I decided to make apple muffins…. then I thought cranberry bread would be a better idea.
I wanted pumpkin pecan pancakes…. then I thought that plain old cinnamon toast would be the best idea ever.
Instead… I just combined every possible holiday flavor into this vegan quick bread.
I did that, and I’m glad I did.
This bread has everything:
warm and comforting pumpkin and spice, tangy fresh cranberries, baked apples, toasted pecans and cinnamon sugar.
I mean… if we’re going to go with something holiday-y… why not go all the way?
I’m going to make this about fourteen more times before the year is done.
Now… because this recipe is vegan and doesn’t have any eggs to help bind the gluten… it’s a little crumbly. It’s important to let the loaf cool completely before slicing. And! Slice into thick generous slices. Pro tips.
Vegan Pumpkin Cranberry Apple Pecan Bread
makes two 9x4x3-inch loaves (and it freezes well!)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups light brown sugar, packed
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree, or just under two cups
1 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/3 cup water
1 cup chopped pecans plus 8 pecan halves
1 heaping cup fresh cranberries
1 medium Granny Smith apple, peeled and cored and cut into small pieces
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place a rack in the center of the oven. Grease and flour two loaf pans (mine are 9x4x3) and set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together flours, sugars, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices.
In a medium bowl, carefully whisk together pumpkin puree, oil, maple syrup and water.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and use a spatula to fold all of the ingredients together. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl well, finding any stray flour bits to mix in. Fold in most of the chopped pecans, cranberries and apple chunks.
Divide the dough between the two greased pans and arrange pecan halves on top of each loaf. Sprinkle loaf with cinnamon and granulated sugar if you’d like. Bake for 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven. Let rest in the pans for 20 minutes, then invert onto a cooling rack.
Cool completely before slicing. Slice into thick pieces and serve. Maybe even wrap one loaf up in plastic wrap and store in the freezer for future munching.
Shannon M
I just made this bread this morning and I followed everything; except I replaced the (1) cup of oil with (1) cup of unsweetened applesauce. It came out beautifully moist and scrumptious. Not crumbly at all. Thanks for this wonderful recipe!
Denise
A little change up…used whole wheat pastry flour for the all purpose, brown rice flour for the whole wheat, agave for the maple syrup and applesauce for the oil (it’s what we had available!) and cooked them in muffin tins at 350 for 25 mins. Delicious!! May add more cinnamon next time :)
bunny mama
Oh, totally yum. Made this yesterday, and the whole house smelled fantastic all evening. I kept one loaf for my family, gave the other to my in-laws. Everybody raved about it – even my 3 year old! This one tipped the scale for me. I’ve gone from major baker’s crush to full on madcrazylove for you, Joy. Hope you’re okay with that.
Julia
Um, wow. I just discovered your site and was looking for a wholesome easy bread recipe, and I came across this one. I just finished backing, it’s SO GOOD! And looks so pretty fresh out of the oven. I subbed honey for the syrup and cashews/almonds for the pecans. I also used Truvia in place of the sugar since I’m REALLY trying to lessen my intake. Can’t wait to share this at work today!
lauren
‘i must make this cake, i must make this cake!’
that’s what my eyes are telling me… yep my eyes. (or.. brain ? idk) all i DO know is, i need to make this cake-bread-delicious explosion asap! thanks always for your delicious and scrumptious recipes! my mouth is officially watering now. great. ~lauren :)
Adriana A.
Did half the recipe and it was too good!
Becca
Scrum-dittly-uptous! The only word to describe this deliciously delicious bread. Instead of making 1 big loaf I made mini loaves! I’m obsessed with mini loaves! They are the most adorable bundles of yumminess. Thanks for the recipe Joy – massive fan of your blog!
Melissa
My sister and I are in the middle of making this loaf. We put most of the batter in a big bread pan and made some tiny muffins with the extra batter. OMG they are so good! There is just the perfect amount of spice. Not crumbly. Can’t wait to try the loaf! Joy, everything we make of yours is delicious!!