Prepare the pans and oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Thoroughly grease two 8 × 4-inch loaf pans, then line them with parchment paper to make removal easier after baking. Place the prepared pans aside.

Blend the dry ingredients. Add the flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, baking powder, and salt to a large mixing bowl. Whisk until the leavening agents, seasoning, and salt are evenly dispersed throughout the flour. Set aside.

Prepare the wet mixture. In a medium bowl, combine the pumpkin purée, brown sugar, granulated sugar, applesauce or canola oil, room-temperature eggs, and vanilla extract. Whisk thoroughly until the mixture becomes smooth and uniform.

Combine the mixtures. Pour the pumpkin mixture into the bowl containing the dry ingredients. Stir gently only until the flour mixture is moistened and the batter comes together. Avoid excessive mixing, which can result in a denser finished loaf.

Add the chocolate chips. Carefully fold the semisweet chocolate chips and most of the miniature chocolate chips into the batter. If desired, retain a couple of tablespoons of the mini chips for garnishing the tops before baking.

Fill the pans and bake. Distribute the batter evenly between the two prepared loaf pans. Scatter the reserved miniature chocolate chips over the surface of each loaf, if using. Bake for 50–55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a loaf comes out clean.

Cool the loaves. Leave the pumpkin bread in the pans for 10 minutes after removing it from the oven. Then carefully transfer each loaf to a wire cooling rack and allow it to cool completely before slicing.