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.

1. Whisk the dry ingredients together separately to ensure all the spices are fully incorporated (no one likes biting into a clump of allspice)
2. Shred the zucchini on the small holes of a box grater/food processor.
3. Add the zucchini to the batter with the wet ingredients.
4. 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. 💚

One Year Ago: The Best Party Punch 
Two Years Ago: Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Muffins
Three Years Ago: Scotcheroos {New and Improved}
Four Years Ago: Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Coconut Cookie Bars {My Favorite!}
Five Years Ago: Easy One Pot Beef and Broccoli Ramen Noodles
Six Years Ago: Thin and Chewy Toffee Bits Cookies 
Seven Years Ago: Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
Eight Years Ago: Easy Chicken Cordon Bleu
Nine Years Ago: White Bean Chicken Chili
Ten Years Ago: Classic Slow Cooker Chili 

The Best Zucchini Bread

Yield: 12 Slices

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 55 minutes mins

Total Time: 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

4.69 stars (176 ratings)

Print Pin Rate Save Saved!

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

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

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

Loaf Pans: the batter can be baked in a three to four mini loaf pans or as muffins (yield will be about 12-16)

Whole Wheat Flour: this recipe works well subbing in half whole wheat flour for half of the all-purpose flour. I recommend using the following varieties for the best results: hard white wheat, soft white wheat, kamut, einkhorn. 

Lemon Juice/Sour Cream: you can easily omit the lemon juice and increase the yogurt or sour cream to 1/3 cup. 

Sugar: you can decrease the sugar to 1 cup for a less sweet version (however, I recommend making it per the recipe the first time so you know exactly how much you’d like to decrease the sugar, if any). 

Author: Mel

Course: Bread

Cuisine: American

Method: Bake

Serving: 1 Slice, Calories: 244kcal, Carbohydrates: 43g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 7g, Saturated Fat: 4g, Cholesterol: 43mg, Sodium: 387mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 26g

Recommended Products

9X5-inch Loaf Pan

Box Grater

Wire Whisk

Recipe Source: adapted slightly from Cook’s Country
Recipe originally posted August 2011; updated September 2024 with new pictures, recipe notes and commentary.

Other Recipes Like This:

Zucchini Banana Bread

Glazed Orange Zucchini Bread

Whole Grain Chocolate Chip Zucchini Muffins

The Best Zucchini Muffins {Whole Grain}