Pumpkin Chai Bread with Brown Butter & Cinnamon Crunch Top

This Pumpkin Chai Bread with Brown Butter and Cinnamon Crunch Top is the cozy autumn recipe you’ll want to bake on repeat. Made with the entire can of pumpkin puree, nutty brown butter, warm chai spices, and topped with a crunchy cinnamon streusel, this loaf is soft, moist, and bakery-quality.

Author: Browndis

Meal Type: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Difficulty: EASY

Prep. Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

Servings: 10 slices

Calories: 365 kcal per serving

Ingredients

½ cup - unsalted butter
½ cup - brown sugar
¼ cup - maple syrup
2 - eggs
2 teaspoons - vanilla extract
15 oz cans - pumpkin puree
2 cups - all-purpose flour
1 tsp - baking powder
¾ tsp - baking soda
½ tsp - salt
¾ tsp - ground ginger
¾ tsp - cardamom powder
½ tsp - ground nutmeg powder
¼ tsp - ground cloves
1 pinch - ground black pepper
½ cup - sugar
3 tablespoons - brown sugar
1 ½ teaspoons - ground cinnamon
¼ tsp - salt
¾ cup - all-purpose flour

Instructions

Place ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter in a light-colored saucepan over medium heat. Stir as it melts, foams, and turns golden brown (5–7 minutes). When nutty brown bits form on the bottom, remove from heat and pour into a heat-safe bowl, scraping all browned bits. Cool slightly before using.‍
In a small bowl, mix together sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, flour, and melted butter until crumbly. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and line a 9×5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper for easy removal.‍
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the browned butter, brown sugar, maple syrup, eggs, vanilla extract, and pumpkin puree until smooth.‍
In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and optional finely ground black pepper.
Add dry mixture into wet mixture. Gently fold with a spatula until just combined. Do not overmix — batter should be thick.
Spread batter evenly into the prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle cinnamon crunch topping across the surface.‍
Bake for 55–65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs (not wet batter).
Allow loaf to cool in the pan for 15–20 minutes, then lift out and transfer to a wire rack. Cool for at least 2 hours before slicing for best texture.

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