Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

As we head into the fall season (thank goodness), I wanted to share a delicious, and relatively low-calorie recipe that I found earlier this year from an old Cooking Light magazine. It's simple and delicious - even Jeff loves it! The full recipe makes a LOT, so I usually half it - be warned. The nutritional info is posted at the bottom.

Ingredients:

2 cups sugar
2 cups canned pumpkin (I use 1-15.6oz can)
1/2 cup canola oil (I use olive oil)
1/2 cup fat-free vanilla pudding (I use 1 vanilla snack pack, sugar free)
4 large egg whites (I use 1 cup, Egg Beaters)
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips ( I just poured them in till it looked good :) )
Cooking Spray

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda in a medium bow, stirring well with a whisk. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture, stirring just until moist. Stir in chocolate chips.

Spoon batter into 2 (8x4 inch) loaf pans coated with cooking spray (I only have on glass loaf pan I use when I make 1/2 the recipe, the other is an 8x8 glass pan that I used when making the full recipe).

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a wooden pick (or spaghetti noodle :) ) inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pans on a wire rack, and remove from pans. Cool completely on wire rack.

Yield: 32 servings (serving size: 1 slice)

Calories: 152; Fat: 5g; Iron: 1mg; Cholesterol: 0mg; Calcium: 10mg; Carbohydrate: 26.5g: Sodium: 137mg; Protein: 2g; Fiber: 1.1g