Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread makes a tasty fall breakfast OR dessert! This dairy free pumpkin bread recipe is full of pumpkin flavor and studded with dark chocolate chips. Makes 1 loaf.

Love pumpkin baked goods? Try Vegan Pumpkin Muffins and Vegan Pumpkin Biscuits with Maple Butter.

The photos and recipe for this recipe were originally published on December 5, 2012. The post, recipes and images were updated and republished on September 28, 2020.

After making Michelle’s Pumpkin Spice Pancakes, I had some leftover pumpkin puree.

And as someone who has always been a little wary of pumpkin—because of a bad pumpkin pie experience due to my dislike of nutmeg—it was a struggle to figure out what needed to be done with the remainder.

Long story short: I got several sugar pumpkins from our CSA and roasted them. Then I did some internet research, was inspired to create a pumpkin bread recipe… and the rest is history.

Why I love this recipe:

For starters, this Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread is wonderfully moist, fluffy and flavorful. We have the pumpkin puree and applesauce to thank for this.

Also, you wouldn’t necessarily think that this unassuming bread would be super flavorful, but the ground cinnamon sings when paired with the other ingredients.

It keeps well in the fridge when covered for as long as you have it. (Chances are, it won’t last more than a few days.)

We like to slice this Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread in the mornings and toast it in the toaster oven for an ooey, gooey pumpkin-y breakfast.

Other breakfast recipes with pumpkin puree: Easy Pumpkin Muffins with Cream Cheese Nutella Swirl | Cranberry Pumpkin Cold Brew Coffee Drink | Mini Pumpkin Muffins with Chocolate Chips | Vegan Pumpkin Biscuits with Maple Butter | Easy Pumpkin Spice Bread

Need fall flavor inspiration? I’ve got you covered! My Fall Recipe Index has all my favorite fall recipes in one place.

What you need to make this recipe:

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• Loaf pan (mine is 8″ x 4 ½” x 2 ¾” high)
• A large mixing bowl and a smaller bowl
• Whisk
• Rubber spatula

Here’s what you’ll need:

• Pumpkin puree—not pumpkin pie filling. Pumpkin pie filling is already sweetened and spiced, and we don’t need that.
• Granulated sugar—also known as white sugar, this is the sweetener we’re adding to the bread.
• Unsweetened applesauce—since we’re adding in sugar, we don’t need our applesauce to make this bread sweeter
• All-purpose flour—I prefer to use unbleached, but if you’ve got the regular kind, that works!
• Baking soda and baking powder—these are the leaveners we’re adding to our batter, and they will cause the dough to rise. Make sure yours are fresh.
• Ground cinnamon—a little goes a long way! There is no substitute for this, though, so I do not recommend leaving it out. You could replace this with the same amount of pumpkin pie spice.
• Kosher salt—I like to use a fine grain kosher salt in baking recipes. You may also use a fine grain sea salt if you have that on hand.
• Bittersweet or dark chocolate chips—I particularly love Ghirardelli Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Chips, but you do you! However, if you’re serving this to someone who does not eat dairy, read the ingredients on your chocolate chip bag to ensure there is no dairy in them.

How do I make Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread?

This pumpkin bread recipe is actually surprisingly simple!

Prepare.

• Preheat the oven.
• Spray a loaf pan with nonstick baking spray. This will ensure that your homemade pumpkin bread comes out of the pan. (You could make a parchment paper sling to fit into the loaf pan.)
• Get out a smaller bowl and a larger bowl. You’ll need them both.

Combine the dry ingredients. Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt into the smaller bowl. Stir until incorporated and set aside.

Mix the wet ingredients. Measure in the pumpkin, sugar and applesauce into the large bowl. Crack in the eggs, too. Whisk ’em together until combined.

Combine the wet and dry ingredients. Sprinkle the flour mixture on top of the wet ingredients. Use a rubber spatula to stir them until just combined.

It’s OK if there are a few lumps in it, so don’t feel like you need to stir until it’s smooth.

Add the chocolate chips. Fold those in using the same rubber spatula.

Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Use the spatula to even out the batter, then sprinkle some more chocolate chips on top.

Bake for 45-55 minutes, or until the loaf is baked through.

Let the Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread cool completely on a wire rack before carefully removing from the loaf pan and slicing!

Frequently Asked Questions

Quick Tips and Tricks for the best Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

• Bake it on a Sunday afternoon to have pumpkin bread throughout the week!
• To store, wrap a completely cooled loaf in plastic wrap. Alternately, you can place it onto a plate and wrap that. Keep it in the fridge because the loaf is really moist and will keep longer if you have it in the refrigerator.
• Slice the loaf into individual slices when you want to eat it instead of ahead of time. Reheat/toast in the toaster oven for an especially epic breakfast.

Other pumpkin baked goods to try:

• Praline Pumpkin Upside Down Cake
• Pumpkin Cream Cheese Streusel Muffins
• Spiced Pumpkin Sugar Cookies
• Baked Pumpkin Donuts with Cream Cheese Glaze and Toasted Pecans
• Pumpkin Overnight French Toast Casserole

Let’s bake, friends!