Chocolate Bread

Are you a chocolate lover? Then keep reading! I have a treat for you today: a recipe for the most decadent chocolate bread you’ll ever try. This bread uses chocolate chips, melted chocolate, and cocoa powder so its wonderfully moist, fluffy, and full of chocolatey goodness. It’s perfect for breakfast, brunch, or a snack. And no electric mixer is needed!

 

I’ve been on a big quick bread kick lately. From making all sorts of variations of zucchini bread like zucchini pineapple bread and zucchini cheddar chive bread, to even some more uncommon breads like mango bread, grape bread (you ever bake with grapes?! I’m telling you’re going to love it), to one of my new favorites this decadent butterscotch bread. But today chocolate reigns supreme. Because I mean if we’re going to be making all sorts of loaf breads, we better whip up a chocolate bread eventually, right? Right.

Now, it’s probably obvious but I’m a big fan of chocolate (like this Chocolate Zucchini Bread!), so I was really excited to try this recipe after creating it. And boy oh boy I was not disappointed! This chocolate bread recipe is so moist and fluffy, and the semi-sweet chocolate chips and cocoa powder add the perfect amount of sweetness and richness. I could have eaten the whole chocolate bread myself! I added a little bit of espresso powder, which just helps make the chocolate stand out even more. Don’t skip it!

But what I might love even more about this chocolate loaf cake, is that I especially love how this bread can be enjoyed for breakfast with a cup of morning tea, brunch, afternoon tea or a snack. It’s also great for dessert. Basically I can sneak a slice any time of day without guilt.

Now if serving for dessert, I like to slice it up and top it with a scoop of ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream. It’s like a chocolate cake in bread form! This is a great recipe to satisfy my chocolate cravings!

See Also:

• Oil vs butter in your quick breads..what’s better? Find out the difference and what I prefer!
• Confused on what the difference is between quick breads and coffeecakes – give this post a read!
• Want to know more about quick breads? Then read this article “What’s quick bread“? and learn more!

Ingredients Needed

• All-Purpose Flour– Be sure to measure your flour correctly by spooning the plain flour into your measuring cups so you don’t end up with too much flour which can make for a dry bread.
• Baking Powder- This helps the chocolate bread rise. Do not confuse baking powder with baking soda. Baking soda and baking powder react differently. To test your baking powder to make sure its fresh, I add a teaspoon to a small bowl of hot water to see if its bubbly.
• Salt– To help balance the sweetness. I like to use fine sea salt so it dissolves in easily and has a pure salt taste. But table salt or kosher salt also works. If using kosher salt, add a pinch more since it has larger granules. Read more here about the role salt plays in baking.
• White Sugar – I used granulated sugar. But you could swap some of the granulated sugar with light brown sugar or dark brown sugar for more flavor! If you want to reduce the sugar in your quick breads, it’s important to give this post a read first!
• Eggs– Use room temperature eggs so your bread rises tall and it doesn’t seize up the melted chocolate.
• Vegetable Oil-  I use either vegetable or canola oil, but any neutral-tasting oil such as grapeseed or safflower will work
• Milk-  You can use any milk for this recipe. I prefer baking with whole milk for maximum richness, but you can always use a lower fat milk, or a non-dairy milk like almond milk. Make sure it’s room temperature so it doesn’t seize up the melted chocolate.
• Chocolate- For this chocolate bread recipe, we will use semi-sweet, melted chocolate. This gives the bread maximum chocolate flavor!
• Chocolate Chips- You will need semi-sweet chocolate chips that have been tossed in flour. Or use a different type of chocolate chip – like milk chocolate chips for a sweeter taste.
• Espresso Powder-  This is an optional ingredient and helps bring out the flavor of the chocolate and chocolate chips, but can be omitted.
• Cocoa Powder- Because this bread relies on baking powder I like to use Dutch process cocoa powder. Dutch cocoa powder is neutralized, unlike natural unsweetened cocoa powder. If you swap and use natural cocoa powder, then expect the bread to maybe not rise as tall and have a slight tang since there isn’t baking soda to neutralize it’s acidity. Learn more here about Dutch cocoa vs. Natural cocoa.
• Vanilla– I used pure vanilla extract but imitation or homemade vanilla extract can also be used.

How to Make This Chocolate Quick Bread

Preheat oven and prepare pan.  

Position a rack in the center of your oven and preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Spray a 9”x5” loaf pan with cooking spray, or line with parchment paper and then spray with cooking spray. 

Combine dry ingredients.

In a large bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder, baking powder and salt. Set aside.  

Combine wet ingredients. 

In a second mixing bowl, whisk together granulated sugar and eggs until thoroughly combined.

Whisk in milk, vanilla extract, and vegetable oil until combined.

Stir in melted chocolate until smooth and combined.

Combine dry and wet ingredients.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix together with a spatula or wooden spoon just until just combined.

Fold in chocolate chips. I like to toss the chocolate chips in a little flour first so they don’t sink to the bottom of the prepared pan.

Bake. 

Spoon batter into prepared loaf pan.

Bake in a preheated 350oF (177oC) oven for 50-60 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the middle of bread comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs clinging to it (no wet batter) and top springs back to the touch when lightly touched. 

Allow Bread to Cool.

Remove from the oven and cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.

Recipe Variations

• Other Flour – All-purpose flour can be substituted with whole wheat flour. I like to use 1/2 whole wheat and 1/2 all purpose flour. You could also try using almond flour or gluten free flour!
• Add chopped nuts – Or another nut such as chopped walnuts or pistachios. I like to use toasted pecans in my quick breads to add more flavor.
• Different Pans– You could use mini loaf pans instead and make mini loaves instead. You would get 3 mini chocolate loaves, and bake for about 33-38 minutes.
• Different Types of Chocolate Chips. You could use dark chocolate chips or milk chocolate chips instead of semi sweet chocolate chips. Or try using white chocolate morsels!
• Chocolate Ganache. Give this easy chocolate bread recipe even more of a chocolate flavour by adding a chocolate ganache on top. Check out my recipe on how to make Chocolate Ganache!

Recipe FAQs

More Recipes to Try

• Peanut Butter Quick Bread
• The Ultimate Guide To Baking Homemade Bread Recipes
• No Yeast Bread
• Pumpkin Bread
• Oreo Cheesecake Cookies