Zucchini Bread
Lyuba’s Recipe Overview
Quick, soft, and moist! Ignore any other baking plans you may have – this quick bread recipe is definitely one you need to try soon! The prep takes just a few minutes and the rest, leave it to the oven. The combination of soft, moist and sweet bread has the best buttery sweet crumble topping. The zucchini really just creates the perfect amount of moisture in the bread.
Kid friendly! Even my kids, who are extremely picky, can’t resist this tasty bread. (And when I say “extremely picky,” I really mean it.) Not even the sight of the green specks of zucchini can turn them away. If you can convince your picky eater to just try a little bit, they will be sold because a vegetable can really taste this good! Not to worry – this dessert bread doesn’t taste like vegetables at all.
Versatile! This bread is great to make on the weekend and then grab a slice for breakfast on the go, as an afternoon snack, or even as dessert when topped off with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Ingredient Notes Before Starting
Zucchini – make sure to get whole zucchini because you will wash and grate it at home.
Oil – you should use a neutral tasting oil like vegetable or avocado oil. Don’t use extra virgin olive oil because it can be bitter and overpowering.
Sugars – you’ll need the whole trifecta! White sugar for the bread, white and brown sugar both for the streusel and powdered sugar for the icing.
Heavy Whipping Cream – this is the best option for a rich icing but you can substitute half and half if needed. Just use slightly less because it’s not as thick.
See the recipe card below for the full list of ingredients and instructions.
Best Way To Prepare Zucchini For Baking In Bread
Wash the zucchini, wipe it off, and cut off the very tip (not the stem). You don’t actually need to peel the zucchini. There is no taste or texture advantage to peeling it, but you do get to keep the vitamins that are in the skin in the bread.
Use the larger size holes of the box grater to grate the zucchini all the way down to the stem. Keeping the stem on will help you hold onto it until the end. You can also use a food processor with the grating disk attachment if you’d like!
Also, don’t actually squeeze out the zucchini but instead pat some of the excess liquid with a paper towel. Some zucchini will have a different amount of moisture in it. (For example, store-bought zucchini doesn’t have as much moisture as garden zucchini.) You don’t want to get rid of all the moisture, just the excess.
Grate zucchini right onto a paper towel and spread it out a little so it’s no longer in a mount. Use another sheet of paper tower to gently pat it.
How to Make Zucchini Bread
Whisk your wet ingredients and sugar until incorporated. Add dry ingredients and gently whisk together just until incorporated and smooth. You don’t want to overmix the quick bread batter or it would come out more dense.
Pour bread batter into a greased bread baking loaf pan and make sure it’s spread evenly.
To make the streusel: combine the dry ingredients in a bowl and whisk them well until evenly incorporated. Pour in melted butter and carefully fold it in with a large fork. Use the fold and cut technique of mixing. Don’t over-mix it. Spread streusel topping evenly all over the batter.
Bake at 350°F for 55-60 minutes. You can use a thermometer to check if the bread reached internal temperature of 200°F in the center.
Icing: Whisk powdered sugar and warmed heavy whipping together and drizzle it over the baked bread.
Flavor Variations and Additions
While this zucchini bread is absolutely divine, you can play around with a few textural and flavor ingredients like:
- chocolate chips – white, milk, or dark chocolate chips all go with zucchini.
- nuts – you can add some chopped almonds, walnuts, or pecans.
- coconut
- chopped apples
- dried berries
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Zucchini Bread Recipe
Ingredients
Zucchini Bread Batter:
- 12-14 oz zucchini 2 medium, about 1 1/2 cups grated
- 1 cup white granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
Streusel Topping:
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 2 tbsp white granulated sugar
- 3 tbsp salted butter melted
- 1 tsp cinnamon
Icing:
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a 9×5 loaf pan. Make sure to grease the baking pan all over the bottom and up the sides.
Prepare Zucchini:
- Wash zucchini, wipe it off, and cut off the very tip, not the stem. NO need to peel it. Place the box grater onto a sheet of paper towel and use the large grate side of the box grater to grate zucchini all the way down to the stem. Discard the stem.
- Spread grated zucchini out a little so it’s no longer in a mound and use another sheet of paper tower to gently pat the excess moisture. (Don't squeeze!)
Zucchini Bread Batter:
- Whisk together zucchini, eggs, oil, vanilla extract, and sugar just until combined.
- Add flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, baking soda, and baking powder and gently whisk together just until just incorporated and smooth. (Don't over-whisk!)
- Pour bread batter into the prepared loaf pan.
Streusel (Crumb) Topping:
- In a medium bowl, combine brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon, and flour. Mix well until all ingredients are incorporated evenly.
- Pour in melted butter and carefully fold it and cutting with the side of the fork. Continue to fold and cut until it all looks like crumbs. You will want to be careful so you don’t over-mix. Streusel should look like large crumbs and not paste.
- Spread streusel topping evenly all over the batter.
- Bake at 350°F for 55-60 minutes. Expert Tip To Tell If Quick Bread Is Done: You can use a thermometer to check if the bread reached internal temperature of 200°F in the center. If you don’t have an instant read digital thermometer, you can use your fingers to gently press in the center and see how firm it is or do the toothpick test.
Icing:
- Whisk powdered sugar and warmed heavy whipping together and drizzle it over the baked bread.
Video
Notes
- Can I put undercooked bread back in the oven? Yes, in most cases you can put quick breads right back into the oven to cook more. Make sure the oven is still at the right temperature and bread is hot. Don’t try to bake cooled bread. Place the bread back into the oven for another 10-15 minutes as needed.
- Storing: store baked and cooled bread in the refrigerator, covered air-tight. It should last up to a week in the refrigerator. Storing the bread on the counter, at room temperature, will only last about a day or two. (Just a day in a humid climate.) You can easily reheat cold bread slices for a few seconds in the microwave.
- Making muffins: Follow the instructions for the zucchini batter in the recipe. Use a muffin baking pan and simply divide the batter into the cups of a pan, filling it about 3/4 of the way. Top each on with crumb topping. Bake for 18-20 minutes. Then, drizzle each one with some icing.
Nutrition
Why Did My Bread Fall Apart?
There are a few reasons why a quick bread can sink in after baking! The main culprits are under-cooking, over-mixing, bread pan was over-filled, or stale baking soda and baking powder was used.
Make sure to get fresh baking soda and baking powder every 6-9 months if you don’t bake often. Don’t fill the pan too much – the bread pan should be filled about half way or only a little bit more. Whisk the quick bread batter just until the ingredients are combined and smooth and don’t beat or whisk too long.
And finally, make sure to bake it long enough so it’s cooked through. If you’re worried about the top browning too much, loosely tent the top with a sheet of aluminum foil.
How To Freeze Cooked Zucchini Bread?
Make sure to cool it to room temperature first and then slice it. Place the slices on the cutting board and freeze for 2 hours. (Set a timer.)
You can wrap each frozen slice in parchment paper and aluminum foil and place them into a zip-tip freezer bag. Label and freeze for 2-3 months.
Thaw each slice on the counter for about 30-45 minutes and you can quickly reheat it in the microwave for a few seconds.
Try More Easy Bread Recipes
If you’re looking for more ways to incorporate zucchini into easy everyday recipes, try my zucchini fritters and roasted zucchini.
For another great zucchini baking recipes, we love the chocolate zucchini muffins, it’s another kid’s favorite. They are super soft and moist with deep chocolate flavor.
Quick bread recipes are popular with bakers and families, so make sure to try my amazing coconut banana bread, savory caprese quick bread. And, of course, apple bread is another fall time favorite.
Originally published on Will Cook For Smiles in August 2019.
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Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.
Hi, I tried the streusel topping and it Sandi into the bread. Wondering if you know why