Real Chocolate Bread (Bread Machine)

This chocolate bread is a proper yeast bread with cocoa powder baked right into the dough, not a cake pretending to be bread. Bread flour gives it structure and chew, while butter, egg, sugar, and vanilla make it rich enough to eat on its own or slice for French toast that tastes like a brownie.

The bread machine does the mixing and kneading, but you have options for baking. Run it on the white bread cycle for a single machine-baked loaf, or use the manual/dough cycle, pull the dough out after the second knead, divide into two smaller loaves, let them rise in pans, and bake in a regular oven. The oven method gives you better crust control and a more traditional loaf shape.

A quarter cup of cocoa powder creates a dark, chocolate-colored crumb with a flavor that’s rich but not overwhelming. It’s sweet enough to eat plain with butter but not so sweet that it crosses into dessert territory. Room temperature ingredients are emphasized in the notes for a reason: cold ingredients slow down the yeast and can affect the bread machine’s timing cycle.

Kitchen Tips

• All ingredients at room temperature. Cold butter and milk won’t incorporate properly in the machine’s short mixing time and can stall the yeast.
• Add ingredients in the order listed. Bread machines are sensitive to ingredient order. Liquids typically go first, dry ingredients and yeast last.
• For oven baking, let the dough rise fully to double in the pans before baking. This takes 45 minutes to an hour in a warm kitchen.
• Check the dough during kneading. Cocoa absorbs liquid differently than flour. If the dough looks too dry, add a tablespoon of warm milk.

Variations

• Add chocolate chips folded in after the first knead for pockets of melted chocolate throughout.
• Cinnamon chocolate: Mix in a teaspoon of cinnamon for a Mexican chocolate bread flavor.
• Use as French toast bread. Thick slices dipped in egg and pan-fried make an incredibly indulgent breakfast.