I just love the fall season! The cooler temperatures, the colorful trees and the fall flavors. Especially pumpkin! I have always loved pumpkin pie, but something happened to my taste buds this year. Pumpkin recipes have officially reached the top of my list of my all time favorite things to bake . . . to the point of me dreaming about pumpkin flavors. The aroma of the cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg make me weak in the knees.
A few weeks ago, I made a somewhat “healthy” Pumpkin Spice Cake. It was delicious! Especially topped with whipped topping. I made it a couple of times to share with others, so that I could have more of this deliciousness. It wasn’t really gift-worthy, though, for our new friends.
A Welcome Gift for Neighbors
A friend and fellow Master Gardener moved out of state recently, and she thought that another friend and I should go meet the woman and her husband that bought her house. We went bearing goodies and had a wonderful visit.
I baked Pumpkin Bread in small loaf pans to share, and then made a few muffins for Hubby and me with the leftover batter. I made the loaves look all fancy by wrapping them with parchment paper, then tied with orange and white baker’s twine. They looked so pretty! I included a small container Maple Whipped Cream Cheese for a finishing touch. It was a perfect Welcome Gift!
This recipe is super simple. I had several yellow cake mixes in the cabinet and pumpkin puree in the freezer from our homegrown pumpkins, so I didn’t even need to go to town. And did I mention how easy it is?
This will make two large loaves or four small loaves. I made three loaves and the obligatory few muffins for Hubby.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
Easy Pumpkin Bread Starting from a Cake Mix
Ingredients
- 1 box yellow cake mix
- 1 can (15 oz) pumpkin puree
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice mix
- Eggs
- Vegetable oil
- DO NOT ADD THE WATER
Directions (Read the directions carefully)
-
Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease loaf pans.
- Add the ingredients listed on the cake mix box MINUS THE WATER
-
In a medium mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, eggs and oil in a bowl. Mix on medium speed until well blended.
-
Add pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice mix. Mix on medium speed until well blended.
-
Pour batter into prepared loaf pans.
-
Bake at 375, approximately 45 minutes for the small loaves or 55 minutes for the large loaves (or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean)
-
Let cool about 10 minutes, then carefully remove from baking pans to finish cooling.
Whipped Maple Cream Cheese
This is the perfect accompaniment to this Pumpkin Bread! Flavorful without being too sweet.
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1/4 cup real maple syrup
- 1 – 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice mix
Mix until well blended. Chill before serving.
DIY Pumpkin Pie Spice Mix
If you run out of this spice blend, make you own in a just a couple of minutes.
- 3 Tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground allspice
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cloves
Measure the spices together into a small jar and shake well. Be sure to label the jar.
I hope you love this as much as I do!
Haphazard Homemaker 
Looks so yummy!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
You are always so clever! What a cute way to gift them too!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
It is not fair to make me drool on the keyboard so early in the morning! Love the gift wrapped goodies 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
It was definitely drool-worthy! 🙂
LikeLike
ooo…I love cream cheese, looks delicious Robin!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you! It was! I wasn’t sure about the how the cream cheese would turn out but it was wonderful. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for sharing my post, my Friend! 🙂
LikeLike
Robin, this looks so yummy…..gonna try this one for sure! I have a couple of boys who love pumpkin…anything! Thank you so much Robin for another incredible recipe!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you! It’s such a simple recipe. Hubby isn’t usually a pumpkin fan, but he loved it. The bread isn’t as dense as regular sweet bread, but more so than just the cake. Be sure and make the whipped cream cheese too.
LikeLike
So cute and what a fun welcome gift! You made me laugh about making the spice cake to share so you could have more! But what I love most about this bread (other than the cute wrapping) is that cream cheese spread! Great post!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you so much for the kind words. Sharing is my way of practicing portion control. 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person