Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare two 9-inch loaf pans by spraying them lightly with cooking spray or rubbing with softened butter. Dust them lightly with flour, shaking out any excess.

Sift the flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and salt together. Set aside.

Blend the pumpkin puree and water in a small bowl. Set aside.

Cream the butter and sugar together until very smooth and light by hand with a wooden spoon or with an electric mixer using the paddle attachment, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing until smooth and scraping down the bowl between each addition. Scrape down the bowl to blend evenly.

Stir the flour mixture into the creamed butter mixture in four additions, alternating with the pumpkin mixture, beginning and ending with the flour. Mix the batter until it is evenly blended after each addition, scraping down the bowl as needed. After the final addition, continue to mix the batter until smooth, 2-3 minutes. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Divide the batter evenly between the prepared loaf pans, filling them about three-quarters full. Gently tap the filled pans to release any air bubbles. Bake until a skewer inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean and the tops are golden brown, 50-60 minutes.

Cool the pumpkin bread in the pans for about 10 minutes before removing from the pan. Transfer them to a cooling rack to finish cooling before slicing and serving or wrapping to store. They can be held at room temperature for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 6 weeks.