The Reason Your Pumpkin Bread Always Turns Out Gummy

Pumpkin bread is the deliciously soft and spiced cousin of banana bread that some of us may not even consider making at home. When you need a quick fix, Starbuck's pumpkin bread is actually available all year round. But it can be pretty easy to make at home with a canned purée. If you find out you've opened more than you need for your recipe, you can easily freeze canned pumpkin purée for later use. But one of the most common concerns with pumpkin bread is that it often comes out too thick and stodgy when not made properly.

For some advice on the subject, we reached out to an expert. Chef Billy Parisi is the man behind the website Elevate Your Everyday Cooking, and he offered us some exclusive tips on how to make sure your pumpkin bread doesn't come out too heavy and gummy. Parisi explains, "The biggest reason pumpkin bread can turn out gummy is due to it being undercooked. It should register 200 degrees Fahrenheit internally when it's done. Also, remember that bread will continue to cook once it comes out of the oven, so account for carryover cooking." But he adds that, especially when using canned purée, you may not be properly balancing the wet and dry ingredients — but it's not hard to get it just right.

Although there is an opinion that you should always strain your pumpkin purée when making baked goods, chef Billy Parisi says it's not strictly necessary with pumpkin bread. But you will need to take into account the overall moisture the purée is adding. He says that, when using a recipe that may not call for canned purée, you'll need to test it first, because it will have more moisture than a recipe using fresh pumpkin.

He continues, "If they are just making bread themselves without a recipe, [the moisture] should absolutely be accounted for. There is no need to drain off any excess; rather, it can be countered with additional dry ingredients." If you're making a recipe by weight, he says a 1:1 ratio of purée to flour is a solid standard; or one part purée to two parts flour, when measuring by volume.

Another way to avoid sticky pumpkin bread is to be sure you're mixing your ingredients properly. Too much mixing and the flour will begin to produce gluten, and become far too thick. "There is no need to develop gluten in quick breads like this," Parisi says. "Mix too much and it can dry out the bread and make it overly chewy." That's why we call it pumpkin bread batter, rather than dough — and it's usually best mixed by hand, allowing the ingredients to incorporate without firming up. Just follow these simple expert tips and you'll have a perfectly moist and fluffy pumpkin bread without any extra hassle.