The Best Zucchini Bread
This is the best zucchini bread recipe ever! It is soft, moist, and so easy to make. It can also be baked as muffins or in mini loaf pans.
I’ve been making and baking and devouring this zucchini bread for over ten years; it is the only recipe I make. It’s that good!
A Few Tips When Mixing the Zucchini Bread Batter
This a pretty typical quick bread batter recipe. Dry ingredients + wet ingredients. But here are a few tips to make sure the zucchini bread turns out perfectly.
- Whisk the dry ingredients together separately to ensure all the spices are fully incorporated (no one likes biting into a clump of allspice)
- Shred the zucchini on the small holes of a box grater/food processor.
- Add the zucchini to the batter with the wet ingredients.
- Don’t over mix the batter! Mix just until the dry streaks disappear.
Alternate Baking Pan Options
Instead of baking in a 9X5-inch loaf pan, the batter can be baked in three to four mini loaf pans or as muffins (yield will be about 12-16).
If you only have an 8 1/2 X 4 1/2-inch loaf pan, divide the batter between the pan and one mini loaf pan (or a few muffins).
No matter the pan used, fill right around 2/3 full. Don’t over fill or the batter may overflow in the oven and/or take much longer to bake.
Hot Tip That May Change Your Life
If you’ve never had a slice of zucchini bread (it helps if it is this best-ever zucchini bread 😉) with a slather of cream cheese, you are missing out.
It is a truly delectable combo. Lightly sweet, ultra-moist zucchini bread + tangy, soft cream cheese. YUM. It’s my favorite way to enjoy this classic quick bread.
This bread has become such a staple, I will never stray from this recipe. It really is the best. 💚
Rave Reviews
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I have been baking zucchini bread a couple of times a week since my garden starting exploding and this is definitely THE best of the recipes I’ve tried. -Courtney
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This really is the BEST zucchini bread! Moist, flavorful and flat out delicious (used 5 tablespoons of sour cream in place of yogurt & lemon juice). We added some chopped walnuts for texture– recommended if you’re a nut person! Also, I’m so glad Mel recommended topping with cream cheese– amazing combination! -Chelsea S.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Mel, you are 100% correct, this really is the absolute BEST zucchini bread! Everyone raved. It’s light, flavorful and truly is the best recipe! Thank you! -Carol
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This bread is ah-maaazing! I doubled the recipe and it baked up beautifully, tastes wonderful. Instead of 3c sugar in a double batch, I did 2 1/2c and I’m about to make another double batch for the freezer and will cut it down to 2c. Thank you, Mel! -Leah
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The Best Zucchini Bread
Ingredients
- 1 pound zucchini
- 2 cups (284 g) flour (see note)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon allspice
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cups (318 g) granulated sugar (see note)
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup plain yogurt or sour cream, not fat-free
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (see note)
- 6 tablespoons (85 g) salted butter, melted
Instructions
- Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 350 degrees (original instructions were for 375 degrees). Generously coat a 9X5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray or cooking spray with flour.
- Chop the ends off the zucchini (just 1/4-inch off each end) and finely shred the zucchini, peel and all. Place the shredded zucchini in a clean kitchen towel (or nut milk bag), wrap the towel, and wring the ends (like a an old-fashioned candy wrapper) to squeeze out all the excess water. You should have about 1 1/2 cups of dry zucchini. Set the zucchini aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice, and salt. In a smaller bowl, whisk the sugar, yogurt, eggs, lemon juice or sour cream, and butter until combined.
- Gently fold the yogurt mixture and zucchini into the dry ingredients, using a rubber spatula to fold the ingredients together until just combined – don’t overmix! Transfer the batter to the prepared pan.
- Bake until golden brown and a thin knife or skewer inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached, 45-60 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes then turn out into wire rack to cool for at least 1 hour. Store well-covered for up to three days.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: adapted slightly from Cook’s Country
Recipe originally posted August 2011; updated September 2024 with new pictures, recipe notes and commentary.
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Hi Janice – if you move one of the emails from my blog from your spam folder into your inbox, it should “tell” your email service provider (gmail) that you want them to come to your inbox. Hopefully I can make sure on my end this doesn’t keep happening. Thanks for your patience!
I have made this three times and my son loves it! It is so moist and not oily!
I always love your recipes, so I knew this would be good. A cup and half of sugar in ONE loaf is kind of crazy, though, right? I was surprised, also, when I weighed my shredded zucchini and had to put in 3 cups to reach a pound! I put it all in and the bread was really moist! Turned out good, but my kids prefer chocolate zucchini bread and I think you can get away with lots less sugar when it’s brown and chocolatey!
I’d use 2/3 cup sugar and 2 T honey.
Made this last week and making it today. A great solid recipe Mel. Taking this and quiche to a pal in need. Thanks for making cooking easy, fun, and tasty!
Hi Mel! I’m anxious to try this recipe for Zucchini bread, but I’m wondering if you, or anyone else on here, has added Chocolate Chips to the bread? I know it’s common to have them in pumpkin bread, but I’m not sure how they would taste in Zucchini bread.
Looking for any way to add more chocolate to my diet! Lol
Yes! It’s delicious. 🙂
This is delicious! I made one loaf and decided (after I had put everything away) to make another! It’s in the oven now! Incredible recipe! Thanks!!!
Just made this, used sour cream in place of yogurt, otherwise followed original directions. Baked in 9” light colored aluminum loaf pan for 60 minutes. I have an over thermometer in my oven. Very useful as I found my oven runs 10 degrees hot and it’s rarely at temperature when it beeps saying preheat is done. Looks great! Taking it to a pot luck tonight so can’t taste yet. Will update later after tasting.
Woot! Woot! This is delicious – not too this and not too that! Just perfection! Thanks for sharing!!
Just made a double batch and used half the same as the recipe above…delicious!! Thanks again Mel! The other half I put in a half cup of chopped pecans and a cup of chocolate chips (everything’s better with chocolate…haha!) I made these into cupcake/muffins and baked at the same temp for 20 minutes…also yummy!
I just made this recipe, doubling the ingredients to make 2 loaves. I used half A.P.flour and half whole wheat. I also left out the allspice because i dont like the taste of cloves and added more cinnamon and a pinch of nutmeg. I love the taste but my loaves came out overly cooked on the outside with the center still gooey, and even though I sprayed my non-stick pans vigorously with cooking spray they still stuck. I would recommend if using non-stick pans to still spray like crazy and turn the oven down to 350
8 hands just made this recipe! Thank you Mel for having tested recipes easy for little and big hands alike.
This recipe is fabulous! I made it for the first time tonight with zucchini from my neighbor, and it really is all you said it would be! I made it into muffins- It made 16 muffins fit me and I baked them for 18 minutes. Perfection! (Also, I wrung out my zucchini on my nut milk bag- first time I’ve used it and it was so easy to do!!)
Hi Mel! Ok, I must be doing something wrong and I’m super hoping you can help me figure it out. Whenever I make this zucchini bread and also your banana bread, it ends up caving in the middle. I also have to cook it Waaaaaay longer than the recipe says and it’s crunchy on the crust but almost raw in the middle. We live in Wisconsin (and previously Maryland) so it’s not an altitude issue and today I measured the size of my pan to make sure it was 9 x 5. I did use a glass pan, but I lowered my oven temp to 350 and my oven was just calibrated (new house, broken oven. Super awesome.). I did use all fresh ground ww pastry flour, which I gently packed because of the fluff factor. I have, in the past, weighed the flour but the same thing happened. I would love to hear your thoughts because this really is The Best recipe! Clearly I need to adjust something because, reading through the comments, no one else seems to have this issue….
Hi Emily – I’m not absolutely sure why this is happening but I have a couple of thoughts. I think the pan may make a difference. If you are using glass, I’d suggest cutting the temp back to 325 degrees and adding 10 minutes or so onto the baking time. The whole wheat flour shouldn’t make a significant difference unless the batter is overly wet (too much moisture can cause quick breads to sink sometimes). Make sure the batter isn’t sitting too long before baking – baking it as soon as possible after mixing helps. Are you opening the door while it bakes? If so, try not to – I’ve noticed my cakes sink in the middle when I do that. My gut feeling is that it isn’t baking long enough and the more times the oven door gets opened to check on it may be causing it to sink. Do you think that could be a factor?
Mel and Emily B, I am having this same problem. I have now baked 5 loaves (from one gigantic zucchini!). This is the most delicious zucchini I have ever tasted! I love the taste, the texture, and the wonderful crust it creates. But my loaves come out of the oven beautiful and them the middle caves after cooling. It still tastes fine but I wish it would keep it’s beautiful shape. I’m baking in a stainless steel bread pan not letting the batter sit before baking. My oven seems to have a pretty accurate temperature and 50 minutes baking seems to be just right. I don’t open the oven before that; do I need to try adding a few minutes baking?
Hi Kathy – try baking at 350 degrees F for a few minutes longer and see if that helps!
I agree with you. There are some recipes that have millions of versions out there. Like banana bread or zucchini bread, and it may seem repetitive to post another variation, BUT I am so thankful when you do. Here is the thing, I don’t think all recipes and food blogger for that matter are created equally. When I need a recipe for something so basic (and not so basic) like zucchini bread, I ALWAYS check your blog first because I totally trust you. I know that when I use one of your recipes it has been through the ringer and you only post your best! Thank you so much for that! Keep posting the basic (and not so basic) recipes. You have never let me down!
Thanks so much for this, Jess!
Nice bread thank you try a little home grown honey on a slice with it if you can make one a latte
Thank you Mel
Anyone try separating yolks from whites, beat whites fold in last?
Try Ricotta cheese instead of cream cheese us old guys need to watch our
waist line. I do mine like King Arthur book directs oven starts. 50 degrees high turn down when loaves are put in oven a littl more poof. Add a tiny bit of yoghurt to give the soda a little boost.
I bake my neighbor donates his honey we make Lattes and eat and tell lies.
Have you tried using oats to replace the flour? I was just asking since I have a box of oats and no flour. 🙁
I haven’t, Sarah, sorry!
No Sarah, oats alone will make this too heavy.
YES!! I made this with homemade oat flour and it turned out fine. Oat flour is substituted by weight, not volume, so I weighed out 10oz on my food scale. It came out with a different texture but at least it’s lower in it’s glycemic index this way. (I also used monk fruit sweetener instead of sugar).
Just made this and it tastes good. One question: is the bake temperature correct. Mine was fully done and very brown in about 42 minutes. I am glad I checked it early. I live at high altitude, so usually experience longer baking times.
Yes, the bake temp is correct but it might depend on the type of pan you use (dark, nonstick, etc) for how long it exactly needs to bake.
Just chiming in to add my accolades to this recipe. I especially loved the crust, which had an almost caramelize-y chew. The texture and flavor were excellent.
If I wanted to make mini loaves, would I adjust the baking time?
Erin – Yes – I generally check mini loaves after about 25 minutes although they might need longer than that.
Mel,
Your bread recipe sounds great. I am looking for a great zucchini cupcake recipe. Will your recipe work without any adjustments?
David – I haven’t made this as cupcakes but Brianna in the comment thread made them into cupcakes with good results. Good luck if you try it!
I made this today with a huge baseball bat of a zucchini. After cutting in half, scooping out the seeds and shredding it measured to about 2 2/3 cup of zucchini so I doubled the recipe. I used all white whole wheat flour and a mixture of non-fat yogurt and organic low fat sour cream. I don’t know if it matters but I had no baking powder so had to sub in baking soda and cream of tartar as per Bon Appetites directions. While it was baking I had very low hopes, it actually sunk in the middle instead of rising! But it’s just yummy with a delicious crunchy crust on the top and very moist interior. Oh and I also put in pecans and mini-chocolate chips. If I made it wrong, I don’t want to be right!!
I made those bread into muffins tonight because I didn’t have a loaf pan and was desperate to use up my zucchini. I cooked them for 20 minutes and they came out excellent! They are just delicious. I use half carrots and half zucchini. I used sour cream and lemon juice. I also cut the sugar in half! I think they are the best muffins I have ever made! I can’t believe they have veggies in them!
I had given up finding a good zucchini bread recipe, until I tried this one. It’s not oily or gummy at all, but perfect. Thank you!
Would it make much difference if the yogurt was nonfat? My store doesn’t seem to have plain with fat.
Victoriya – definitely worth the experiment. I haven’t tried it with nonfat yogurt but it might work – the bread might be a bit less moist.
I assume it is supposed to say “thin” knife or skewer? Or is it “thick”?
Steph – a thin knife or skewer is what you’ll need.
I love this bread, it is so good and moist. The flavor is just great, I posted this bread on my website, thanks for sharing! http://fromkatrinaskitchen.wordpress.com/2013/09/11/moist-zucchini-bread/
Just wanted to comment and say thanks for sharing your recipe! I made a loaf this morning & it is already half gone!
I made this today! it is very good. I was too lazy to go to store so I used sour cream, coconut oil and lime juice as substitutes. Also used half whole wheat and threw in some ground flax seed. I put it lots of things I bake. Makes me feel healthier. 🙂 I think it is the first time my kids have eaten zuchchini they loved it. We also had you cilantro ginger tilapia for dinner. It is a regular now for me and the hubby. Still cant get the kids to eat it. But Thanks to you I can eat fish now!! I love you site!!
If you’re a fan of pineapple, I have an AMAZING recipe. It’s a no brainer, never fail recipe to make, and I am constantly asked for it. If you’re interested let me know.
I’ve made 3 batches of this in the last week. My family loves it!! This bread is so yummy!
I just made these as muffins! I added pecans, used half whole wheat pastry flour and half oat flour. I also added shredded carrots because I did not have enough zucchini. They are wonderful! My favorite recipe has cream cheese in, but this one is perfect without it. We Love them!
Thank you so much, your site is one of my favorite!!!
Oh! A Cook’s Country recipe. You can never go wrong with them!
Just made this today. It is perfect! So amazingly delicious. I used vanilla yogurt because that’s all I had on hand and sour cream instead of lemon juice. Wonderful with cream cheese — like dessert. My toddler loved it and I think my zucchini-hating husband will love it too!
Sounds like a great recipe to try. I always use half whole wheat and half white flour with good results and better fiber content. When our boys were young they named my bread “zunni” bread and it has so been called for the last 30 years. They still love it!
I also used the no fat Greek yogurt and it turned out perfect. Not too sweet and not too greasy, I loved it!
Made this today with %0 Greek yogurt and it was delicious. Made a double batch making 3 loafs and they are gone!
Kaitlin – I don’t have the nutritional info but I think there are several online calculators you can use if you google it. Glad you liked it!
i just made this & it was delicious! do you have the nutritional content for it?
Emily – the crust on my bread can come out a little crunch sometimes but once it is cool, I put it in a closed plastic or ziploc bag and it softens the crust right up (after a few hours).
I just made this and it’s delicious. I love the cinnamon and all spice (I almost always add cinnamon when it’s not included in a baking recipe). The crust on my bread turned out rather tough and overly crunchy. Is this an oven temperature thing? Or perhaps did I over mix the ingredients?
Hey Mel 🙂 I found this recipe on Pinterest and saw how many repins it had, so I decided to go with it. This recipe was a huge success for me, so THANK YOU! I used O% M.F. Plain Greek Yogurt and found that it gave a gentle zing to the bread and sour cream instead of lemon juice to gauge the ‘creaminess’ of it. It really was lovely; however, my next loaf will include the lemon juice instead of the sour cream because I’m curious to see how they differ. I also sprinkled chopped walnuts on top…it was simply DELISH!!!
Cheers!
I just made this over the weekend to take to a
cook out, it was so amazing!! Defiantly the best.
Thanks Mel =)
Heidi – I can’t give a good recommendation on adapting the recipe that way since I haven’t tried it myself. A better option might be googling or searching for a chocolate zucchini bread recipe. Good luck!
I just played around a bit today with a chocolate variety of this recipe, and it came out fabulous! I added 1/2 cup of cocoa powder, and reduced the zucchini to 1 cup. Came out perfect. I did also use 1 cup almond flour and 1 cup whole wheat for the flour, just because I had almond flour on hand, so I don’t know if that made any difference, but it out SO yummy! I made it for birthday cake for my 3 year old, and everyone in the house raved. Thanks for another fabulous recipe, Mel!
Sounds yummy!
I’d like to make a chocolate zucchini bread. How would I adapt this recipe to make it chocolate? Thanks!
I just found this recipe to start tackling all our summer zucchini. It was super yummy! I love that it doesn’t use a cup of fattening oil. Thanks again for a yummy recipe!
pretty darn good! definitely not too oily! i was afraid i didn’t get enough water out of the zucchini. still think it may have been the case – because it was super super moist on the inside but the crust was dry. i think i might have an issue w/ the temp. in my oven though, as the top made a pretty hard crust. but remedied that by storing it in a freezer bag overnight on the counter, so the inside could soak into it 😛 definitely a keeper for a recipe! thanks! i’m going off to cook your best choc. chip cookies now wewhew!
Just made this today – love it!! I didn’t have any plain yogurt, so I used the low-fat strawberry yogurt I had and it was just fine. Thank you so much for this awesome recipe!
I have made this bread about 5 times this month!! It is delicious. Thanks for sharing such an excellant recipe, the bread it moist, wonderfully spiced, and not oily. My whole family loves it. I think I will hit the farmers market one last time to stock up on zucchini for the winter!!
Tried this one this week too, along with the chocolate chip cookie recipe. It was delicious. However, mine overflowed the loaf pan too. Wish I would’ve read all the comments beforehand as I have the 8 1/2 pan too. The allspice is great in it. I’m now longing for some gingerbread cookies. I did use close to 2 cups of shredded zucchini so that’s why the pan was so full too. Next time I will make six “cupcakes” on the side.
I LOVE this recipe. It’s so moist and delicious! But, I have a request…I was wondering if you could adjust your printable version of this recipe. The printable version without a picture is missing some of the specifics, as well as some hints to the recipe (for instance, how much zucchini you should have after you’ve wrung it out). I like the printable recipe without the picture because it only prints out on 1 page instead of 2. Am I making any sense? Anyway, if it’s not complicated, that would be great… Thanks!
Joyce – thanks for the heads up. I didn’t realize there was an issue with the printable version – I’ve fixed it. Thanks for letting me know!
A-Mazing! that’s what my husband declared after tasting this wonderful bread. i’m about to make my second batch this morning because the batch i made yesterday is GONE! lol! another keeper to add to the “mel file” 🙂 thanks!!!