese must be softened completely to avoid lumps in the swirl mixture.
- Don't overmix the batter or the bread becomes dense instead of tender and light.
- Store in the refrigerator due to the cream cheese filling for food safety and freshness.