Our Best Ever Zucchini Bread recipe is a MUST TRY! This popular zucchini quick bread recipe is easy to make and has the perfect blend of delicious spices.
This moist zucchini bread recipe is a great way to use up all those zucchini from your garden. This delicious zucchini bread is packed with so many delicious ingredients and it tastes amazing!
Easy Zucchini Bread
Zucchini Bread is the perfect way to use up all that zucchini in the garden! My squash plants have not been as fruitful this year, but even so, I suddenly find myself with a lot of zucchini! As a matter of fact, I look forward to it each year so that I can fill my freezer with loaves of this delicious zucchini bread. I can’t remember where the original recipe came from, but I have changed it over the years. This produces the Best Ever Zucchini Bread. Try it- you will love it.
Moist Zucchini Bread Ingredients
- Sugar: You will need 1 cup white sugar and 1 cup brown sugar to add a bit of sweetness to this bread.
- Eggs: Use 3 eggs to help bind the dough together well for this recipe.
- Vegetable oil: Using 1 cup vegetable oil (you can substitute applesauce for ½ the oil) will help give great moisture to this treat.
- Vanilla extract: You need 3 teaspoons vanilla extract to help enhance all the wonderful flavors.
- Flour: Use 3 cups all-purpose flour for the base of this bread recipe.
- Seasonings: You will need 1 tsp nutmeg, 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon and 1 teaspoon salt for a perfect combination of flavors in this delicious bread.
- Leavening agents: Using 1 teaspoon baking powder and 1 teaspoon baking soda will help the bread to rise properly.
- Zucchini: You need 2 cups grated zucchini for an amazing blend of sweet and savory flavors (you can add a little more, I always do!)
- Nuts: Use 1 cup chopped walnuts for a wonderful balance of crunchy texture in this recipe.
How to Make Zucchini Bread
Prep
Grease two 8 x 4 inch bread pans or 6 mini loaf plans, set aside.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
Bread dough
In a large bowl, mix together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg and cinnamon.
Next, in a separate small bowl, beat the eggs, oil, vanilla extract, and sugars together.
Then, add the wet ingredients to the large bowl of dry ingredients and stir until combined.
After that, grate the zucchini using a box grater.
Add to the dough mixture, along with the nuts, until well combined.
Proceed to pour the batter into the prepared pans.
Bake
Place bread into the oven and bake for 40 to 60 minutes, or until tester inserted in the center comes out clean. My mini-loaf pans take about 35-40 minutes. Large sized loaves take about 55 minutes.
When done cooking, cool in the pan on rack a for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and completely cool.
Slice, serve & enjoy! Remember: quick bread is generally EVEN BETTER TASTING the next day! So make a loaf in the evening, then enjoy it for breakfast the next day!
How to know if the bread is done
Your bread should register about 200 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer to ensure that it has been cooked fully. Not only that but the top should appear to be a nice golden brown color and as the bread cools, it shouldn’t sink, but should instead remain well-shaped with a rounded top.
BEST BREAD PAN?
I bake a lot of bread and the pans I prefer are either ceramic, glass or cast iron. These pans will bake bread more evenly and release the bread more easily after baking. I don’t like using dark or nonstick pans because the bread cooks unevenly. It darkens on the outside before the bread is cooked on the inside, so the coloring is uneven. Read more about which bread pan is the best here!
Easy Zucchini Bread
Ingredients
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup vegetable oil you can substitute applesauce for 1/2 the oil
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 cups grated zucchini you can add a little more, I always do!
- 1 cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
- Grease two 8 x 4 inch pans or 6 mini loaf plans. Preheat oven to 325°F.
- In a large bowl, mix together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg and cinnamon.
- Next, in a separate small bowl, beat the eggs, oil, vanilla extract, and sugars together.
- Then, add the wet ingredients to the large bowl of dry ingredients and stir until combined.
- After that, grate the zucchini using a box grater. Add to the bread batter, along with the nuts, until well combined. Let batter sit 5-10 minutes.
- Proceed to pour the batter into the prepared pans.
- Place bread into the oven and bake for 40 to 60 minutes, or until tester inserted in the center comes out clean. My mini-loaf pans take about 35-40 minutes. Large sized loaves take about 55 minutes. (See below for my method on making sure loaves are completely cooked!)
- When done cooking, cool in the pan on rack a for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and completely cool. Slice, serve and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Easy Zucchini Bread Recipe FAQ
I plan on 1 zucchini for each cup of grated zucchini needed in a recipe. Of course, this varies being as zucchini come in all sizes. Zucchini in the grocery store range from small to medium sized.
There’s no need to peel the zucchini prior to grating it for zucchini bread. The dark green peel is very soft so it bakes well and adds vitamins, nutrients and even a bit of color to the bread.
I prefer to grate the zucchini as opposed to shredding it so that bits of green peel remain in tact. They contribute toward the popular look of zucchini bread! Shredding the zucchini causes the zucchini to nearly disappear once the bread is baked. Both will work though! I know when my kids were young, I hid vegetables in baked goods often, so having them disappear was preferable!
Yes, you can squeeze out excess water from grated zucchini before adding it to your batter. Zucchini naturally has a lot of water in it. That becomes quite clear after grating it, if you simply leave it to rest for 5-10 minutes, the water will begin accumulating in the bowl! If I’m using garden zucchini, especially large ones, I like to squeeze as much out as possible before making it into zucchini bread. Store bought zucchini rarely has excess water.
Yes, you can make zucchini bread with yellow squash! You do need to scrape the seeds out since the seeds in yellow squash are much larger. Also, I find the skin to be more tough on yellow squash, so you can either peel the outside to remove the skin, or you can just grate it with a finer cheese grater.
Zucchini Bread should be stored on the counter top in an airtight container or ziplock bag. Keeping it in the fridge can dry it out over time.
Zucchini bread rises as a result of leavening ingredients in the bread recipe being exposed to two things, moisture and heat. We use eggs, baking soda and baking powder as leavening agents. Make sure your ingredients are not past their expiration date as stale ingredients can affect how much the bread rises.
Storing this Moist Zucchini Bread Recipe
After the bread has cooled, store it in a gallon size ziplock bag or similarly sized airtight container. We bake bread often, so I purchased bread bags and love them!
Can this recipe for zucchini bread be frozen?
I love freezing loaves of zucchini bread! How you prepare zucchini bread for freezing really depends on how long you intent to keep it frozen. If you just want to freeze it for a week or two, I’d wrap it in plastic wrap or foil and place the loaf in a large freezer ziplock bag. Most often, when I bake zucchini bread to freeze it, I’ll bake mini loaves so that they fit in the ziplock bag easier. If you want to freeze it for 2-6 months, I’d wrap it more securely, making sure it’s airtight and wrapping it in a double layer of foil or plastic wrap, then place it in a ziplock bag.
How do you make Healthy Zucchini Bread?
If you’d like to make a few changes to my recipe to make a healthier version of zucchini bread, I’ve got great news- this recipe is incredibly versatile! I suggest leaving out the 1 cup of white sugar, replacing half or all of the oil with apple sauce and using half whole wheat flour in place of all-purpose. Then you’ll have a traditional healthy zucchini bread recipe!
Can zucchini bread be made into muffins?
Zucchini bread muffins are our favorite muffins! Simply use my recipe above, then spoon 3 tablespoons of batter into each greased or lined muffin cup. Bake for 18-20 minutes. There are several benefits of making zucchini bread into muffins. First, I like that they cook faster! Where a full loaf of zucchini bread bakes for up to an hour, zucchini muffins bake for only 20 minutes, which is a fraction of the time. They’re also easy to freeze! I like to bake a batch of zucchini muffins and then freeze them just in a layer in a large ziplock freezer bag. I pull them out one or two at a time for breakfast. You can let them thaw on the countertop, or you can microwave them or toast them to heat them up. Yum!
Why does my zucchini bread fall in the middle?
Here’s how to help your zucchini bread not sink in the middle after it’s baked. This happens to me occasionally too! Often it’s because I’ve over mixed the batter. Quick bread (referring to a bread recipe that doesn’t use yeast) does not like to be stirred too much, so try to just barely mix all the ingredients together. Another culprit could be overfilling the pan. The bread pan should be only half full each time. The recipe below makes 2 loaves of bread, or you can make 1 loaf of bread and 3 mini loaves… or 6 mini loaves. As always, make sure your baking soda isn’t too old- it should only be on your shelf for 6-9 months before purchasing new. Lastly, make sure your bread is fully cooked. Uncooked batter in the middle of the loaf will cause bread to sink.
Your bread should register about 200 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer to ensure that it has been cooked fully. Not only that but the top should appear to be a nice golden brown color and as the bread cools, it shouldn’t sink, but should instead remain well-shaped with a rounded top.
More Zucchini Bread recipes:
- PINEAPPLE ZUCCHINI BREAD
- LEMON ZUCCHINI BREAD
- ORANGE ZUCCHINI BREAD
- PUDDING ZUCCHINI BREAD
- ZUCCHINI BANANA BREAD
- ZUCCHINI SHEET CAKE WITH BROWNED BUTTER ICING
- EASY ZUCCHINI CAKE
- LEMON ZUCCHINI MUFFINS
- ZUCCHINI BREAD CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
- LEMON ZUCCHINI BREAD COOKIES
More amazing quick bread recipes that we love:
- Easy Banana Bread
- Sweet Coconut Quick Bread
- Easy Lemon Quick Bread
- Yogurt Banana Bread recipe
- Dutch Apple Quick Bread
- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Quick Bread
- Caramel Banana Nut Bread
- Best Ever Pumpkin Bread
- Lemon Buttermilk Quick Bread
- Caramel Apple Quick Bread
- Cinnamon Raisin Quick Bread
- Peppermint Chocolate Quick Bread
- Cranberry Orange Quick Bread
- Cinnamon Roll Quick Bread
This recipe for easy zucchini bread has been in my family for years, it’s easy to make and you’ll love the blend of spices used. Read the reviews- it’s popular for a reason! It really is the perfect zucchini quick bread recipe.
louann says
Scrumptious!!!!
I love love love the tip you gave about using applesauce as an option to replace half the oil . I did and the bread came out perfectly delicious.
Thank you for the wonderful recipe!
Crystal Luke says
I just made this recipe. It came out perfect. I followed the recipe exactly but did sub 1/2 applesauce for the oil. I was worried because my zucchini did not seem very moist when I shredded it in the food processor so I did not wring it out. A possibility that people’s loves may be dry is that they are not measuring their flour correctly. I now weigh my flour (125 grams = 1 cup) after realizing how different a cup can be depending on how you pack it in. If your flour is packed into your measure it cup then you’ll have more flour which will make it dry.
Alison says
Thanks for sharing Crystal! I’m glad the recipe turned out great for you!
Maureen says
Flavor was good, but bread was super dry. Everyone raves about my breads, and I am always trying new recipes along with the tried and true. This one is not a keeper.
Jessica says
Sounds like something didn’t go quite right Maureen! Did you see my tips for if your batter was too thick?
Lauri says
It’s wonderful. I just leave out the nutmeg and add 1/2 cup of Sour cream. Comes out perfect everytime.
Therese A Paivarinta says
Very good zuchin bread just made this used the applesauce and oil . This is a keeper recipe!
Alison says
So happy to hear that Therese!
Carolyn Willis says
Great recipe. I made it gluten free and it was still really good.
Alison says
That is great to hear! Thank you so much for sharing!
Lily says
Delicious bread! My 4 year old helped me mix dry ingredients and zucchini with the wet ingredients. I believe we may have overmixed the batter as the bread came out really dense (more like bread pudding) though moist. I used butter instead of oil and substituted half of butter with applesauce and left out white sugar. Flavor was still amazing, especially smothered with homemade lemon curd, but texture was not fluffy. Any advice? I made sure to squeeze out as much excess water from grated zucchini (garden grown) as possible.
Nellie says
I love that you smothered the bread with lemon curd! I think you and I would get along really well…😉
Lily says
Following up on my Juky 1st initial inquiry. I just received another pair of huge zucchinis from a friend’s garden. She’s asked if I can make her a loaf as well. Any advice on how I may achieve a fluffier bread? Was it the overmixing and butter substitute that caused the density of the loaf? Thanks!
Amanda says
Hi Lily! I’m only replying since I seen a few comments under yours where someone asked if it would be okay if they replaced the oil for butter and someone replied with “I’ve tried using butter in quick bread recipes often and I really do suggest you stick with oil. The texture of the bread with oil is so much better AND you can’t even taste a different when you use butter.”
Hope this helps!
Jessica says
Amanda, YOU’RE HIRED!!! : )
Sashi says
It turned out really good:)
Kaylie says
Thank you, Sashi!
Lauri says
Can you use melted butter instead of oil?
Jessica says
I’ve tried using butter in quick bread recipes often and I really do suggest you stick with oil. The texture of the bread with oil is so much better AND you can’t even taste a different when you use butter.
Julia Baggett says
First time ever making zucchini bread, super easy, super moist, the taste melts in your mouth. I already received orders to make more, my family and friends love it. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
Alison says
It’s always such a great feeling when they whole family loves it! Thanks Julia!
Barbara says
I very seldom bake but had some zucchini I didn’t want to waste so tried this recipe. Mixed recipe using ingredients exactly as shown in recipe, My “batter” was more like cookie dough. I looked at some
Other recipes and they called for 1 1/2 cups flour but other ingredients were same. Your recipe calls for 3 cups flour. Did I miss interpret something?
Jessica says
Did you read about how store bought vs garden zucchini has different % water content? If your batter looked too dry, add some milk! Everyone’s zucchinis are going to give off different amounts of liquid, so it’s always a good idea to add liquid if you feel the batter is too dry. : ) I’ve baked it super thick though and it’s still wonderful!
Kate says
Don’t bother trying other recipes…….this truly is the best. I use 1/2 applesauce and in place of all white flour I use 1 cup of white whole wheat. I make it in 4 mini loaves!!!!!!!!!
Alison says
Thank you so much Kate! I’m so glad you loved this one!
Steve says
Well, a couple things…
First, I used the half oil apple sauce suggestion. It’s perfect. I’d go half to no white sugar next time…all though it definitely wasn’t too sweet with it, but I added chocolate chips ( probably too many, full cup 😋) but never again, IMO, can you have too much chocolate. I only had 5×9 pans so I just poured half and half ( one pan with walnuts, one without for wife). Not a super tall bread, but just fine by me. Didn’t need to drain zucchini before adding (actually forgot, but didn’t need to) super moist bread. Took about 55 min. I did have really hard time getting them out of Pan. They wanted to stick to it. I sprayed with butter spray, but they still stuck. Might try parchment paper next time. Biggest change I made…instead of white bleached flour or wheat flour…I used almond flour. Awesome!!! I highly recommend for people to try. Was nervous about it, but won’t try it any other way. I’m trying to do it as healthy as possible ( and still add my dark chocolate chips ). Will probably do muffins next time…and there will be a next..I love growing my zuchs. Thanks so much for recipes. Simple and super!!!
Nellie says
Thanks so much for taking so much time to share all of your swaps! Glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Trish says
OMG… YESSSSS!
Angie says
First time ever making zucchini bread! Thanks for the tips! It was so very easy to make! Took picture but I see there’s no where to post. Breads look awesome!! 60 mins at 325°
Jessica says
You’re so welcome Angie- glad you liked it!
Claudia Lamascolo says
What a great recipe I made this and everyone raved about it will make it again!
Beth says
This looks amazing! I love that I can trick my kids into eating more veggies without them even knowing it! They will devour this!
Jean says
Too high in sugar. Too sweet. Was heavy. Maybe baking powder had lost it’s rise. Sorry, I was disappointed.
Nellie says
Definitely sounds like the baking powder could have been the culprit – I hope you try again!
Michael Munson says
Very tasty and moist.
Alison says
Thank you Michael!
April Short says
It was so moist and the spice combination was perfect! I didn’t have any nuts, but it was still delicious. My husband and I loved it!
Clarissa says
AMAZING!!! We didn’t have any apple sauce, so we used olive oil, which worked great!
Jessica says
So glad you enjoyed it Clarissa!
Rita says
The best I have found so far. I substituted oil with 2 cups of homemade apple sauce.
Will make it again.