Happy Thanksgiving!

I am Thankful for…family, friends, and delicious food! Especially chocolate chip pumpkin bread.

I woke up this morning to pancakes, the smell of pumpkin cheesecake, and the sounds of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade filtering up from the living room downstairs. There is nothing better than Thanksgiving!

Since the season for all things pumpkin is drawing to a close, I decided to feature some delicious chocolate chip pumpkin bread today. Though Thanksgiving will be over after today, and the decorative gourds will be composted and replaced fluidly with the glitter of holiday lights and wreaths, it doesn’t mean you can’t tote this yummy bread with you to holiday parties all the way through New Years!

The great thing about this pumpkin bread is that it is actually really healthy–and it’s delicious. It has no fat, and it’s full of beta-carotene and antioxidants from the massive amounts of pumpkin, and it’s made from whole wheat flour. It’s one of those tricky foods that doesn’t taste healthy or bland, though, because of the blend of delicious spices and the chocolate chips!

So, with that, The Top 3 Reasons You Should Bake This Delicious Stuff as Soon As Possible:

1. Pumpkin is one of the 14 SuperFoods

In their bestselling book, SuperFoodsRx, authors Dr. Steven Pratt and Kathy Matthews advocate building your diet around fourteen staple SuperFoods (one of which is pumpkin!)–they claim you’ll have more energy and feel more balanced, among other benefits, if you round out your diet with these foods.

“Foods – the right foods – can actually change the course of your biochemistry. They can help to stop damage at the cellular levels that can develop into disease . . .”

So eat more pumpkin! This pumpkin bread is a great excuse.

2. It’s Easy–and (3.) Delicious!

It’s hard to find a healthy food so widely accepted. This bread, however, is sure to turn even the most adamant of pumpkin non-believers into a lover with just one warm, gooey slice! the best part? It’s so easy to make! It has 12 ingredients, most of which are spices, and the outcome is soft, tasty muffins or loaves that are perfect to serve up at home or give as “tasteful” gifts.

This recipe is the result of a trial-and-error quest for pumpkin bread perfection–about twenty batches were made to get it right! It’s unique to my family, so enjoy!

The World’s Healthiest Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

Ingredients:

- 1/2 cup white sugar (light brown sugar can also be used as a substitute)

- 2 eggs

- 1 small can (15 oz) of canned pumpkin

- 1/4 cup water (Optional–if needed to thin the consistency)

- 1 1/2 cups whole-wheat flour (If you don’t have whole wheat, all-purpose flour works as well)

- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder

- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

- 1/4 teaspoon salt

- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

- 1/2 to 1 full cup of semisweet chocolate chips

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 C)

2. Grease and flour the muffin/loaf pan or use paper liners

3. Mix sugar and eggs, then add pumpkin and water. In a separate bowl mix together the baking flour, baking soda, baking powder, spices, and salt. Add wet mixture and stir in chocolate chips.

3. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full with batter. Bake in over for 20-25 minutes.

Does your family have any special Thanksgiving traditions? What’s the most popular dish on the table? Share your Thanksgiving thoughts in the comments! :)

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