classic chocolate chunk zucchini bread
Why is it that I always forget about zucchini? It’s one of my favorite vegetables!
Happy Thursday, folks! And yes, our poor phallic little veggie often gets neglected in my recipe development because I quite frankly forget it exists. How? No idea. I love zucchini: raw, roasted, spiralized, or, in this case, shredded and folded into a sweet treat.
One of my favorite snack attacks of late, since I’ve a loaf of today’s Classic Chocolate Chunk Zucchini Bread in my fridge, is a mug of hot cocoa and a big ole slab of bread. Granted, it’ll soon be too hot to enjoy hot chocolate properly, but since our days still boast a tinge of coolness or leastwise less humidity, I’m letting myself slip in a few extra servings before hot coffee is the only steamy beverage in which I partake.
But zucchini bread? Appropriate regardless of the weather. This soft, tall, beautiful loaf is speckled with lots of chocolate and hinted with cinnamon. Cozy up with a slice for a midday treat or serve with butter for casual brunch. The hardest part is waiting for the long baking time to elapse.
Otherwise, the bread is a breeze.
Nothing Beats a Classic
The first key for successful zucchini bread is draining your shredded zooks well. You need to remove a good portion of the moisture, or else your loaf will be dense and weird and won’t rise as beautifully as the photos suggest.
Grab one or two large zucchinis and shred with a box grater. Plop the shreds into a clean cheesecloth or a wad of paper towels and use that grip strength we all know you don’t have to pinch the living shit out of the zucchini. You’ll be surprised how much water is dispelled! When measured after draining, you will need 1 1/2 cups for this recipe.
Now, mix up your batter. Whisk the oil with the brown sugar, then add in your eggs, vanilla, and the zucchini. Flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt follow. Fold in your chocolate chips. The batter will be quite thick and as long as no large hunks of zucchini are visible, you’ve mixed it up just enough.
Grease a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan with oil or butter and pour in your batter. I like to sprinkle a few more chocolate chips on top. Bake 55-65 minutes. I start checking my loaf around 45 minutes to ensure I don’t overbake it. When a toothpick or skewer emerges with a few moist crumbs (and probably some melted chocolate since you will inevitably encounter a pocket in your probing adventure), you’re good to pull out your loaf.
Cool in the pan for about 20 minutes, then run a knife around the edges of the loaf, invert onto a wire rack, and flip back upright. Cool at least another 25-30 minutes before attempting to slice. Trust me, the loaf will still be plenty warm even after nearly an hour out of the oven.
Serving suggestions? Butter, peanut butter, and a mug of hot coffee, tea, or cocoa.
Storage? Zucchini bread keeps well on the counter for up to 3 days, the fridge for a week, or the freezer for 3 months. Sealed up well, of course.
Prep ahead? I wouldn’t recommend stowing the batter overnight before baking.
Hey, this recipe comes out just in time for National Zucchini Bread Day on Saturday. Definitely didn’t plan that out or anything…(Yes I did).
Cheers, friends!
Tried this recipe out? Leave a rating and comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!
“Quick bread” is a misnomer:
Peanut Butter Cup Banana Bread
Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread
Cinnamon Crunch Chai Banana Bread
classic chocolate chunk zucchini bread
Ingredients
- 1-2 large zucchini, grated
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 cup chocolate chips or chunks
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan with butter or oil.
- Grate the zucchini. Using paper towels or a clean tea towel, squeeze as much moisture out as you humanly can with your almightly hand muscles. Your zucchini shreds, after draining, will need to yield 1 1/2 cups worth.
- In a bowl, whisk the vegetable oil and brown sugar until combined. Whip in the eggs, one at a time, then the vanilla and the zucchini. Add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Fold in the chocolate chips until incorporated. Do not overmix.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle a few extra chocolate chips on top, if desired.
- Bake 55-65 minutes until the center is set and an inserted toothpick or skewer emerges with just a few moist crumbs. Start checking the loaf after 45 minutes for doneness.
- Cool the loaf in the pan for 10 minute. Run a knife around the edges to loosen, then invert the loaf onto a wire rack. Flip upright. Cool at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving!
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