An easy high altitude recipe for pumpkin chocolate chip bread that’s soft, moist, perfectly sweet and full of cozy spices and dark chocolate chips. If you love all things pumpkin in the fall, then this is THE pumpkin bread recipe you should be baking this season.
You might also love these high altitude recipes for brown butter pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting, pumpkin crumb cake muffins, and pumpkin pecan waffles.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Easy to Make. You don’t need a mixer to make pumpkin chocolate chip bread, just a bowl and a whisk to bring the batter together quickly and easily.
Standard Pantry Ingredients. There’s no fancy ingredients needed today, just simple items that you likely keep on hand. You’ll love the combination of the fall spices, sweet pumpkin bread and creamy bittersweet chocolate.
Two Loaves. Today’s recipe makes two loaves of pumpkin bread, so that you can use up a whole can of pumpkin without having leftover pumpkin sitting in the fridge. My family usually eats the first loaf in a couple of days, then I freeze the second loaf for later.
High Altitude Tested. I test and develop all the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet. This bread rises so tall and fluffy, with a beautiful crumb that stays moist and soft for days and days.
See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.
Ingredients
- Pumpkin. Use plain canned pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling.
- Sugar. A combination of granulated sugar and light brown sugar adds sweetness and moisture.
- Oil. Vegetable oil makes the bread so moist.
- Eggs. Adds structure.
- Milk. Keeps the bread moist.
- Flour. All-purpose flour adds structure and strength.
- Baking Soda. Leavening agent, making the bread rise with a beautiful domed top as it bakes.
- Salt. Balances the sweetness and adds flavor.
- Spices. A blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, cardamom and vanilla add depth of flavor that perfectly complements the pumpkin.
- Chocolate Chips. I prefer semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips, but you can use milk chocolate if you prefer.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Line two standard-sized loaf pans with a sheet of parchment paper to easily remove the bread after it bakes.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin, sugars, oil, eggs, milk and vanilla until smooth. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, salt and spices.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet and use a spatula to combine the batter just until moistened. Fold in the chocolate chips, reserving 1/4 cup to sprinkle on top of the batter.
- Divide the batter between the pans. Sprinkle the rest of the chocolate chips over the batter, using a few extra if you like more on top. I like to also sprinkle a few mini sized chocolate chips on top, since the different sizes look really pretty.
- Bake the bread on the center oven rack for about 55-65 minutes, until a cake tester or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, or with moist crumbs clinging to it.
- Cool the bread in the pans for 15 minutes, then lift the bread out of the pans by grasping the ends of the parchment paper sling. Let the bread cool on a cooling rack for several hours before cutting and serving.
Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common baking questions, so that you can be successful in your own baking!
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does the bread stay moist?
This pumpkin chocolate chip bread stays moist for a long time. Store bread in an airtight container for up to 5 days, or wrap in several layers of plastic and freeze indefinitely.
Will this recipe work if I don’t live at high altitude?
You can make this recipe at any altitude, with a few minor adjustments. Please see my FAQs for some helpful information.
What loaf pan do you use?
This USA aluminized steel bread loaf pan is my favorite.
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Did you love today’s recipe? Please rate the recipe and let me know in the comments what you thought! Also, be sure to follow Curly Girl Kitchen on Instagram, and tag me when you try one of my recipes so I can see all your delicious creations!
High Altitude Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- 2 Standard-Sized Loaf Pans
Ingredients
- 1 can (15 oz) pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- ½ cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
- 1 cup vegetable oil (you can also use 1/2 cup vegetable oil + 1/2 cup melted unsalted butter)
- 3 large eggs
- ¾ cup whole milk
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ½ tsp ground cloves
- ¼ tsp ground cardamom
- 1 ½ cups chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Line two standard-sized loaf pans with a sheet of parchment paper to easily remove the bread after it bakes.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin, sugars, oil, eggs, milk and vanilla until smooth. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, salt and spices.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet and use a spatula to combine the batter just until moistened. Fold in the chocolate chips, reserving 1/4 cup to sprinkle on top of the batter.
- Divide the batter between the pans. Sprinkle the rest of the chocolate chips over the batter, using a few extra if you like more on top. I like to also sprinkle a few mini sized chocolate chips on top, since the different sizes look really pretty.
- Bake the bread on the center oven rack for about 55-65 minutes, until a cake tester or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, or with moist crumbs clinging to it.
- Cool the bread in the pans for 15 minutes, then lift the bread out of the pans by grasping the ends of the parchment paper sling. Let the bread cool on a cooling rack for several hours before cutting and serving.
I have used this recipe to make mini-loaves and muffins for gifts. Everybody has raved about how good they are. I did use fresh shaved nutmeg, but I think it’s just a good recipe. Thank You for posting it.