Oh boy, you all are going to LOVE this Chocolate Zucchini Bread! Our little backyard garden continues to be productive with much coaxing and supervision, so while we loved Applesauce Zucchini Bread, we thought we’d try something new with our latest harvest of zucchini.
Although I don’t typically think of chocolate and zucchini as best friends, they do play very well in this recipe. The zucchini adds moisture and heft to the quick bread, and the chocolate, of course, makes it delicious!
What a wonderful world we live in friends… we can eat something so amazingly
And do let your kids, grandkids, or neighborhood riffraff help you make this Chocolate Zucchini Bread. You don’t even need to get out the mixer. It’s basically vegetable magic, and while a young child may worry and frown as all that grated zucchini is dumped into the bowl, they’ll be completely smitten at first bite.
In my food blogging world, some recipes come easy, while others make me work a little. Getting this recipe just right did take a little bit of recipe testing, tweaking, and re-making. My first batch baked up so beautifully but was disappointingly bland in flavor. Such a bummer!
On the next go, I omitted a few distracting ingredients, added more vanilla extract, a little brown sugar, and mini semisweet chocolate chips. What a difference!
I think the mini chocolate chips were just the right thing. Not only do they boost the chocolate flavor, but they also add little fudge-like flecks throughout the bread.
I’m glad I didn’t give up on this recipe even though the first run was quite lacking. It really is the perfect little sidekick to your morning latte, as well as a satisfying midnight snack alongside a cold glass of milk.
In case you
In no time at all, you can whip up a batch of this easy Chocolate Zucchini Bread, and even deliver a loaf or two to your favorite neighbor. Eat your veggies, friends!
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Chocolate Zucchini Bread
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 4 mini loaves 1x
- Category: Bread
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
Thanks to this Chocolate Zucchini Bread, I can indulge in something amazingly chocolatey and delicious and still count it as a vegetable. Count me in!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup oil (I used avocado oil)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon coffee extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 cups grated zucchini
- 1/2 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
- powdered sugar for dusting, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease four mini loaf pans with nonstick baking spray.
- In a large bowl, whisk together oil, granulated sugar, brown sugar, eggs, milk, vanilla extract, and coffee extract until smooth and creamy.
- In another bowl, mix together flour, cocoa, salt, and baking soda.
- Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and stir until just combined. Add grated zucchini and chocolate chips and fold until evenly incorporated throughout the batter.
- Divide the batter evenly between the four loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of each loaf comes out cleanly. Remove the bread from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before turning out each loaf onto a cooling rack.
- When completely cooled, dust each loaf with powdered sugar if desired, and store in an airtight container.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Mini Loaf
- Calories: 910
- Sugar: 77g
- Sodium: 791mg
- Fat: 38g
- Saturated Fat: 8.2g
- Unsaturated Fat: 26.8g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 133g
- Fiber: 5.3g
- Protein: 14g
- Cholesterol: 94mg
Debbie says
Ooh, just thinking about what to bring to a family who is dealing with a surgery next week. Along with meal type food I wanted to also bring a treat. Bingo! You don’t say to squeeze out the moisture from the zucchini. Did you? And coffee extract. I’ll have to look that one up because I’ve never heard of it, but it sounds awesome… Thank you!
Julie says
So thoughtful of you to bring this to a friend. I did not squeeze any moisture out, but my zucchini was not particularly watery. The coffee extract does not add a coffee flavor, but really helps intensify the chocolate flavor. You can also use a small amount of instant coffee granules or espresso powder. I hope this is helpful! Let me know how it goes.
Ann Shevock says
Can I use vanilla extract in place of coffee?
Julie says
The coffee extract really helps intensify the chocolate flavor. The bread does not have a coffee flavor once baked. Hope you enjoy!
Holly S Wojnicki says
I dont see myself using coffee extract for anything else. I’m also thinking of substituting applesauce or yogurt in place of the oil. Can you recommend another extract? I cant wait to make this!
Dee says
This recipe sounds delicious! I have one question. The recipe calls for 1/4 coffee extract. Is that teaspoon or what volume? Thanks!
Julie says
Dee, thank you so much for catching my error! Yes, it should read 1/4 teaspoon coffee extract. This will just help boost the chocolate flavor, not give the bread a coffee flavor once baked. Thanks again!
Paula says
Has anyone used almond flour instead?
Julie says
Hi Paula – Not yet that I know of, but let me know how it goes if you try it.
Linda Grant says
I didn’t have the pan size noted but I used a slightly smaller one from USA pans that is an 8xmini loaf pans. I doubled the recipe and got 31 loaves (probably could have stretched to 32). The bread is amazing. Soft and very moist but a nice texture. Thanks for a great recipe. I didn’t have the coffee extract but had some strong espresso made and added (about 1 1/2 t. per batch–so 1 T. for two). Can’t wait to try it again.