This Chocolate Pumpkin Bread is soft, moist, gluten-free, made with real pumpkin, and loaded with chocolate! A lightened up take on pumpkin bread, using maple syrup to sweeten and lots of chocolate chips, too.
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If you love pumpkin and chocolate, you have to try my Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins, Pumpkin Spice Latte Truffles and Dark Chocolate Pumpkin Coconut Butter Cups.
Why I Love This Bread
- This moist chocolate pumpkin bread is the perfect fall treat for the fall season!
- Basically the best of both worlds. Pumpkin AND chocolate? Yes, please.
- Technically, a double chocolate pumpkin bread with plenty of chocolate chips!
Pumpkin Bread Ingredients
For this chocolate pumpkin bread we’re using simple ingredients, most of which are probably already in your Healthy Baking Pantry. We will need the following:
- gluten-Free 1:1 Baking Flour – I love Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 gluten-free flour blend. If you don’t need to follow a gluten-free diet, you can swap it with whole wheat pastry flour, white whole wheat flour, or all-purpose flour.
- unsweetened cocoa powder – for chocolate bread, of course. Raw cacao powder is a good substitute for extra antioxidants.
- pumpkin pie spice – I didn’t want to overpower the chocolate loaf with pumpkin spice flavor, so we’re just using 1/2 teaspoon. If you don’t want any spice, feel free to omit or sub in espresso powder for a more chocolate-y flavor. You can also use just plain cinnamon.
- baking soda & baking powder – we’re using both leavening agents to get a good rise for this quick bread recipe.
- fine sea salt – adding salt to baked goods balances sweetness and enhances flavor. Make sure to use fine sea salt or kosher salt (versus table salt, which is much finer).
- pure maple syrup – maple syrup naturally sweetens this pumpkin chocolate bread, without over-doing it. If you do want a sweeter bread, add up to 1/2 cup brown sugar or coconut sugar in addition to the maple syrup.
- light olive oil – the oil adds nice moisture. Make sure to use a neutral oil like light olive or avocado oil. Coconut oil will add a different flavor.
- large eggs – eggs provide structure and lift. I haven’t tested this recipe using flax eggs, so please be mindful of that substitution if you’re looking to change things.
- canned pumpkin purée – use canned pumpkin, if possible, for this recipe. If using homemade pumpkin puree, you’re going to want to strain it through some cheese cloth to remove excess liquid. Also, make sure it’s not pumpkin pie filling.
- vanilla extract – to enhance the flavor of the chocolate.
- unsweetened non-dairy milk – I used cashew milk but you can also use almond milk, soy milk, coconut milk, or something similar. Just don’t use a protein based milk, as it tends to be thicker than the other non-dairy milks. If dairy isn’t a concern, feel free to use whole milk.
- chocolate chips – I like to use mini chocolate chips in my quick bread recipes, for chocolate in every bite. You can also use chocolate chunks or dark chocolate chips. Adding a few extra on top is always a good idea.
Find the full detailed instructions with measurements in the recipe card below, at the end of this post.
How to Make Chocolate Pumpkin Bread
Here’s a brief overview of how to make this pumpkin chocolate bread recipe, with step-by-step instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a 9×5 inch loaf pan with parchment paper.
Mix dry ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, baking power and salt until no clumps remain.
Mix Wet Ingredients: In a large mixing bowl whisk together the oil, maple syrup, and eggs until combined. Then whisk in pumpkin and vanilla until the mixture is smooth.
Add half of the flour mixture to the large bowl of wet ingredients. Stir, then add in the rest of the flour mixture and gently stir in milk. Fold in the mini chocolate chips with a rubber spatula.
Bake: Transfer the batter to your prepared loaf pan and bake uncovered for 25 minutes. Then tent the loaf with aluminum foil and bake an additional 20-25 minutes.
Cool in the pan for 30 minutes. Then use the parchment paper to lift the bread out of the pan and cool completely on a wire rack.
Serving Suggestions
I love to enjoy a slice of this pumpkin and chocolate chip bread with almond butter and flaky sea salt. A warm cup of coffee is a nice touch, too.
Tips for Making Healthy Chocolate Pumpkin Bread Recipe:
- Scoop and level the flour: First, stir the flour in the bag before scooping. Then gently scoop until your measuring cup is full. Use the flat edge of a knife to scoop any excess flour back into the bag or your flour container.
- Don’t over mix: Overmixing quick bread and muffin batter will give you a tough texture. To keep things light and moist, avoid mixing too fast or too much.
- Use good quality chocolate chips.: Trust me, it makes a difference!
- Cool completely: The key to getting uniform slices is to cool the bread completely before slicing.
Want my Top 5 Muffin Recipes?
How to Store & Freeze
Leftover chocolate pumpkin bread can be stored tightly wrapped in plastic wrap or in an airtight container at room temperature for 3 days. If you want it to last longer, store in the fridge for 5 days.
Freeze: Cool completely (you can slice or keep whole), wrap tightly in parchment paper, then transfer to a freezer plastic storage bag. Seal tight, label, and date. Freeze for up to 3 months.
Recipe FAQs
Can I use any chocolate chips?
Yes! I love using mini chocolate chips so each bite has tons of melted morsels of chocolate, but you can use chocolate chunks, milk or dark chocolate chips, or white chocolate chips if that’s more your style.
Can you freeze chocolate chip pumpkin bread?
Absolutely! I like to slice the bread before freezing and wrap each slice individually, then store in the plastic storage bag as noted above. This way, I can defrost individual slices by letting them defrost to room temperature or warming them through in the microwave or toaster oven.
Can I turn it into muffins?
Yes! This recipe was actually adapted from my Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins. So if you want to make muffins, I would follow that recipe.
Recipes to Make with Leftover Pumpkin Puree
The recipes below will allow you to utilize the rest of the canned pumpkin. Pick one recipe to make along with this Chocolate Pumpkin Bread! Here are some options:
Let me know if you make this Chocolate Pumpkin Bread recipe by leaving a comment and star rating below! It helps others learn more about the recipe too! Xx Ashley
Chocolate Pumpkin Bread
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 1¼ cups gluten-free 1:1 baking flour, or white whole wheat flour
- ⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, see notes
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
Wet Ingredients
- ½ cup pure maple syrup
- ⅓ cup light olive oil
- 2 large eggs
- ¾ cup canned pumpkin purée
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup unsweetened non-dairy milk, cashew, oat, coconut, etc.
- ½ cup mini chocolate chips
- 2 tablespoons regular chocolate chips, for topping, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF and line 9×5 loaf pan with parchment paper; set aside.
- Mix dry ingredients: In medium bowl combine flour, cocoa powder, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, baking power and salt; set aside.
- Mix wet ingredients: In a large bowl whisk together maple syrup, oil and eggs until smooth. Add in pumpkin and vanilla, whisking until combined.
- Combine: Add half of the dry ingredients to bowl of wet ingredients, stirring together gently a few times, then add the milk and remaining dry ingredients until almost combined, then fold in chocolate chips. Make sure there are no lumpy or dry spots in batter.
- Bake: Transfer batter to prepared loaf pan and bake uncovered for 25 minutes, then cover with foil and bake for another 20-25 minutes, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean (crumbs are okay, but no wet batter). My bread took 50 minutes.
- Cool: Allow the pan to rest on the counter for at least 30 minutes (but an hour is best), this will ensure the loaf sets properly and you can cut slices easily. Enjoy!
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