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What Could Be Better Than a Vegetable in Dessert?
Chocolate zucchini bread, to be honest, is simply a dessert masquerading as a bread. Even more so, zucchini bread is a quick bread, which means that it’s made with baking soda and baking powder instead of yeast.
The iconic moist texture that we all love in quick bread comes from the addition of oil. In this recipe, the oil works with the high moisture content of the zucchini, resulting in a loaf of both soft and moist bread.
Both zucchini cake and zucchini bread often have numerous spices that help flavor the flavorless zucchini. This bread utilizes cocoa powder and chocolate chips to provide an intense chocolate flavor. In much the same vein, banana bread uses bananas, and pumpkin loaf uses pumpkin, all for flavor.
But lest you think there’s anything to feel bad about when eating this bread, there’s no reason to think you’re hiding zucchini in a dessert. Instead, celebrate the vegetable by baking this bread.
Chocolate Zucchini Bread Ingredients
This recipe takes 12 simple ingredients and combines them into one of the most tender, flavorful breads you will taste. And while twelve ingredients may seem like a high number, they’re all likely to be pantry staples that you’ll already have on hand. Here are some of the important ingredients:
- Cocoa powder is added with all of the dry ingredients for a deep underlying flavor. Use Dutch process cocoa for a richer chocolate color.
- Zucchini is everywhere in late summer. Whether you grow it or know someone who does, it can easily be found in any market. Pick small- to medium-sized zucchini to minimize the number of seeds.
- Sour cream adds richness to the bread and provides the necessary acidity to activate the baking powder.
- Chocolate chips provide a bit of chocolate in each bite. Choose whatever chocolate strength you enjoy. To offset the sweetness of the bread a bit, I use semi-sweet chocolate chips.
The full amount of each ingredient can be found in the recipe card below.
How to Make Chocolate Zucchini Bread
Since this recipe has a simple ingredient list, it makes sense that the steps to prepare it are also easy. Five steps are all it takes to get this bread into and out of the oven and ready for consumption. Here are the steps:
Step 1: Prepare the dry ingredients – To a bowl, add the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Using a whisk, mix all dry ingredients together until the mixture is homogeneous.
Step 2: Add in the wet ingredients – To the dry ingredients, add the neutral oil, eggs, sour cream, and vanilla extract. Mix all of the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until everything is well combined. The batter at this point will be relatively thick.
Step 3: Add the zucchini and chocolate chips – Using a grater, grate the zucchini into small pieces. Add the zucchini to the batter along with the chocolate chips.
Step 4: Mix everything together and pour into a loaf pan – To begin the mixing process, use a spatula. The batter will be thick, and a spatula will best incorporate the ingredients. Ensure that all of the zucchini and chocolate chips are mixed well into the rest of the batter and that the mixture appears relatively homogeneous. Pour the batter into a loaf pan and spread it out to an even thickness.
Step 5: Sprinkle the top with turbinado sugar and bake – The turbinado sugar will give the top of the loaf a slightly crispy texture, but the addition is optional. Bake the bread at 350°F for 55-60 minutes, until the top is crackly and the edges pull in slightly from the sides of the pan. Slice and serve all by itself or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Recipe Tips
- The batter is thin enough that no special stand mixer or hand mixer is necessary. Simply use a wire whisk to mix all of the ingredients together.
- When selecting a zucchini, opt for a smaller size. Large zucchini will usually have more seeds, which is not desirable for this loaf recipe. If you have a large zucchini, slice it in half and scoop out some of the insides, including the seeds.
- There is no need to remove any of the moisture from the zucchini. The moisture from the zucchini is what is going to give this cake the perfect texture. When using zucchini, some recipes will instruct you to add salt to the zucchini to draw out the moisture and then discard the liquid. That is not the case with this bread, which makes it all the easier!
- To help the bread split evenly (and right where you want it to), use a spatula or knife to make an indentation in the center top part of the bread.
Frequently Asked Questions
Of course! That is an easy swap-out and can be used instead of sour cream. I’ll frequently do this myself if I don’t have sour cream on hand. The amounts used in this recipe are the same for either.
I would not recommend making this recipe without the cocoa powder. This recipe is formulated with cocoa powder, which is a dry ingredient. Dry ingredient ratios are very important when baking.
Quick breads made with oil as an ingredient stay moist and delicious. The bread will be best if consumed within two days. If this timeframe cannot be met, I suggest wrapping and freezing the bread.
More Dessert Recipes
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Chocolate Zucchini Bread
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 4 tbsp Dutch-process cocoa powder
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ¾ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- ⅔ cup neutral oil
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups zucchini grated
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease an 8 ½ x 4 ½ loaf pan and set it aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk to combine.2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 cup granulated sugar, 4 tbsp Dutch-process cocoa powder, ½ tsp baking powder, ¾ tsp baking soda, ½ tsp kosher salt
- Add the oil, eggs, sour cream, and vanilla. Whisk to form a sticky batter.⅔ cup neutral oil, 2 large eggs, 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract, ¼ cup sour cream
- Add in the zucchini and the chocolate chips. Fold together until the batter is well-mixed.2 cups zucchini, 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle the top of the bread with one tablespoon of raw sugar and place in the preheated oven. Bake until a skewer inserted into the middle of the bread comes out mostly clean, 55-60 minutes.
- Once baked, remove the bread from the oven and cool it in the loaf pan for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, remove the bread from the loaf to cool completely.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did you make this? Leave a comment below!
I have made this three times in three days. After I tried it , I loved it and made two more for the freezer. Super moist and chocolaty. Very easy and so moist and flavorful.
This recipe is perfection. So moist, so sweet, so chocolatey. The sugar and chocolate chips combine for just the right amount sweetness. I followed this recipe exactly. I used avocado oil for my neutral oil. Love it when I find a great recipe.
I made this bread last night and brought it into work today for an office fun food day. It was a huge hit! Everyone loved it and raved over it. (my boss ate several pieces and took some home he loved it so much). I found it to be absolutely delicious and it was so easy to make. What I really appreciate about the Wyse recipes are your very helpful hints. Those hints at the end of each recipe and also throughout your videos really help to make the end product a success. And I also learn a lot from all your videos, whether it is gardening, cooking or decorating. I’m so glad I found you and I have been so enjoying trying all your different recipes and gardening tips.
I love saving recipes that I find on line , I try them and I always end up going back to your site.
Your recipes never disappoint.
Easy to follow, Easy to please even the pickiest eaters in my family. I have made the chocolate Zucchini loaf and the ultimate chocolate cookies so often I know them by heart .💕
I have made your chocolate zucchini bread recipe several times now, because it is so moist and delicious! Thank you for sharing this recipe! It’s a keeper.
Best chocolate zucchini bread I’ve made and I’ve made many many over the years.
The raw sugar on top was brilliant. Don’t know why I haven’t tried that before. Yum!! Thank you!
Super easy to make and comes out so good. Kids love it! Making some to freeze.
Absolutely delicious!
This bread is moist and delicious! It was a big hit with my family. I will definitely make it again!!