This amazing Grilled Pumpkin Bread is slathered in soft butter or whipped cream cheese and packed with a mild sweetness and smoky pumpkin flavors. It is a simple, hands-off recipe using either smoked pumpkin or regular pumpkin purée.

🍽️ Why This Works
Simple | Like mentioned above, this is a simple “dump and stir” recipe once you have gathered all the ingredients. There isn’t anything in the recipe that will require additional work.
Versatile | Choose to use regular pumpkin purée from a can, a homemade version made in the slow cooker or Instant Pot or the Smoked Pumpkin Purée we made here. Using the canned variety will give a darker color while the other two will give the lighter orange color. Adapt it by adding in chocolate chips, nuts, raisins, or even Craisins. Punch up the seasoning with more cinnamon or allspice flavors.
🍞 Ingredients
Pumpkin Purée | We used the purée from our Smoked Pumpkin that we froze in individual Ziploc bags. Choosing this gave our bread a “smoked” flavor. Feel free to use any purée version you like.
Pepitas | The green pumpkin seeds that are found in the nut/seed section of the grocery store. They are found in bags or the bulk section. It is optional to use them at all but they offer a great crunch to the bread.
Orange Juice + Orange Zest | Don’t leave out the orange zest as it packs so much flavor. When using a zester, make sure to not grate it down to the white pith as it can leave an overly bitter taste. Just use the bright orange layer of the skin.
🔥 Instructions
Step One: Preheat grill on indirect heat to 350-375 degrees. Spray the bread pan with non stick spray.
Note: It is safe to use a stoneware loaf pan as we are using indirect heat. I would not recommend using it on direct heat as it may result in cracking.
Step Two: In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients and stir.
Step Three: In a medium sized bowl, combine the wet ingredients and whisk. Pour the wet ingredients into the large bowl of dry ingredients. Create a center well to pour it into and then gently combine, while not over stirring.
Step Four: Pour into the prepared bread pan and add the pepitas on top. Cook 60-75 minutes or until you can insert a toothpick and it comes out clean. Allow it to cool before cutting.
❗ Expert Tips
Store this in a sealed bag or container for up to four days on the counter.
Freeze this bread double wrapped in Press n Seal and then a large freezer safe gallon sized Ziploc bag for up to one month.
Don’t over mix the batter as it can become tough.
Mix up the seasonings. I didn’t use as much seasoning for this bread as I wanted the smoky flavor of the purée to be the star of the show. If you are using canned purée, then punch up the flavor by adding more allspice, cinnamon or ground cloves. Nutmeg would be great in this bread as well.
Use butter, homemade cream cheese, homemade orange marmalade or pumpkin butter slathered on slices for a snack or breakfast.
Recipe FAQ
Start checking about 18 minutes. It should take somewhere between 18-25 minutes or so. Use that as a gauge but check with a tooth pick.
A super easy way to infuse the smoked taste is to cook the bread as directed and then allow to cool. When you are ready, set the smoker up to 300 degrees and then smoke slices of the bread for 3-4 minutes. Or, try the loaf for about 10 minutes.
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Grilled Pumpkin Bread
Equipment
- Loaf Pan
- Grill
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 2 cups All Purpose Flour
- ½ cup Sugar
- ½ cup Brown Sugar
- 2 tsp Baking Powder
- 1 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice
- 2 tsp Pepitas
Wet Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup Pumpkin Purée we used our smoked pumpkin purée
- 3 Eggs
- ¼ cup Orange Juice
- 1 tsp Orange Zest
- 1 tsp Vanilla
- ½ cup Butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat grill on indirect heat to 350-375 degrees. Spray bread pan with non stick spray.
- In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients and stir.
- In a medium sized bowl, combine the wet ingredients and whisk. Pour the wet ingredients into the large bowl of dry ingredients. Create a center well so pour it into and then gently combine, while not over stirring.
- Pour into prepared bread pan and add the pepitas on top. Cook 60-75 minutes or until you can insert a toothpick and it comes out clean. Ours took 75 minutes total and it came out perfect.