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It’s officially Fall, which means it’s the perfect time for pumpkin bread.
This version is rich, moist and bursting with spice, just the way I like it! Even better, it’s gluten-free. (And grain-free, if you consider the fact that buckwheat is technically a seed, not a grain!)
Featuring a simple combination of buckwheat flour and pumpkin puree, what I love about this bread is how easily it comes together–> it’s practically fool proof! There are no egg-substitutes to worry about, and if you line your loaf pan with parchment paper, you don’t have to worry about the final result sticking to your pan, either. This seasonal bread makes a delicious morning treat when served with tea or coffee, or a nice afternoon pick-me-up on a chilly afternoon.
As an added bonus, your kitchen will be filled with the scent of Fall spices for the rest of the day!
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Vegan Pumpkin Bread (Gluten-free)
makes one standard loaf
Ingredients:
1 cup buckwheat flour
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
6 Tablespoons pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Directions:
Preheat your oven to 350F and line a standard loaf pan with parchment paper. (Not to be confused with wax paper!) In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the buckwheat flour, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and baking soda, then stir in the pumpkin puree, melted coconut oil, maple syrup, vanilla and water. Finally, add in the apple cider vinegar, which will help the loaf rise when it reacts with the baking soda!
Transfer the batter to the lined loaf pan, and smooth the top with a spatula. Bake at 350F for 50-60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Allow to cool completely before slicing and serving.
Ingredients
- 1 cup buckwheat flour
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/4 cup coconut oil , melted
- 6 Tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F and line a standard loaf pan with parchment paper. (Not to be confused with wax paper!)
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the buckwheat flour, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and baking soda, then stir in the pumpkin puree, melted coconut oil, maple syrup, vanilla and water. Finally, add in the apple cider vinegar, which will help the loaf rise when it reacts with the baking soda.
- Transfer the batter to the lined loaf pan, and smooth the top with a spatula. Bake at 350F for 50-60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Allow to cool completely before slicing and serving.
Nutrition
Per Serving: Calories: 146, Fat: 6g, Carbohydrates: 21g, Fiber: 2g, Protein: 2g
Notes:
- I used Bob’s Red Mill Buckwheat Flour to develop this recipe, so that is the brand I recommend using for best results. Homemade buckwheat flour tends to bake differently, for some reason, so keep that in mind when making substitutions. Using other types of flours will also drastically affect the results, and are therefore not recommended.
- If you don’t have apple cider vinegar on hand, lemon juice or another type of vinegar should work, as well.
Enjoy!
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Reader Feedback: What’s your favorite flavor of quick bread? I have always loved zucchini and pumpkin flavors!
Yum – perfect or fall. Thnaks for the recipe. Hope you and your baby are doing wonderfully!
Megan (or anyone) do you think I could use chickpea flour since that is what I have on hand? I’m totally new to GF baking so I don’t know the difference in consistency between all of these new-fangled flours 😉
Hi, I’ve used chickpea flour to make pumpkin bread and muffins before (sometimes I combine it and have also used it on it’s own). I really enjoy chickpea flour, even though I sometimes hear others say they don’t like it due to a “beany’ flavor. I’ve never really noticed much of a beany flavor, even in something sweeter like pumpkin bread. I’ve been using a chickpea flour from an Indian store but it’s pretty much the same as Bob’s Red Mill. I actually want to try Megan’s recipe with half buckwheat and and half chickpea flour. Another nice thing is that the color works well with pumpkin.
Sorry for the delayed reply but I just wanted to come back and say thanks for the information and that I did make this bread with chickpea flour and it worked out wonderfully! It’s so good!
So in case anyone has questions about other flour options that work out nicely – chickpea is one of them 🙂
For those concerned about the “flour” term or gluten (lack thereof), here is an excerpt from: http://www.wheat-free.org/wheat-free-flour.html However, if you read package ingredients, sometimes there will be a little note underneath that says “manufactured in a facility that also uses tree nuts, soy, wheat, and milk.” So if you’re super-sensitive, it’s best to read the fine print!
“Buckwheat flour is not, despite its name a form of wheat, buckwheat is actually related to rhubarb. The small seeds of the plant are ground to make flour.
It has a strong nutty taste so is not generally used on its own in a recipe, as the taste of the finished product can be very overpowering, and a little bitter. Alternative names: beech wheat, kasha, saracen corn.”
I was under the impression that all flour has gluten in it. My sister has Crohns Disease and she cannot have any type of flour at all! Is there something special about Buckwheat Flour that it is considered Guten Free???
Hi Debbie,
I’m sensitive to gluten so I’ve done a lot of research on it lately. Gluten is a protein that’s found in wheat, barley and rye, so I can eat flour made of corn, coconut, millet, rice, quinoa, and other grains. For gluten-sensitive and many Celiac sufferers there are a lot of grain options out there. I’m not sure about Crohns. It could be that your sister has to avoid other flours for an alternate reason besides gluten. But if it’s just gluten that she’s avoiding she *should* be able to have those other flours.
And like it says above, buck”wheat” isn’t from the same family as wheat so it’s gluten-free. It’s actually a seed, not a grain.
According to Dr. Osborne all grains have gluten. I have Celiac disease and although got better when I went off wheat barley and rye, still did not recover fully. So out with the so called” gluten free” flour subs. Some worse than others but they all have their own gluten protien.
They may not be “gluten” proteins, as in wheat-barley-rye, but there are many proteins that are ‘cross-reactive’ meaning they cause a very similar response as gluten proteins.
All grain proteins can cause digestion problems, for some people, and can be linked to problematic autoimmune responses throughout the body.
Nut and seed flour proteins might not cross-react, but this recipe was formulated with Bob’s Red Mill buckwheat, so any alternative flour would have to be tried and adjusted as needed to get the right consistency. As a side note – read the small print on the labels very carefully with Bob’s Red Mill products, because same say they could have traces of wheat, soy, and tree nuts. Soy contains an allergen protein that will cross-react and cause digestion problems, for some people.
Just wondering if you have any suggestions for a flour substitute? I haven’t used buckwheat before. I am more familiar with almond flour, would it work in this recipe? Thanks Megan!
Thank you for sharing this! It looks delicious! Thank you, also, for always including your helpful notes, substitution options & links to show the specific products/ingredients you recommend!
Oh & my favorite quick bread is banana with apple being a close second! (I’ve never had pumpkin! So, I’m excited to try it!)
This looks incredible. And I’m happy this is vegan as well! I’m so excited to start whipping out the pumpkin treats this season.
I googled substitutions because I just don’t have any buckwheat at home and I’m excited for the season of pumpkin flavored everything! I think almond flour or “nut meal” would work because they would both be a heavier consistency. I’m also going to try using butternut squash puree rather than pumpkin, because I have one on the counter. It’s cooking now so we’ll see! Thank you for the recipe. My first fall baked good!
Hi Megan,
Could you suggest a grain-free option? I know buckwheat isn’t really a grain, but I’m super sensitive and a little wary of trying it. Thanks!
I don’t think you have to worry about buckwheat. It’s not a grain, and I don’t know of any gluten-free people who have issues with it.
Hello Megan – I was hoping you would post a pumpkin bread recipe. What can I substitue for the coconut oil?
I have used organic olive oil or grapeseed oil to sub for the coconut oil in other recipes. They worked fine. I can’t wait to try this recipe!
GHEE!!!!!