Chocolate Chip Loaf

Published: Apr 29, 2025 by Nicole Kendrick · This post may contain affiliate links · 36 Comments

This easy chocolate chip loaf recipe is moist and tender, with a rich buttery flavor and pops of chocolate chips in every bite. It's an easy quick bread recipe that tastes almost like yellow cake in a loaf pan. Yum!

Overhead shot of chocolate chip loaf on plate.

This delicious chocolate chip loaf cake is a cross between quick bread and cake, combining everything you love about the two into one recipe. It's a perfect sweet breakfast or a great after-dinner dessert.

We used a combination of butter and oil, rather than just one or the other, to create a super moist chocolate chip loaf cake with a pronounced buttery flavor. The addition of mini chocolate chips adds even more sweet flavor to every bite.

Like our lemon loaf cake recipe, this is super fast and easy to make, as well, which is always a huge plus for any recipe, isn't it?

Jump to:

Why You'll Love This Recipe
Ingredients
Flavor Variations
Instructions
Expert Tips
Pairing Suggestions
FAQ
📖 Recipe
💬 Comments

Why You'll Love This Recipe

Basic Ingredients: This is a classic loaf recipe, so it only uses basic baking ingredients that you can find in your kitchen or in any grocery store. There's nothing fancy here.
So Easy: Just like the ingredient, this recipe is easy. It only takes a few minutes of prep and a little under an hour's time in the oven. That's it!
Amazing Texture: Delicious loaf is so moist and tender like a great cake but with a density that feels like quick bread.
Versatile: This is the perfect recipe for a sweet breakfast, an addition to brunch, or an after-dinner dessert. It's also great for holidays.
An Easy Meal Prep Option: This is a freezer-friendly quick bread recipe, so you can make a double batch to freeze for later.
Customizable: You can easily tweak this bread to add more flavor or make it suitable for those who have dietary restrictions like Celiac or lactose intolerance.

Ingredients

Quick Bread Basics: All-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt form the dry ingredient base found in all loaves, like this one.
Unsalted Butter: Butter gives a rich, buttery flavor to the loaf, makes it more tender, and helps it rise.
Butter Olive Oil: Costabile butter olive oil makes the bread even more tender and moist and adds even more buttery flavor. We prefer Costabile for its quality and purity.
Vanilla Extract: Vanilla extract adds a rich depth of flavor that all baked goods benefit from. We prefer Singing Dog vanilla because it has a deep, rich vanilla flavor and is super-high quality.
Mini Chocolate Chips: Mini chocolate chips are the perfect size to add pops of chocolatey flavor in every bite and make the bread look so cute.
Milk: Milk helps thin out the batter and gives the bread a cake-like feel.

See the recipe card at the end of the post for a full list of ingredients and their exact amounts.

Overhead shot of plate with chocolate chip bread next to bottle of oil and chocolate chips.

Flavor Variations

Chocolate Chips: We recommend using mini chocolate chips for visual appearance and chocolate in every bite, but you can use any kind you want. Milk, semi-sweet, or dark all work.
Add Nuts: Chopped walnuts, pecans, almonds, or almost any of your favorite nuts will work and add more texture and flavor.
Double Chocolate Chip Loaf: Add cocoa powder to make a chocolate chocolate chip loaf cake.
White Chocolate Chips: Make a chocolate loaf and add white chocolate chips in place of regular chips.
Glaze: A simple glaze of powdered sugar, milk, and a touch of vanilla is a nice touch to the bread.
Gluten Free: Use a 1:1 gluten free baking flour to make a gluten free version. Just like our gluten free lemon blueberry loaf, there's no need for complicated conversions.
Dairy Free: Use equal amounts of plant butter and milk for a dairy free version.
No Oil: If you don't have or want to use oil, you can use 1 stick of butter in place of the butter and olive oil.

Instructions

In a mixer, blend the butter and sugars, followed by the olive oil, and then, finally, the egg. Then, mix in the milk and vanilla.
Add all the dry ingredients to the mixer and blend until combined, scraping down the sides.
Add the mini chocolate chips and mix them into the batter with a rubber spatula.
Add the batter to a greased 9x5 inch loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Expert Tips

Mix your dry and wet ingredients until just combined. If you overmix it, you'll end up with a tough loaf.
Cool your melted butter before mixing it with the other wet ingredients to keep the eggs from curdling.
Let your batter rest for a few minutes before baking it to allow any gluten to relax.
For the most tender loaf possible, use cake flour. With less protein than regular flour, it makes the softest baked goods possible.
We recommend whole milk. It adds a bit more fat to the loaf, making it even richer and giving it an even better texture.
Bring your cold ingredients to room temperature. This makes them easier to mix and helps reduce the chances of overmixing.

Pairing Suggestions

Serve this as a sweet breakfast or afternoon snack with a glass of milk for the kids or a cup of coffee or tea for the grown-ups.

The flavor and texture of this chocolate chip loaf also make it a perfect dessert after meals like garlic butter steak bites, crock pot rosemary chicken, or tray baked chicken thighs.

Closeup shot of plate with choclate chip loaf.

FAQ

Is this chocolate chip loaf a quick bread or a loaf cake?

It's a little bit of both. Both quick bread and loaf cakes are made in a similar way. However, loaf cakes tend to be sweeter. This has the sensibilities of a quick bread with the sweetness and crumb of a loaf cake.

What's the difference between quick bread and loaf cake?

Quick breads and loaf cakes are very similar. Both are made with limited ingredients and generally use the "muffin method" of mixing where the dry and wet ingredients are combined separately before being mixed. The major difference is that quick bread can be sweet or savory, while loaf cakes are always sweet.

Why was my loaf cake dry?

The primary reason a loaf cake comes out dry is using too much flour. It's important to measure the flour correctly to ensure the cake is just right.

How do you properly measure flour?

The optimal way to measure flour is by weight. However, if using a measuring cup, loosely spoon the flour into the cup and level it off with a knife. Never scoop the flour out directly with the cup or it will compact and too much will be used.

📖 Recipe