This decadent Vegan Chocolate Bread is so moist, fluffy, and delicious! It’s very easy to make with simple ingredients. Everyone will crave this homemade double chocolate treat for breakfast, brunch, or a snack!
This is the made-from-scratch baked quick bread of your chocolate-loving dreams! It’s extra moist, perfectly sweetened, and incredibly comforting!
Bake this sweet bread in about an hour and enjoy it for days! Making it will be such a treat as it fills your home with a lovely chocolate aroma.
My son LOVES chocolate bread so I have worked on perfecting this recipe with many, many trials and variations. I have tried making it so many different ways… with flax eggs, egg replacer, oil, different sugars, etc.
I finally came to this irresistible version and am very proud to share it! In fact, it’s one of my absolutely favorite recipes to bake. The vegan buttermilk, yogurt, and butter make it so flavorful, tender, and light as air.
It has a soft, light, and airy texture while still being moist and holding together as bread should. It’s almost like a pound cake, but chocolate!
The sweetness isn’t overwhelming but just enough to balance and bring out the rich chocolate flavor.
Cocoa powder can be tricky because it tends to dry out baked goods so I found that adding plant based yogurt helps it hold onto the moisture throughout the baking process.
A simple vegan buttermilk and baking powder create the rise and fluffiness in this chocolate loaf, similar to my Vegan Raspberry Muffins and Vanilla Loaf Cake. Also, no yeast is needed here.
Many breads use oil for moisture but I found vegan butter makes this bread smooth and buttery-tasting as in my Chocolate Pumpkin Bread.
You can add some chocolate frosting or ganache for a vegan chocolate loaf cake.
It would make the perfect celebration or birthday cake. Or, you can serve it up during holidays such as Easter, Christmas, or Valentines to make things even sweeter!
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Ingredients and Substitutions
- Buttermilk – We create a quick vegan buttermilk by combining full-fat plant milk, such as soy, and apple cider vinegar for rich creaminess in the bread.
- Flour – All-purpose flour is used for a soft, light loaf.
- Sugar – Cane sugar adds sweetness and balances the bitterness from the cocoa.
- Cocoa – Use any vegan unsweetened cocoa powder, cacao, or Dutch process.
- Baking Powder – Helps the loaf rise while it’s in the oven.
- Cornstarch – Cornstarch or arrowroot powder makes the bread even softer and lends to the structure.
- Salt – Just a touch to enhance the deep chocolate flavor.
- Yogurt – Any plant-based yogurt works for binding the bread and holding onto moisture. My favorite is made by So Delicious. The bread is just as delicious with almond, soy, coconut, or oat. And it can be sweet or unsweetened, flavored with vanilla, or not.
- Vegan Butter – Melted vegan butter is used for richness and a buttery flavor. Alternatives to this are refined coconut oil or olive oil.
- Vanilla – Pure vanilla extract adds a warm depth of flavor.
- Chocolate Chips – Vegan chocolate chips add another layer of chocolate. Dark or semi-sweet are both great here. Many stores now carry dairy-free chocolate chips or they can be ordered online.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here are some quick visual steps. Find the full recipe with exact measurements on the recipe card below.
Preheat the oven and melt the butter. Let it cool for a few minutes. Set the plant milk and vegan yogurt on the counter so they can start to come to room temperature.
Grease a glass or metal loaf pan. You can also line it with parchment paper to make it easier to pull it out of the dish.
Prepare the vegan buttermilk by stirring the apple cider vinegar with the plant milk. Let it sit for a few minutes while it curdles.
Sift the dry ingredients, except for the chocolate chips, into a bowl. Then, stir them together.
In a separate bowl, add the wet ingredients and whisk them together until they form a smooth consistency.
Fold the dry and wet ingredients together very gently. Stop stirring once you see a few streaks of flour left so you don’t over-mix the batter. Next, stir in most of the chocolate chips.
Spoon the batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth it out. Top the loaf with the remaining chocolate chips.
Bake the bread for about an hour or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean. It’s okay if there are a few moist crumbs, but check a couple of different spots in case your toothpick runs through a melted chocolate chip.
Cocoa powder tends to dry out baked goods, so try not to overbake the bread.
Let the bread cool down before slicing into it. You can certainly enjoy it fresh out of the oven, but the cooling-down time allows it to set and become more sliceable.
Tips For Success
- Room temperature ingredients help the batter come together into a smooth consistency, which produces a more tender bread.
- Measure the flour by spooning it into your measuring dish and then leveling the top off.
- Try not to over-mix the batter as that can cause the chocolate bread to become tough and chewy.
Recipe Variation Ideas
- Add espresso for a deeper flavor.
- Fold in your favorite nuts for crunchiness.
- Spread icing over it for a chocolate loaf cake.
- Pretend the bread is a brownie and enjoy it with ice cream or whipped topping!
Storage & Reheating
Cover the bread and store it at room temperature for 2 days, in the refrigerator for 4 days, or in the freezer for 3 months. It helps to separate the slices with parchment paper if placing them in the refrigerator or freezer because they will dense up. Reheat the bread in the microwave for 20-30 seconds.
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Vegan Chocolate Bread
Bonnie – Serene Trail
Ingredients
- 1 cup soy milk, or another full-fat plant milk, (240ml)
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 2/3 cup all-purpose flour, (200g)
- 1 cup cane sugar, (200g)
- 1/3 cup cocoa powder, unsweetened, (35g)
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup vegan yogurt, (125g)
- 1/3 cup vegan butter, melted, (76g)
- 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup vegan chocolate chips, (170g)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Melt the vegan butter in the microwave for 30-40 seconds or on the stovetop. Take the plant milk and vegan yogurt out of the refrigerator so they can start to come to room temperature.
- Grease a 9×5 loaf pan. Or, you can line it with parchment paper to make it easier to pull out of the dish. Make the vegan buttermilk by stirring the apple cider vinegar into the plant milk.
- Combine the flour, cane sugar, cocoa powder, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt in a medium-sized bowl. I like to use a sifter here to break up any clumps.
- Add the vegan buttermilk, yogurt, melted butter, and vanilla to a large bowl. Whisk them together until it's smooth and creamy.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredient bowl and stir them together just until you only see a few streaks of flour left. Fold in most of the chocolate chips, saving some for toppings.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Smooth it out with the back of a spoon and top it with the remaining chocolate chips.
- Bake the bread for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean. A few moist crumbs is okay. Check a couple of different spots near the center in case your toothpick runs through a melted chocolate chip.
- Let the bread cool for 15 minutes in the loaf pan. Then remove it and let it cool for another 15 minutes on a wire rack before slicing it.
Video
Notes
- This recipe works with a glass of metal loaf pan. Expect the bread to be ready sooner if using metal.
- A full-fat plant based milk works best when creating buttermilk. My preference is soy here.
- Spoon the flour into your measuring cup then level the excess off with a straight edge such as a butter knife.
- Sifting the dry ingredients helps break up any clumps, which makes it easier when folding everything together.
- Try not to over-mix the batter to prevent the bread from becoming tough.
Nutrition
The nutritional information provided is an estimate from third-party calculations.