This is a family-favorite recipe for homemade zucchini bread. One slice and you’ll taste why! It’s made with brown sugar, pure vanilla extract, cozy cinnamon spice, and summer’s favorite vegetable. See my recipe note for turning this batter into zucchini muffins, or try this similar zucchini muffins recipe.
I originally published this recipe in 2019 and have since added new photos, a video tutorial, and more helpful success tips. I’ve also made a few improvements to the recipe, which are reflected in the printable recipe below.
Comes From An Award-Winning Zucchini Bread Recipe
This zucchini bread recipe is very slightly adapted from an award-winning family recipe. My husband grew up making this zucchini bread with his family, who entered it into the Maryland State Fair. And guess what? IT WON. You know a recipe is good if it’s winning state awards, right?
Now slightly scaled up to yield a taller 9×5-inch loaf (more zucchini, 1 extra egg, and a touch of applesauce for moisture), the quick bread is better than ever and ready to place 1st in your own kitchens too!
Here’s Why You’ll Love It:
- Batter comes together in less than 5 minutes
- Extra moist and flavorful
- Sneaks in veggies
- Can easily be doubled
- Welcomes add-ins like chocolate chips, nuts, or blueberries
- Makes great muffins (or try these zucchini muffins which are heartier and slightly less sweet)
- Freezes beautifully
A beginner baker can easily make this quick bread, and it’s a wonderful recipe if you have eager young bakers ready to help!
One reader, Emma, commented: “Zucchini bread is my absolute favorite, so I’m quite picky about how one tastes, the amount of spices, etc. This recipe yields a very moist and super flavorful zucchini bread! 5 stars from me. Everyone else thought so too! Definitely a keeper. โ โ โ โ โ “
Another reader, Linda, commented: “This was delicious and oh-so moist. I made it exactly per your recipe, adding walnuts as an extra ingredient. This zucchini bread recipe is a keeper! โ โ โ โ โ “
Why Bake With Zucchini?
Zucchini is one of my favorite ingredients for baking and I have a lot of published zucchini recipes on my website. My recipes for chocolate zucchini bread and zucchini muffins are both incredibly popular with readers. We use an entire zucchini in my healthier Greek yogurt zucchini bread and you’ll find a whopping 3 cups of it in my chocolate zucchini cake (you can’t taste it!).
It sounds odd to bake with a vegetable, but here’s why you should use it in your baking:
- There are only so many zucchini side dishes to make (looking at you, zucchini sweet potato fritters). Zucchini is abundant in the summer months, and itโs fun to incorporate this vegetable when baking, too.
- Zucchini adds flavorless moisture. We’re talking pure moisture with zero savory vegetable flavor. I don’t think I would bake a cake with a green vegetable if I could taste it. You bake carrot cake, right? Itโs delicious, right? Well zucchini is even better! Hello, zucchini cake. Itโs truly a magical ingredient in your baked goods and this includes zucchini oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, too!
Grab These Ingredients
One new addition is the applesauce. This, along with the oil, keeps the bread moist. You can use sour cream, Greek yogurt, or mashed banana in its place if needed. All you’re doing is whisking the dry and wet ingredients together separately, and then combining everything. Honestly, it’s as easy as pumpkin bread and uses a few of the same ingredients.
Success Tip: Shredding Zucchini
Today’s zucchini bread comes together in just 5 minutes with simple kitchen tools including a couple bowls, a whisk, and a 9×5-inch loaf pan. You also need a grater to shred the zucchini. If you’re looking for recommendations, I own and love this box grater because it’s easy to use, grates quickly, and has held up well with regular use. Itโs what I use when making zucchini fritters, too.
- How much zucchini do I need? Zucchini can vary in size, but 1-2 medium zucchini are plenty for this recipe. You need 1 and 1/2 cups shredded, which is 180g.
- Do I need to peel the zucchini first? You can if you’d like, but I never do. There’s no taste or texture variance either way, but you’ll definitely have more flecks of green throughout the loaf if you keep the peel on. Pretty!
You do not need to blot the zucchini dry before using in the batter. (You want that moisture here! Unlike when we make zucchini biscuits, where ridding of that moisture is key.)
Expect a thick batter:
What Does This Zucchini Bread Taste Like?
Zucchini is like a chameleon and takes on the flavor of whatever’s nearby. Have you ever tried this peanut chicken zucchini noodles dish? The zucchini is basically a vehicle for the delectable savory peanut sauce.
Today’s zucchini bread includes cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, and brown sugar so expect a lot of cozy, comforting, sweet flavors. In terms of texture, it’s not quite as dense as banana bread but not as light as white cake either. It’s soft and moist and actually reminds me of apple cinnamon bread, which is a favorite during the fall months. Combine them both in this apple zucchini bread!
If you love peanut butter and chocolate, be sure to try my peanut butter chocolate chip zucchini bread, too!
Let’s not forget optional add-ins like chocolate chips, chopped nuts, raisins, or even blueberries. Some readers have turned it into dessert with vanilla icing or cream cheese frosting (I’d halve the cream cheese frosting recipe). Honestly, this quick bread welcomes a bounty of tasty extras!
And if you’ve been itching to make some homemade honey butter, this zucchini bread is the perfect canvas to enjoy it on!
Can I Reduce the Sugar or Oil in Zucchini Bread?
You can absolutely slightly reduce either or both, but understand that sugar and oil help produce a moist, tender loaf; altering the ingredients may have disappointing results. Or for an option without refined sugar, you may enjoy this Greek yogurt zucchini bread instead!
Print
Zucchini Bread
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours
- Yield: 1 loaf
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
This zucchini bread recipe yields 1 9×5-inch loaf. With brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, and a little applesauce for added moisture, the quick bread is flavorful, moist, and a great way to use summer’s favorite vegetable!
Ingredients
- 1 and 3/4 cups (220g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 cup (120ml) vegetable oil (or melted coconut oil)
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs,ย at room temperature
- 1/4 cup (60g) unsweetened applesauce (or sour cream or Greek yogurt)
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 and 1/2 cups (180g) shredded zucchini (no need to blot)
- optional:ย 1 cup (180g) semi-sweet chocolate chips (or chopped nuts, raisins, etc)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ยฐF (177ยฐC). Grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan. See notes for muffins.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg together in a large bowl until thoroughly combined. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk the oil, brown sugar, granulated sugar, eggs, applesauce, and vanilla together until combined. Whisk in the zucchini. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Gently stir or whisk until *just* combined; do not overmix. Fold in any optional add-ins like chocolate chips or nuts. Batter is slightly thick.
- Spread the batter evenly into prepared loaf pan. Bake for 55-70 minutes. (I like to loosely cover the bread with aluminum foil halfway through to prevent heavy browning on top.) Baking times vary so keep an eye on yours. The bread is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out *mostly* clean with zero raw batter. Remove the bread from the oven and set on a wire rack. Cool in pan for 1 hour before removing from pan. You can slice the bread at this point, but it will still be warm in the center and may not slice neatly. For neat slices, continue cooling bread directly on a wire rack and then slice once cooled.
- Cover and store leftover bread at room temperature for up to 3-4 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: Make the bread ahead of time by freezing it. Bake it, cool it,ย wrap it up in aluminum foil and freeze the loaf as a whole. Allow to thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before slicing and serving. Freezes well up to 3 months.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 9×5-inch Loaf Pan | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Box Grater | Cooling Rack
- Update in 2022: Based on reader feedback and a few disappointing loaves in my own kitchen recently, I revised 2 ingredients in May 2022 (egg & zucchini) so the batter yields more for a taller loaf and there’s more moisture. I also added 1/4 cup of applesauce for added moisture, as you can see in the recipe. Rave reviews from taste testers. The original recipe used 1 egg and 1 cup of zucchini with no applesauce.
- Can I reduce the sugar or oil? You can absolutely slightly reduce either or both, but understand that sugar and oil help produce a moist, tender loaf and the results may be disappointing. For the oil, feel free to swap *some* for more applesauce. Or for a healthier option without any refined sugar, you may enjoy this Greek yogurt zucchini bread instead.
- Muffins: Grease a 12-count muffin pan or line with liners. Prepare batter in step 2. Spoon the batter evenly into each liner, filling each all the way to the top. Bake the muffins for 5 minutes at 425ยฐF (218ยฐC) then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350ยฐF (177ยฐC). Bake for an additional 13-16 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The total time these muffins take in the oven is about 18-21 minutes, give or take. Allow the muffins to cool for 5 minutes in the muffin pan, then transfer to a wire rack to continue cooling. Yields 1 dozen.
Reader Comments and Reviews
I made this on muffins as written, but with sour cream. Yum!
I will say it made 15 muffins, not 12, but I did add pecans and mini semisweet chocolate chips (1/2 cup each).
Quick question: How to do store this? In a Tupperware the muffins got wet and squishy, even after thoroughly cooled. But I assume without a container they would get crusty and dry.
Hi Abbe, we’re so glad you enjoyed the muffins! You can store in a Tupperware, but keep the container cracked just a bit. That will promote some air flow and prevent excess moisture from building up in the container.
My family and I have enjoyed this zucchini bread all summer. Even our grandchildren loves it! That is a true test . Thank you for sharing.
Another fantastic recipe!
I made some adaptations based on what I had at home and preference as I like to try and bake without refined sugar as much as possible.
I substituted the all purpose flour for organic white spelt flour, I used 1 lightly mashed large banana instead of applesauce, I used coconut oil, 80g of organic coconut sugar and 50g of raw local honey, I added an extra 30g of shredded zucchini and a handful of chopped pecans and walnuts.
It took 1 hour in my oven at 177 and was very moist, springy and not too sweet.
Thank you for the recipe Sally and I hope you don’t mind me sharing my take on it!
Can i print any of your recipes
Hi Robert, there is a Print button at the top of the gray recipe card. This will pop open a print-friendly tab with the recipe and instructions. Hope this helps!
This recipe yields a wonderful bread. I did tweak the recipe a bit. I sauteed a honey crisp apple with two tablespoons of butter and brown sugar. I added apple pie spice instead of cinnamon and nutmeg. I added raisins to the sauteed apples. For the oil I used an orange infused olive oil.
Great recipe but waaaaaayyyy too little salt, it tasted like it barely had any salt at all, and I measure out ingredients with a scale to the exact gram, so I know I added the correct amount that the recipe called for. I wonder if that might be because of the optional ingredient of nuts/chocolate chips/raisins mentioned in the recipe, I opted to add the nuts (180g exactly as the recipe stated) and it came out so undersalted. If that’s the case, I wish there was something in the recipe that mentioned that you’d need more salt if you add the optional mix ins, so pro-tip for anyone planning to do so that you’ll need more salt than the recipe states or it’ll be way too bland (I’d personally add at least another 1-2 grams of salt next time, roughly 1/6th-1/3rd tsp).
Otherwise, it was great, super moist, very decently spiced with the cinnamon and nutmeg, and fairly easy/intuitive to make!
Hi CJ, Thank you for trying this recipe. The add-ins shouldn’t change the quantity of salt needed. What type of salt are you using? Our recipes always use table salt unless otherwise noted.
This was wonderful, thank you! I added an extra 1/4tsp baking powder, used low fat sour cream, and 1/2 cup Lakanto plus 1/2 cup Splenda with 1/2 tsp b.s. molasses (diabetic). And my additions were 1/2 cup soaked raisins and 1/2 cup chopped pecans. I used shredded frozen zucchini from last summer – thawed & drained in a collander without squeezing. I baked it in a countertop convection oven so covered & turned down to 325F after 30min – baked 65min total.
Definite keeper! I will be trying the muffin recipe soon too โค
Another amazing recipe! Thank you! I put in 2 cups of zucchini and it was moist and tender. I used 70% dark chocolate cacao chunks as an option, very good.
Someone from church brought in fresh squash and I ALWAYS use Sally’s recipe to make zucchini bread. It doesn’t feel like summer until I’ve made it at least twice! It’s perfect with and without mix-ins!
Awesome good stuff right here thanks for helping out!
Made 2 loaves and they are delicious! I added roasted slivered almonds and chocolate chips too.
Love the texture that is moist and delicious. Not having applesauce, I used 1/8 cup ea of sour cream and low-fat Greek yogurt. We added 1 cup of toasted pecans. Also, I will add more cinnamon and nutmeg for my next loaf. What a treat to transform our high yielding garden harvest!
Very good recipe, I saved a lot of time by cutting my zucchini in chunks and processing in my food processor (peelings on), which came out perfectly.
Hi can I use olive oil, i just noticed I’m out of vegetable oil!
Hi Marianne, you can, but expect the flavor to be a little different.
I only use olive oil. You can’t taste any difference in baking! But depending on your oil, it may cause a green tinge
This was my first time making Zucchini Bread and I think it turned our tasty! Recipe was easy to use.
Can you use all white sugar?
Hi Nancy, you could, but you’ll lose some flavor and moisture without the brown sugar.
Can I make this without the apple sauce? I don’t have any on hand
Hi Pamela! You can use sour cream, Greek yogurt, or mashed banana in its place if needed.
This recipe is outstanding! I reviewed many recipes, but because this one uses approximately half the sugar and no seed oils, I went with this one. It is absolutely delicious. Follow it precisely and you wonโt be disappointed. Iโm adding this to my recipe folder as one of the bests! Thank you Sally for perfecting this delicious bread!!
I will be trying this recipe today. What quantity of chocolate chips do you recommend? I will likely be using mini chocolate chips.
Hi Cliff, we would recommend folding in about 3/4-1 cup (135-180g) of mini chocolate chips. Enjoy!
Has anyone tried gluten free flour?
Hi Steph, we havenโt tested a 1:1 gluten free flour, so weโre unsure of the exact results. Let us know if you do try it!
Yes, many times. I made it today using the King Arthur 1:1. It works really well
Can this be made with whole wheat flour or at least a 50/50 mix of whole we and all purpose flours?
Hi Penny, we would try a 50/50 blend!
Hi, Sally, for this recipe and the Chocolate one, you say not to blot the shredded zucchini. Does that mean I don’t squeeze all the moisture out, and just shred it and use as-is? Thank you for your help in this. Can’t wait to try this and the Chocolate one.
Hi Joan, just shred it and use as-is. Happy baking!