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All you need is a few simple ingredients, one bowl, a spoon, and a loaf pan to make the best homemade zucchini bread recipe ever. It’s soft and moist, full of spice and absolutely delicious. This is going to become your favorite quick bread recipe EVER!
Why My Zucchini Bread Works
It’s a tried-and-true zucchini bread recipe. I’ve tested it so many times, and it turns out great each time. It’s easy to make: you don’t have to wring out the zucchini, you don’t need a mixer, and you only need one bowl. I love to make a double batch of this bread and freeze a loaf for later. It’s super freezer-friendly!
Have I convinced you yet? I hope so because you are in for a treat. Once you try this easy quick bread recipe, it will be your go-to, just like it is for me.
Important Zucchini Bread Ingredients
- Vegetable Oil: Instead of using butter, I always use a neutral oil for zucchini bread. This keeps it moist and soft. You can also use canola oil.
- Sugar: This recipe uses both brown sugar and granulated sugar. I like the combination for the little flavor the brown sugar gives, plus the color and how the brown sugar helps keep zucchini bread soft.
- Ground Cinnamon: A classic flavor ingredient
- Baking Soda and Baking Powder: The two act together to create a puffy, soft and moist quick bread.
- Shredded Zucchini: This is the most important part! Be sure to get one large or two small/medium zucchini just in case. Shred it yourself. You don’t need to wring it out unless it’s been frozen and is extra wet.
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What are the best pans for Zucchini Bread?
You will want to use a loaf pan for this zucchini bread recipe and other quick bread recipes. There are several sizes, but the most common ones are 9 x 5-inch loaf pan and 8×4-inch. Both will work for this recipe, but I prefer the 8×4” one.
You can see in the photo that the bread baked in the smaller 8” pan puffed up and has that nice domed top. If you use a 9” loaf pan, the bread will bake fine and taste great, but the loaf will be flatter on top. You won’t get that pretty round loaf on top.
You can make mini-loaves in 3 mini-loaf pans (1 regular quick bread recipe = 3 mini loaves).
I don’t usually line my pans with aluminum foil but you can if you want.
Dorothy’s Expert Tips
- You don’t have to peel the zucchini, unless you want to.
- If you have lots of zucchini from your garden, you can shred it and freeze it to use all year long. Be sure to thaw it first and, if needed, pat any excess water from it before adding it to your batter.
Zucchini Bread Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups (186g) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (119ml) vegetable oil
- ¾ cup (150g) packed brown sugar
- ¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 ½ cups (approximately 152g) shredded zucchini
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease an 8×4-inch or 9×5-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray or butter.
- Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Add oil and both sugars to a large bowl. Stir until smooth.
- Mix in cinnamon, eggs, and vanilla extract.
- Stir in flour mixture, mixture will be thick. Add zucchini and stir until combined – mixture will get looser and more pourable after stirring in zucchini.
- Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 50-60 minutes (9×5-inch pan) or 55-65 minutes (8×4-inch) pan, or until a toothpick comes out clean from the center of the loaf.
- Cool before slicing or removing from the pan. Store covered for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Notes
- Be sure to shred your own zucchini using the large holes of a box grater. Do not drain or squeeze liquid out of the zucchini – you need the moisture to keep the bread moist.
- Sugar: I like the mix of brown and granulated but you can omit the brown sugar and use 1 cup granulated if you prefer.
- The 8×4-inch loaf will bake more domed, while the 9×5-inch pan will be flatter.
- Feel free to add in ½ cup chopped nuts or chocolate chips after stirring in zucchini.
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Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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How to Make Zucchini Bread Step by Step
- It’s best to whisk dry ingredients first, just to make sure the baking soda and salt are incorporated.
2. Once you stir the oil and sugars, the mixture will be grainy.
3. The mixture will turn dark after adding the cinnamon. Once you add the flour it’ll seem too thick.
4. Adding the zucchini will make it wetter and more like a quick bread batter.
Variations
- Mix-Ins: Add a ½ cup of mix-ins to give this bread a twist. Add chocolate chips, fruit like blueberries, chopped strawberries, raspberries, or chopped nuts (walnuts or pecans work well). Mix them in when you add the zucchini. See Blueberry Zucchini Bread and Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread or my chocolate zucchini bread recipe.
- Muffins: You can also use the batter to make zucchini muffins instead of a loaf.
More Zucchini Recipes To Try
- The BEST Zucchini Brownies have an amazing frosting.
- Zucchini Cinnamon Rolls
- Chocolate Oatmeal Zucchini Cookies
- Cinnamon Sugar Zucchini Banana Bread
Yummy
Tried this recipe twice and each time I am unable to get the whole loaf out of the pan.. it breaks up. I am letting it cool and using butter and lined with wax paper to prep the 8×4. I have always done this with baking pans. Love the taste and hate to give up on this recipe.
Wax paper is your problem You should never line a baking pan with wax paper when baking – it’ll melt into the pan. If lining your pan use parchment paper or foil.
I used non-stick cooking spray and it comes out perfectly.
I used a bundt pan. Left in 350 oven for 45 min. Needed a couple more minutes. Done to perfection without draining the zucchini. Was gone in 2 hours.
Don’t have Vegetable Oil, how will using EV Olive Oil affect it?
It might alter the flavor a bit but you can use equal amounts.
I’ve made this twice. Both times, toothpick test was good. However, after getting out of oven, a short time later, some places collapse and there are parts where the bread isn’t done. From what I’ve read today, the tip is to drain/dry the zucchini. In this recipe, I read not to do that.
I have never had to drain or dry it – but if it seems very wet (or is thawed) then yes be sure to do that. Did you do the toothpick test right in the center?
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