This is the perfect cornbread for all of your holiday meals or anytime of the year! This Vegan Pumpkin Cornbread is oil-free, full of pumpkin spice, super moist, soft, tender and absolutely delicious. Only 8 ingredients and so easy to make!
VEGAN PUMPKIN CORNBREAD
Meet my new favorite cornbread! Wow is all I can say. Do you see that perfect texture? I already have this amazing vegan gluten-free cornbread recipe and these vegan cornbread muffins, but I really wanted to create a pumpkin cornbread to be an amazing side to the holidays or just to eat with a warm bowl of stew or chili.
My most popular cornbread recipe is my Sweet Potato Cornbread in my cookbook. It’s one of the most popular recipes out of the entire cookbook. It’s amazing, but not real sweet, but wonderfully moist. So I changed that recipe quite a bit to turn it into a vegan pumpkin cornbread and added some extra sweetness, spices and molasses and changed the milk and flour to accommodate those changes.
This cornbread is honestly so moist, you will not even believe there is no oil! The texture is perfection.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED
(Only 8 main ingredients needed. Full details and measurements on the recipe card below.)
- Cornmeal: Just regular cornmeal here.
- All-purpose flour: I went with regular flour here to keep things simple. I get a lot of requests for really simple recipes using plain flour. Nothing complicated. It makes the cornbread really soft.
- Baking soda: Make sure you are using baking soda and not baking powder here. The baking soda is what helped to make this cornbread softer and more tender. It worked better than baking powder in my trials.
- Pumpkin spice: I used my homemade blend of course, it is so much better flavor than store-bought.
- Pumpkin
- Lite coconut milk: I tested this with both almond milk and coconut milk. I really tried to make this without coconut milk, but since the bread is so low-fat and made with gluten flour, the almond milk just made the bread too chewy. Low-fat baked goods that are also made with gluten can be chewy without some fat added. Almond milk is low fat, so it just wasn’t giving that moist and tender texture I wanted. Once I made it with the coconut milk, boom, it was perfection!! Please understand why coconut milk works, it is creamy and has no protein, therefore it makes baked goods more fluffy and tender. Soy milk, for example, is high protein and would not make this cornbread nearly as soft/tender. If you are allergic to coconut, I would suggest another creamy milk like maybe oat or cashew, although I haven’t tested it, and cannot vouch for the results. I like the Sprouts brand lite coconut milk and also the Thai kitchen brand. Just make sure to use a brand that only has coconut and water and gum, no added other fillers or ingredients or the texture will be ruined. For example, the Polar brand is terrible for baking.
- Maple syrup
- Molasses: Regular molasses here, not blackstrap. The flavors are very different. I use Grandma’s molasses brand. This is sold at many grocery stores, even Walmart and Target. It enhances the pumpkin flavor, while also making this bread moist.
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN PUMPKIN CORNBREAD
Step 1: To a large bowl, combine the flours, baking soda, pumpkin spice and salt. Whisk well.
Step 2: To a separate medium bowl, combine the pumpkin, milk, syrup and molasses and whisk well. Pour over the dry ingredients.
Step 3: Pour over the dry ingredients and use a large whisk to gently mix the ingredients just until moistened. Use a large spoon if needed to mix, but stop mixing as soon as it’s moistened and combined. You never want to overmix batters with gluten.
Step 4: Add the batter to an 8×8 baking dish that has been sprayed with nonstick spray. I recommend ceramic for the best results. The batter will be on the thicker side, not runny at all, so that is normal, so you will have to spread the batter around evenly in the dish with the back of a spoon.
Step 5: Bake for 15-17 minutes until a toothpick is clean from the center. Cool 30-45 minutes before slicing to allow the cornbread to finish cooking and slice smoothly.
RECIPES TO SERVE WITH THIS CORNBREAD
- Pumpkin Chipotle Chili
- 30 Minute Mexican Chili
- Hearty Buckwheat Chili
- Healthy Potato Carrot Tomato Soup
- Sweet Potato Black-eyed Pea Soup
- Hearty Veggie Potato Stew
Vegan Pumpkin Cornbread (Oil-free)
Ingredients
- 1 cup + 2 tablespoons (144g) regular all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup (120g) regular fine yellow cornmeal
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda, NOT baking powder
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (I used my homemade blend)
- 1/2 cup (120g) pumpkin puree, room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon (135g) canned lite coconut milk, shaken (SEE NOTES)
- 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon (180g) pure maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons (40g) regular molasses, not blackstrap (SEE NOTES)
NOTE
- I always use and highly recommend a scale for accuracy when baking, following MY gram weights listed. You never need cups, just the scale and bowl and make sure to zero out in between each ingredient. Mismeasuring flours by using cups can greatly affect the outcome.
- I use this scale.
Instructions
- Make sure your liquids are at room temperature before beginning. This is a thick batter and it's important that they are not cold to make for a smoother batter and to prevent overmixing. Cold liquids make batters thicker.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F and lightly spray an 8x8 baking dish with nonstick spray. I use and suggest ceramic for the best results.
- To a large bowl, combine the flour, cornmeal, baking soda, pumpkin spice and salt. Whisk well.
- To a separate medium bowl, combine the pumpkin, milk, syrup and molasses and whisk well.
- Pour over the dry ingredients and use a large whisk to gently mix the ingredients just until moistened. Use a large spoon if needed to mix towards the end, but stop mixing as soon as it's moistened and combined. You never want to overmix batters with gluten. The batter will be thick, this is normal, do not be tempted to add more milk! The cornbread turns out fluffy, soft and so moist this way.
- Add the batter to an 8x8 baking dish that has been sprayed with nonstick spray. I recommend ceramic for the best results. The batter will be on the thicker side, not runny at all, so that is normal, so you will have to spread the batter around evenly in the dish with the back of a spoon. It will seem quite low in the dish, but don't worry, it rises a lot and to the perfect size of cornbread servings.
- Bake for 15-17 minutes until a toothpick is clean from the center. Mine was perfect at 16 minutes. This pumpkin cornbread cooks quickly! It should be a warm golden brown, as pictured. Cool 30-45 minutes before slicing to allow the cornbread to finish cooking and slice smoothly.
Notes
- COCONUT MILK: I tested this with both almond milk and coconut milk. I really tried to make this without coconut milk, but since the bread is so low-fat and made with gluten flour, the almond milk just made the bread too chewy. Low-fat baked goods that are also made with gluten can be chewy without some fat added. Almond milk is low fat, so it just wasn't giving that moist and tender texture I wanted. Once I made it with the coconut milk, boom, it was perfection!! Please understand why coconut milk works, it is creamy and has no protein, therefore it makes baked goods more fluffy and tender. Soy milk, for example, is high protein and would not make this cornbread nearly as soft/tender. If you are allergic to coconut, I would suggest another creamy milk like maybe oat or cashew, although I haven't tested it, and cannot vouch for the results. I like the Sprouts brand lite coconut milk and also the Thai kitchen brand. Just make sure to use a brand that only has coconut and water and gum, no added other fillers or ingredients or the texture will be ruined. For example, the Polar brand is terrible for baking.
- MOLASSES: Regular molasses here, not blackstrap. The flavors are very different. I use Grandma's molasses brand. This is sold at many grocery stores, even Walmart and Target. It enhances the pumpkin flavor, while also making this bread moist.
Nutrition
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Super simple and delicious. I made it while preparing dinner. This one is a keeper 🙂 I will try the version somebody suggested in the comments, with jalapeño peppers. Can’t wait. I might bake it tomorrow.
Hi There! I would love to try this but am gluten intolerant. Have you been able to come up with a tasty GF option yet? LOVE all of your recipes 🙂 Thank you!!
Yes! I should post it by next week!
I see from last fall you were trying to make this gluten free as well. How did that turn out? I really want to make this!!
Making this again tonight:-) The last one was a total success! We are not vegan but it is nice to skip dairy and meat every now and again. With your tasty, simple and light recipes we are making more and more often vegan meals.
That is wonderful to hear Lena, thank you for the lovely review and kind words!
I just made this and it is fantastic! I don’t practice a vegan diet, but I have loved every recipe I have tried on this website, and this one did not disappoint! This cornbread is so moist and delicious! I measured instead of weighed the ingredients and it came out great. Love love love this! I just love the complex flavors these vegan recipes provide!
Thank you so much Julie! So happy to hear that!
It’s so delicious. Cornbread for me carries cold characteristics. This pumpkin cornbread is simply and complexly delicious! It throws me for a culinary curve, an ideological challenge. It’s warming. It’s perfect. Thank you for this recipe Brandi. Your hard work does not go unnoticed. You are a superstar 🌟
You are just the sweetest Amy! I’m so touched you loved this cornbread so much!
This came out very moist. I only had medium grind cornmeal so that’s what I used. They came out great but you could see a little bit of the corn grinds, that’s all I could find in stores unfortunately. I’m assuming I should have used the normal cornmeal as mentioned. I think it should still be ok to eat?
Oh yes, totally fine to eat! Yes, medium grind is much different than regular. The regular makes it more soft and cake like.
If you like pumpkin cake and cornbread…you’re going to LOVE this made with simple ingredients. To me this is the perfect Fall flavor combination. I added jalapeno and with the sweet and spicy, just wow!! I served the pumpkin cornbread with her pumpkin chili. This is such a perfect combination and my hubby just said it’s the best. I hope you try it this Fall.
These turned out amazing, rich flavor and so moist! Simple ingredients that I already had in my pantry. My whole family enjoyed, a keeper recipe. Thanks, Brandi
I, too, would like to know if gluten free flour can be substituted? Thank you! 🙂
Hi Trish! Hold tight, because I’m testing a gluten-free version and will update the recipe soon, hopefully.
I used Bob’s Mill gluten free flour and am assuming mine didn’t rise like yours because of gf? Really enjoy reading your blog and all the recipes. Thanks for what you do!
Hi Sharon, yes, that would be why. I never use or recommend store-bought gluten-free blends, except on very rare occasions that I have specifically tested with. All blends are so different and 90% of the time, they will not give the same amazing results as my recipes written with my own tailor-made gluten-free flours listed. Hold tight, because I’m testing a gluten-free version and will update the recipe soon, hopefully.
can i use a gluten free flour?
Hold tight, because I’m testing a gluten-free version and will update the recipe soon, hopefully.
Can I use something in place od the black strap molasses? I have black strap but not regular.
Since blackstrap is much more bitter, I would suggest doing 1 tablespoon blackstrap and 1 tablespoon syrup in place of the 2 tablespoons of regular molasses.