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I took my Mom’s Banana Bread recipe and turned it into an EASY Zucchini Banana Bread – this recipe was SO good and simple and it disappeared fast!
The cinnamon sugar topping is a game changer – and it made this bread out of this world!
Table of Contents
Why this is the BEST Zucchini Banana Bread
If you’ve ever wondered can bananas be put in zucchini bread or can zucchini be put in banana bread, then this is the recipe for you!
Regardless of whether you have a garden or not, you can make this easy banana bread with zucchini!
Cinnamon sugar zucchini banana bread is so easy to make and delicious to eat!
I started this recipe with my mom’s banana bread recipe and combined the idea of zucchini with my cinnamon sugar blueberry banana bread recipe. I love quick bread recipes – I have so many on this site and love each and every one.
Ingredients in Zucchini Banana Bread
- BANANAS: I like to use really overripe “tired” bananas. Did you know that when your bananas get spotty you can freeze them? I cleaned out my freezer the other day and found about 2 dozen frozen bananas. They turn brown, slimy and gross looking, but they work amazing in baked banana recipes. Just defrost before adding to the batter.
- SOUR MILK: I love using sour milk in my banana bread. This just means you need to add some vinegar to your milk beforehand, to make it “sour”. You can also use buttermilk instead, or if you can even use almond, coconut, or soy milk. In that case, just add vinegar to the mixture to help activate the baking soda.
- SUGAR: I prefer granulated sugar, just like my mom uses.
- OIL: I love making quick bread with vegetable oil – it makes it so easy to mix up.
- FLOUR: This recipe uses all-purpose flour but you can use a combination of AP and whole wheat flour.
- BAKING SODA: This is the leavened in the recipe – it’s activated by the sourness of the milk.
- ZUCCHINI: Shred your zucchini with a box grater. No need to ring it out unless it seems unusually wet.
How to make Zucchini Banana Bread
It was easy to switch my normal banana bread recipe to a zucchini banana bread: all I needed to do was reduce the banana and add shredded zucchini. This results in a delightfully tasteful banana bread with a hint of zucchini. The zucchini is a vegetable which makes this bread a vegetable, yes?
Plus the cinnamon sugar topping – that’s the best part. It gets crunchy in the oven and adds so much delicious flavor to the top of the bread.
Tips for making the perfect quick bread
- Shred your zucchini using a regular box grater. One small/medium is about 1 cup.
- Liberally sprinkle the top with cinnamon sugar – you won’t be sorry!
FAQ about making my Zucchini Banana Bread Recipe
The sourness of the milk (the acid in the buttermilk) activates the baking soda, helping the bread to rise. If you don’t have buttermilk make your own by adding vinegar or lemon juice to milk.
Yes, you can substitute any non-dairy milk, but you need to add 1 tsp vinegar or lemon juice to activate the baking soda.
I never have to, it seems that the zucchini isn’t too wet. But if yours seems wetter then normal, then go ahead, it won’t hurt.
There could be a few reasons:
1. Since this bread is leavened with baking soda, you need to bake it right after mixing. Baking soda begins activating right when you add the acid (the buttermilk) so it should be baked immediately.
2. You may have over mixed it or mixed too vigorously.
3. Is it baked all the way? If you didn’t bake it all the way it will collapse as it’s cooling.
Do the toothpick test in the center of the bread. It should come out with just a few crumbs stuck to it when it’s done.
Yes! Add 1 cup of either to the bread before it goes into the pan.
Yes – I’ve had success substituting Bob’s Red Mill one to one gluten free AP flour (in the light blue bag).
Other favorite quick bread recipes
Cinnamon Sugar Zucchini Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar divided
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 medium overripe banana
- 2 large eggs
- 5 ounces buttemilk/sour milk (7 tablespoons)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon divided
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 cup shredded zucchini about 1 medium
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x5x3” loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Stir oil and 3/4 cup sugar with a wooden spoon. Add bananas, eggs, milk, vanilla, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, salt and baking soda and mix until almost smooth (there will be some lumps from the banana).
- Mix in flour until just incorporated, then stir in zucchini. Pour into prepared pan.
- Combine 1/4 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon in a small bowl. Sprinkle evenly over the top of the batter.
- Bake for 40-50 minutes3 until a toothpick comes out with just a few crumbs. The edges will be a dark brown and there will be a nice crack down the center.
- Cool completely before removing loaf from pan, but you can cut slices from the pan after it’s cooled for about 15-20 minutes.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
- In place of vegetable oil you can also use 1/2 cup softened unsalted butter.
- In place of sour milk you can use buttermilk. Make your own buttermilk if you don’t have it.
- You can use dairy-free milk (i.e. almond milk) but then add 1 tsp vinegar or lemon juice to the batter.
Recipe Nutrition
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Zucchini Banana Bread is an easy quick bread recipe. This is the BEST banana bread with zucchini and can be made dairy free or gluten free!
Last Updated on June 17, 2022
Just a heads up: 5 oz is 10 tbls, not 7. 😊
Ingredients call for salt, instructions do not.
Thank you for letting me know!
Can I use avocado in the zucchini banana bread recipe?
Yes use one avocado (make sure it’s about 1/2 cup mashed) and omit the oil
Oh My Goodness this is good! I accidentally left salt out too and it was fine.
I added finely chopped apple and pecans and baked two small loaves and several muffins from this batch. Love the crunchy Cinnamon topping. I used brown sugar for this instead of white so it tasted more like my cinnamon roll topping.
Will definitely make this again.
I will bake a ” Cinnamon Sugar Zucchini Banana Bread” tonight. Thank you for you r recipe..Very appreciate.
Kind regards,
Mila
This bread came out great. I used 7 tablespoons of plain yogurt instead of sour milk. It was moist and delicious. Thanks for the recipe.
Did you use a tablespoon of vinegar with the 7 tablespoons of plain yogurt?
Made this today but after I got it in the oven I noticed that there was no salt listed in the instruction part but there was salt listed in the ingredients are above hope it turns out.Made this today but after I got it in the oven I noticed that there was no salt listed in the instruction part but there was salt listed in the ingredients are above hope it turns out
FINALLY!! A keeper for zucchini bread. I know it shouldn’t be hard to find, but as picky as I am…. YUM!
Hits the spot. It’s not too sweet and is very soft. The cinnamon sugar crunch on top is a nice touch.
I am planning on making it today. Is it necessary to peel the zucchini and drain the liquid from the zucchini? I am assuming draining the liquid is not needed since it will lend moisture to the cake and I also see green specs in the pictures, so I think you did not peel the zucchini.
Thanks for the great recipe. I have read in many articles not to peel zucchini! I like hearing about all the extras people added to their recipes.
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