Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

Pumpkin chocolate chip bread brings together the gentle sweetness of pumpkin, warm spices, and pockets of semisweet chocolate. This tender quick bread is baked in a loaf pan, so you can slice it to enjoy the contrast between its soft crumb and the chocolate throughout.

The batter comes together with familiar baking ingredients and a simple mixing method. A few small choices, from using plain pumpkin puree to checking the center away from a chocolate chip, help the finished loaf turn out as intended.

Choose plain pumpkin puree

Canned pumpkin puree gives the bread its pumpkin flavor and moist, tender texture. Choose plain puree, not pumpkin pie filling: pie filling is already sweetened and spiced, which would change the balance of the batter. The granulated sugar and packed light brown sugar provide the sweetness here, while cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg give it a familiar, cozy spice profile.

Neutral oil blends into the wet ingredients without bringing a competing flavor. Large eggs help the batter come together, and the two leaveners, baking soda and baking powder, are part of the recipe’s rise. Fine salt rounds out the sweet ingredients. Measuring and preparing the ingredients as listed on the recipe card keeps their balance intact.

Mix for a tender crumb

Whisking the flour with the leaveners, spices, and salt distributes those dry ingredients before they meet the pumpkin mixture. In the large bowl, whisk the puree, eggs, oil, and sugars until smooth. When you combine the wet and dry mixtures, stir only until no dry flour remains. Mixing beyond that point can make a quick bread tougher and less tender.

Fold the semisweet chocolate chips into the batter gently so they stay distributed without encouraging extra mixing. The chips are divided: some go into the batter, and the rest are scattered over the top. That gives you chocolate within the loaf as well as across its surface.

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Prepare the pan and check the center

Line the loaf pan with parchment, leaving an overhang to help lift out the bread after it has cooled in the pan. Scrape in the batter and smooth the top so it bakes evenly. A sprinkle of the remaining chocolate chips finishes the surface. Follow the recipe card for the pan size and baking details.

To check for doneness, insert a tester into the center, choosing a spot away from a chocolate chip. Melted chocolate can cling to the tester and make the result hard to read. A few moist crumbs are the cue described for this bread. Let the loaf cool in the pan as directed, then use the parchment to move it to a rack before slicing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use pumpkin pie filling?

Use plain canned pumpkin puree for this recipe. Pumpkin pie filling is already sweetened and spiced, so it would change the flavor balance created by the sugars and the cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg.

Why should I avoid overmixing the batter?

Stir the flour mixture into the pumpkin mixture just until no dry flour remains. Extra mixing can make quick bread less tender. Fold in the chocolate chips gently to keep the batter from being worked more than necessary.

How can I tell when the bread is done?

Insert a tester into the center of the loaf, aiming for a spot away from a chocolate chip. The recipe’s doneness cue is a tester with a few moist crumbs; chocolate on the tester can make the result less clear.