Zucchini Bread
Classic Zucchini Bread, is the of kind recipe that shows up every summer when the garden gets ahead of you and you need somewhere for all that zucchini to go. This loaf is moist, lightly spiced with cinnamon, and comes together with ingredients you likely already have on hand. Ready to make a classic? Let’s go!
Zucchini bread starts with grated zucchini, butter or oil, eggs, sugar, cinnamon and vanilla for a moist sweet base. Then the dry ingredients and buttermilk are added in alternating batches to ensure a good mix of the ingredients without over mixing. The result is a loaf that’s dense in the best way, moist without being heavy, and warmly spiced without tasting like a spice cake.
Don’t Over Mix Quick Breads
The reason your acidic buttermilk and dry ingredients are added alternately and just stirred together lightly is make sure there is no gluten development. We don’t want a tough dry bread and adding all the flour and then trying to add the liquid means you have the potential to over mix and get that gluten developing. A little flour, a little buttermilk, stir, and repeat keeps it tender.
If you do ove rmix it and your loaf is tough try toasting it like regular bread right in the toaster. Hot zucchini bread toast is excellnet and a great way to salvage a loaf that might have been a waste.
OR! Try making it into french toast, dip it eggs and milk and toast it in a pan. It’s really delicious this way too.
Can you tell I’ve ruined a LOT of quick breads in my life?? LOL
What You Need To Make Zucchini Bread
Zucchini bread is the recipe every home cook needs on hand once the garden starts producing more than anyone can eat fresh. It’s a simple, reliable way to use up zucchini before it goes to waste.
- zucchini, fresh grated OR frozen grated, see notes below
- sugar
- eggs
- butter OR vegetable oil, some say oil is better than butter
- cinnamon
- vanilla paste or extract
- flour
- baking soda
- baking powder
- salt
- buttermilk, or use regular milk with a splash of vinegar in it
About Using Frozen Zucchini
If you’ve got a bag of shredded zucchini in the freezer from earlier in the season, this bread is exactly where it belongs. Thaw it fully first, then let it drain just like fresh zucchini. Frozen zucchini tends to hold even more water once it’s thawed, so don’t skip this step or your bread will end up dense and soggy in the middle. Don’t be tempted to squeeze it dry just thaw it and let it drain and use it.
I like to take extra zucchini and grate it into a bowl. From there I scoop it up with a one cup measuring cup, and plop it on a lined baking sheet. Freeze the zucchini until it’s solid then put the blobs in a freezer bag to store. I store all the blobs in one bag and grab one or two or however many I need.
Change It Up
Add a handful of chopped walnuts or pecans for some crunch, or fold in a half cup of chocolate chips if you want to move towards dessert territory. A little orange zest brightens the whole loaf up nicely if you want something a bit different from straight cinnamon.
Got Leftovers?
Quick breads often taste better the next day so if you can hold off on eating the loaf right away it will be better tomorrow. Once the loaves are completely cool, wrap them tightly in plastic wrap and store at room temperature for up to 3 days. But I will say it again, warm quick breads with butter are never wrong.
Zucchini Bread
Ingredients
- 2 cups zucchini coarsely grated and lightly drained
- 1/2 cup butter melted
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 TBSP vanilla paste
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup buttermilk or 1/2 c milk with a dash of vinegar
Instructions
- Set the zucchini to drain in a sieve while you make the batter, you don't want all the water out of the zucchini just whatever drains out
- Preheat the oven to 350°F
- Lightly grease one 9×5 inch loaf pan
- Melt the butter and let it cool, but do not let it solidify
- Stir in the sugar
- Beat in the eggs, vanilla, and cinnamon
- Add the lightly drained zucchini to the mixture and stir to combine, set aside
- In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda
- Add the buttermilk alternately with the flour mixture to the batter, stirring to combine
- The batter will be lumpy. If there are still dry flour spots, stir a little longer
- Bake for 55-65 minutes, don't open the oven door while it's baking, use the light to look at how it's doing in the oven if you need to
- Start checking for doneness at 55 minutes, use a toothpick to check in several places it should come out with some crumbs but not wet batter
- Cool completely, then store wrapped
