Chocolate Pumpkin Banana Bread

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This Chocolate Pumpkin Banana Bread Recipe is moist, delicious and perfectly sweetened. It combines three of my favorite things - banana bread, the warm fall flavors of pumpkin spice and rich, chocolatey goodness. It's the best banana bread recipe around.

slices of chocolate banana bread piled high on a marble cutting board, with milk in the background

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Ingredient Notes

ingredients laid out, eggs, flour, chocolate chips, pumpkin, brown sugar, vanilla, cocoa powder

All Purpose Flour - this is the most versatile flour for baking and is perfect for all sorts of baked goods.
Cocoa Powder - This recipe calls for unsweetened cocoa powder. Not to be confused with cocoa mix, which is sweetened with sugar.
Light Brown Sugar - light brown sugar has less molasses that dark brown sugar. Dark brown sugar will give this Chocolate Pumpkin Banana bread a richer caramel flavor.
Pumpkin Puree - For this recipe I used unsweetened canned pumpkin puree. The only ingredient should be pumpkin. It is not the same as canned pumpkin pie filling.
Chocolate Chunks - You can use a chocolate bar and cut it into chunks, or you can use chocolate chips. Both will work just great.

Step By Step Instructions

Ingredients for chocolate banana bread - flour, sugar, banana, eggs, chocolate, baking soda, salt

How to make Chocolate Pumpkin Banana Bread

STEP 1: Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a 9”x5” loaf pan with parchment paper, grease, or coat with nonstick spray. Set aside. Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda and salt in a large bowl.

2 mixing bowls - one with dry ingredients and one with wet ingredients to make banana bread

STEP 2: Combine the oil, eggs, smashed banana, pumpkin puree, sour cream, and vanilla extract in a separate bowl.

Batter for chocolate pumpkin banana bread, ready to be poured into a loaf pan for baking

STEP 3: Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients and fold in with a rubber spatula.

batter for chocolate pumpkin bread, topped with chopped chocolate chunks

STEP 4: Once mixed, fold in ½ cup of the chocolate chunks.

STEP 5: Pour the mixture into to the prepared pan and top with the remaining chocolate chunks. Bake for 1 hour or until you insert a toothpick, and it comes out clean. Start checking at the 45 minute mark. Let the Chocolate Pumpkin Banana Bread cool before slicing.

a loaf of chocolate pumpkin banana bread, topped with chocolate chunks in a loaf pan

Recipe Tips and Variations

Storage: Store the leftover Chocolate Pumpkin Banana bread covered on the counter for up to 3 days, or refrigerate for up to 1 week. (These are my favorite storage and meal prep containers)
Make Muffins: Pour the batter into a muffin tine to make chocolate pumpkin spice muffins. (Check out these Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting)
Make it gluten free: To make a gluten free version of this chocolate banana bread, simply swap out the all-purpose flour 1:1 with this gluten free baking flour.
Sugar Free Alternatives: For a sugar free pumpkin bread recipe, swap out the light brown sugar with this brown sugar erythritol and use these sugar free chocolate chips.
Make it dairy free: To make a dairy free version of this pumpkin banana bread, swap out the sour cream with dairy free coconut yogurt.
Use applesauce: If you do not have any pumpkin puree or do not like pumpkin, you can substitute the pumpkin puree with apple sauce.
Omit the pumpkin: Skip the pumpkin and just make chocolate banana bread. In place of the pumpkin, you can use an extra ¾ cup of mashed bananas. You can also use 1 medium avocado, mashed.
Amp up the pumpkin flavor: To amp up the pumpkin flavor, add a tablespoon of this Pumpkin Pie Spice.

Recommended Tools

Loaf Pan: For this recipe I used a 9x5" loaf pan. You can also use a silicone loaf pan for easier clean up.
Parchment Paper: I like to use unbleached parchment paper sheets. They are handy for cutting into a variety of shapes and sizes and lining pans of all sizes.
Baking Clips: Clipping the parchment paper to the sides of the baking pan, make it a lot easier to pour and spread the batter.
Mixing Bowl: For baking, I like to use a nested set of clear glass mixing bowls.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between all-purpose flour and cake flour?

Cake flour is essentially all-purpose flour with a little cornstarch mixed in. Cake flour has a lower protein content at about 8% compared to 10% to 11% in all-purpose flour. To substitute cake flour, add 2 extra tablespoon per cup.

Can you freeze banana bread?

Yes, absolutely. I recommend wrapping it tightly in cling film and then wrapping it in aluminum foil. Let thaw on the counter before warming and slicing.

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