Five fast steps and you’ve got yourself the best chocolate chip pumpkin bread that’s moist, delicious and nutritious! Perfectly spiced with fall flavors with plenty of chocolate baked into each bite.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9x5” loaf pan with non-stick spray.
Whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and salt tuntil combined in a large mixing bowl.
In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs, granulated sugar, and brown sugar together until combined. Whisk in the pumpkin, oil, and orange juice.
Combine together the wet ingredients and the dry ingredients and gently mix them together. Do not over mix and know that there will be a few lumps. Fold in the chocolate chips.
Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake for 60-65 minutes (TIP: adjust the oven rack to the lower third position this will help prevent the top from browning too quickly). Make sure to loosely cover the bread with aluminum foil halfway through to prevent the top from browning too much. Insert a toothpick into the center of the loaf, if it comes out clean with just a few crumbs, the bread is finished baking!
Allow bread to cool completely in the pan on a cooling rack.
Notes
Storage:
To Store: Homemade pumpkin bread will stay fresh in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge for up to ten days.
To Freeze: You can freeze this pumpkin bread, wrapped in plastic wrap and then placed in an airtight freezer bag, for up to three months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before serving.
To Reheat: I like to pop each piece in the microwave for about ten seconds before eating the leftovers. Tastes just like it’s fresh out of the oven.
Make Ahead: If you’d like to get a head start on your homemade pumpkin bread, you can prepare the batter ahead of time and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours. When ready to bake, simply pour the batter into your prepared pan and follow the same baking instructions.
Tips:
You can use this same pumpkin chocolate chip bread recipe to make muffins! Simply divide the batter into a greased muffin pan and bake for 17 to 20 minutes at the same temperature.
To prevent the bread from browning too soon, adjust the oven rack to the lower third position.
For easy removal and quick clean-up, you can line your loaf pans with parchment paper and spray with non-stick spray.
Since oven temperatures vary, they may need to be recalibrated periodically to ensure they are accurate. Make sure to check your bread at the lower end of the recommended baking time. Your bread will be done baking when a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean with just a few crumbs.
Pumpkin pie spice, allspice, or ginger are great alternatives to the cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. Please note measurements of each will depend on taste preference.
Feel free to add chopped nuts, such as walnuts, pecans, and macadamia nuts to the batter before baking. Pumpkin seeds are a great garnish as well.
Experiment with mashed bananas (you must try my banana bread recipes) or pureed vegetables (like butternut squash or sweet potato) to create other quick bread recipes of your own.