A rather chocolate-filled pumpkin bread, this recipe has a touch of cocoa powder along with plenty of dark chocolate to add a bit of a boost. Olive oil is, as always, an excellent pairing with chocolate and mixes nicely with the pumpkin undertones. Whole grain spelt flour is flavourful and makes this into more of a snack than a dessert. Some sunflower seeds (or nuts, if you’re feeling flush) bring in some crunch for an overall rather complex, very appealing quick bread.

This recipe is adapted from these chocolate chip pumpkin muffins. For more sweet winter squash recipes, try these vegan pumpkin cinnamon rolls. If you need a gluten-free option, go for single-flour (almond) gluten-free pumpkin muffins.

Ingredients

Ingredient Notes and Substitutions

• Pumpkin puree: make your own or use store-bought. Please note that the canned versions are typically quite a bit thicker so you may need to add an extra splash of milk to get the right texture. Any sweet winter squash can be used.
• Sugar: use any granulated sugar: Coconut, cane, muscovado, and so on will all work well. I like the taste of a darker sugar in this recipe.
• Spelt flour: substitute another whole-grain flour – like whole wheat – if preferred. A sifted flour or all-purpose plain flour can also be used.
• Olive oil: substitute another oil that’s liquid at room temperature if you don’t want to use olive.
• Milk: I always use oat milk. Any type of milk can be used but avoid canned coconut. Even water will work in a pinch.
• Sunflower seeds: as mentioned above, you can use nuts in place of seeds if you have them. Chopped walnuts or hazelnuts are excellent. Don’t use chia or flax seeds.
• Cinnamon: add other spices if you want more of a blend. Pumpkin spice can be used but the amount should be doubled.

Step by Step

Step 1: whisk the wet ingredients to combine.

Step 2: add the dry ingredients and mix, then fold in the chocolate chips and seeds.

Step 3: transfer the batter to a greased or lined loaf tin.

Step 4: bake until the loaf passes a toothpick test, about an hour.

Recipe Notes

The loaf might take a few minutes less to bake if you use a metal loaf tin rather than glass (about five minutes). This is the case for any cake or quick bread.

This is a slightly denser loaf than you might be used to. It’s lower in sugar and made with all whole-grain flour, so it’s naturally not as light as one made with eggs and white flour.

How to Store

Storage: keep in a sealed container at room temperature for a couple of days, or refrigerate up to a week. It will spoil quickly if your home is very warm.

Freezing: transfer the fully cooled pumpkin bread to an airtight container and freeze for up to three months. For some extra protection, I sometimes wrap quick breads in beeswax wrap before placing in the container. Thaw at room temperature.

Expert Tips

• Check with a skewer: the loaf is rather dark due to the added cocoa so it can be a bit tricky to tell when it’s baked based on appearance. Insert a wooden skewer or toothpick in the middle of the loaf. When it’s done, there shouldn’t be any crumbs, or just a couple small ones sticking to the skewer.
• Use a sweet pumpkin: if you’re making your own puree, be sure to choose a pumpkin or winter squash that’s quite sweet. Once that’s under ripe or naturally less sweet (like acorn) won’t work as well here.
• Change up the add-ins: use any nut or seed you think would be nice, omit the chocolate, or double it. These are flexible.

More Pumpkin Recipes

Chickpea Pumpkin Curry
Pumpkin Salad
Vegetarian Stuffed Pumpkins
Vegan Pumpkin Pasta