Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread is a must make every fall — this pumpkin bundt cake is moist and tender with just the right amount of spice, and the chocolate chips take it from delicious to dynamite!
When my oldest went off to college a few years ago, I went care package crazy. I was not only sending the standard cookies and brownies, I was creating themed boxes for holidays and looking for any excuse to send off a package. It was fun for both of us for a while, but the day came when she timidly asked me to slow down the pace. She already had all the nail polish, Halloween face paint, Valentine confetti and bags of mini candy she needed. And the packaging was starting to pile up in the dorm room.
I had pretty much forgotten about care packages altogether when my youngest, just a few weeks into the college year, put in a request for some of my chocolate chip pumpkin bread. This is a wonderful recipe that’s been a family fall staple forever. It’s fool proof, and really really delicious. It’s one of those recipes that you’ll get asked for again and again.
Normally I used canned pumpkin for this, but since I found small pumpkins at the farmer’s market, I decided to do it all from scratch. I set out the directions below if you want to give it a try.
I’ve found this recipe to be just about foolproof as long as you follow the amounts carefully, and don’t over mix it before putting it in the oven. It’s always moist with wonderful pumpkin flavor, and you’ll be surprised at how delicious the pumpkin and chocolate combination is.
TIP: If you’re like me and think that more is more when it comes to chocolate, don’t be tempted to add more than 1 (10-12 ounce) bag of chocolate chips to the batter. Too much chocolate overwhelms the pumpkin and upsets the perfect balance of flavors in this cake.
This cake keeps well and is sturdy, so it’s perfect for shipping. I slice it up and wrap the individual pieces.
Want to make your own fresh pumpkin puree?
- Take a small eating pumpkin and cut it in half. Scoop out the seeds and set face down on an oiled baking sheet. Bake at 350 until it’s tender when pierced.
- Scoop out the pulp and puree in a blender or processor till smooth.
Having gone through all this, I can tell you that it just wasn’t worth the extra trouble. There was no difference in taste. And I have read that canned pumpkin is actually higher in nutrients than fresh. Go figure.
other pumpkin recipes you’ll love ~
- Pumpkin Praline Cake
- Pumpkin Spice Biscuits
- Death by Chocolate Pumpkin Bread
- No Churn Pumpkin Spice Ice Cream
Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread
Equipment
- a standard bundt pan
Ingredients
wet ingredients
- 1 15- ounce can pumpkin puree
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 4 large eggs
- 1/2 tsp each of nutmeg, cinnamon and allspice (I was out of allspice so I substituted ginger)
dry ingredients
- 2 & 3/4 cups flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 cup sugar
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 cup chopped walnuts
- 1 10-12 ounce bag of chocolate chips (I like dark chocolate)
Instructions
- Set oven to 350F
- Spray a non-stick bundt pan with cooking spray.
- Whisk the wet ingredients together with the spices and set aside.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients.
- Mix the dry into the wet until JUST combined. Fold in the nuts and chocolate chips.
- Spoon into the bundt pan and even out slightly, if necessary.
- Bake until a toothpick comes out without wet batter clinging to it, wet crumbs are fine, about 50-55 minutes. The range of baking time depends on your pan and your oven. Check early.
- Cool briefly and turn out onto a plate or rack. It’s delicious hot, warm, or cold!
tvfgi recommends: a great basic bundt pan
Bundt pans come in all sorts of wonderful shapes and sizes, which is great, except that you never know how your pan is going to work with a specific recipe. I like to use this one from Wilton which is a basic, all purpose pan that’s sturdy, nonstick, and a standard size. The simple fluted shape insures an easy release, and isn’t that what it’s all about?
Don’t forget to pin this chocolate chip pumpkin bread!
Hi Sue, I want to make the pumpkin choc chip bundt but I don’t eat nuts. I cup of nuts is a lot to leave out of the batter. How much extra flour would be an appropriate amount?
Many thanks,
Gail
You can just leave out the nuts without any changes, Gail, it will be fine.
Hi Sue,
Just made this recipe over the weekend and took it to work. It was loved by all, thank-you for yet another winner recipe! I’m wondering if I could make this as muffins? Do you think it’s possible and if so what would the bake time be like?
Cheers,
Nancy
Hey Nancy, glad you enjoyed it, it’s one of my favorites. I think you could bake it as muffins, I don’t see why not. I’d check them, depending on size, at 18-20 minutes.
I’m really enjoying your recipes and website. I also put the effort into fresh pumpkin several years ago and came to the exact same conclusion as you…no difference in taste, not worth the bother. Thanks again!
Is it normal for the top of the cake (which becomes the bottom after inverting) to crack?
Yes, completely normal!
Hey Sue, You have got to STOP doing this to me. All these great bundt cake recipes, and I think I have tried everyone. But this one is probably the BEST YET!!!! It’s not too sweet – I used the Dark Chocolate chips as you recommended. I didn’t use the walnuts – wanted to see how it was without. I think it took about 5 minutes over the time you suggested and it also filled the whole bundt pan. It’s exactly as I thought it would be AWESOME.
thanks again. Linda
I’m especially happy to hear great feedback on this cake Linda because it’s such an old family favorite ~ and there’s nothing like the combination of pumpkin and dark chocolate ~ Happy Fall!
Hi Sue: Can I cut back on the sugar? I don’t like things too sweet but don’t want to ruin the recipe.
Thanks!
I haven’t adjusted the sugar in this recipe myself, but I think you can safely reduce it by about 1/3 and still be ok, Roberta. That being said, the cake is not very sweet to the taste, if that makes a difference.