Zucchini Bread
I’m going to start by sharing with you one of the world’s best kept secrets. Are you ready?
Here goes. Zucchini bread tastes better after being refrigerated overnight or longer. Truly!
The same goes for almost all sweet breads. It gives the flavors time to meld together and the whole texture holds up better and is less crumbly. I especially love sweet breads after they’ve been frozen and then thawed on the countertop.
It’s not a hill I’ll die on, because I also like sweet breads still warm, straight out of the oven, dripping with butter. But if you haven’t tried zucchini bread cold, just-barely-thawed, from the freezer — you are missing out!
That’s why when I make zucchini bread I make a huge batch. I stick one loaf in the fridge for breakfast the next morning, and the rest I package up in zippered storage bags and freeze. They only take about an hour to thaw on the countertop when you’re ready to use them.
Ingredients:
- 6 cups all purpose flour
- 2 Tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 3 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 5 cups shredded zucchini (frozen or fresh)
- 4 cups oil (I use coconut oil, but any vegetable oil will also work)
- 5 eggs
- 1 teaspoon grated lemon peel (optional)
Instructions:
- If you’re using fresh zucchini, shred it with your food processor into a large bowl. Leave the peel on, and be sure to harvest your zucchini before it is huge and tough. If it is overripe, you will need to remove the skin and the core with the seeds because they will be tough. (I frequently use club-sized zucchini and it works fine as long as I peel and core it.)
- Sprinkle salt over the zucchini in the bowl, let it sit for ten minutes, then use a tea towel or a paper towel to press out all of the excess moisture. If you’re using frozen zucchini (see below for instructions on freezing zucchini), just remove it from the freezer and let it thaw on the countertop for about an hour before you mix up your batter. Drain excess moisture if necessary.
- In a large mixing bowl thoroughly combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, spices and salt.
- In another large mixing bowl, beat together sugar, shredded zucchini, oil, eggs and lemon peel (optional).
- Add flour mixture to the zucchini mixture, stirring just until combined. Don’t overmix. The batter will be thicker than pancake batter, but spreadable. Spoon batter into 4 greased loaf pans (8x4x2). Bake at 350* for 55-60 min. or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack, then wrap tightly and refrigerate overnight. (Unless you can’t wait to dig in, in which case wrap and refrigerate three loaves and enjoy one right now.)
Fun Zucchini Bread Additions
In my opinion, chocolate usually makes everything better. For some reason, though, I love chocolate chips in pumpkin bread, but prefer my zucchini bread plain. The following ideas are some fun ways to make your zucchini bread extra special:
- Chocolate chips
- White chocolate chips
- Walnuts
- Pecans
- Sliced almonds
- Shredded coconut
- Pistachios
- Dried cranberries
- Raisins
With a recipe this size, you’ll want to add about 4 cups of anything you decide to add in. Or since you have four loaves, you could stir a different add-in into each loaf pan after filling them with batter and make an assortment of different zucchini breads.
How To Freeze Zucchini for Zucchini Bread:
1. Shred the zucchini, using your food processor, into a large bowl. Leave the peel on, and be sure to harvest your zucchini before it is huge and tough. If it is overripe, you will need to remove the skin and the core with the seeds because they will be tough.
2. Sprinkle salt over the zucchini, let stand for 10 minutes and then spread it on a towel and press it, in order to eliminate the excess moisture.
3. Fill a zippered storage bag with about 5 c. zucchini and flatten the bag into the bottom of your favorite casserole dish to freeze, so that it will be the right shape for cooking later.
By the end of the summer, you will have dozens of bags of shredded zucchini in your freezer, ready to turn into this scrumptious zucchini bread!
Are you overloaded with zucchini? Do you need a few more zucchini recipes?
101 Zucchini Recipes: The Ultimate Guide to Zucchini Overload
Zucchini Bread cost breakdown:
- Zucchini: free
- Sugar: $0.60
- Flour: $0.40
- Eggs: $0.75
- Oil: $0.95
4 loaves of zucchini bread; under 10 cents per serving
Save this zucchini bread recipe for later!
FAQs
I remove the bread from the pan, and wrap it in plastic while it is still hot. Then refrigerate (or freeze) it until cooled. Your bread will be extra moist and the crust will be nice and soft. Don't slice zucchini bread until you're ready to enjoy it; slicing will allow the bread to dry out quicker.
Why is my zucchini bread batter so dry? ›
Try mixing more gently, using rubber spatula to fold wet/dry ingredients without over-mixing. Why does my zucchini bread come out dry? This is usually due to either not measuring ingredients carefully or over-baking the bread.
Do you leave the skin on zucchini when making bread? ›
Don't peel the zucchini – Yes, it's tempting to remove the zucchini's skin, but there is no need to do that. Zucchini melts into the bread, so peeling is just an unnecessary step.
How do you cook zucchini so it doesn't get mushy? ›
Don't overcrowd the pan, which can cause the zucchini to steam instead of roast. Unless you have time to salt and drain the zucchini, wait to salt it until after they're cooked so the salt doesn't draw out the moisture in the oven—this can lead to sogginess.
Should I dry out zucchini before baking? ›
Squeezing is optional.
Some recipes tell you to remove extra moisture from the grated zucchini by squeezing it in a clean kitchen towel. But unless your zucchini is excessively juicy, squeezing the squash could be removing some of the moisture you really do want in the bread. It's up to you, though.
What happens if you put too much baking powder in zucchini bread? ›
Too much baking soda or baking powder can mess up a recipe, causing it to rise uncontrollably and taste terrible.
Why is my zucchini bread wet in the middle? ›
"The problem with (zucchini) when baking is its high moisture content. After shredding, be sure to squeeze the zucchini well to remove as much moisture as possible. A clean dish towel or several layers of paper towels work. If you skip this step, the batter will have too much moisture and won't cook through."
Why is my zucchini bread gummy? ›
Puree—Don't Grate—Your Zucchini for Zucchini Bread
Then, in go the eggs and oil, which blend into a frothy mix. Then, with a very delicate touch, I sprinkle in the dry ingredients and just pulse a couple of times. Do not overdo it, or you will have tough or gummy bread.
Why did my zucchini bread come out rubbery? ›
Overmixing the batter
However, zucchini bread should be soft and almost cake-like in texture. This means you can't disturb the gluten in the flour too much — which usually happens through over-mixing. When you mix the batter for an unreasonable amount of time, the baked good is tough when you remove it from the oven.
Why did my zucchini bread not rise in the middle? ›
The bread was sinking in because the leavening was wrong. It seems likely that the amounts of baking powder and baking soda were switched. Where you were using 1 tablespoon of baking soda and 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder, the actual measure should be 1 tablespoon baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda.
You need 2 cups of grated zucchini for the recipe, so you will need about 3 small zucchini, 2 medium zucchini, or 1 large zucchini.
What is the best way to wrap zucchini bread? ›
You have a couple of options here. I've read about people wrapping the bread in freezer bags, in aluminum foil only, or in plastic wrap then aluminum foil, all with varying degrees of success. I opted for the plastic wrap and aluminum foil, hoping to keep the bread as fresh as possible.
How fine should you grate zucchini for zucchini bread? ›
We Recommend
You should use the largest holes on the box grater for thickly grated zucchini. Your grated zucchini should be thickly cut if you want it to be noticeable in your zucchini bread. Thick, grated zucchini won't completely vanish when baked, unlike thinly grated zucchini.
How do you sweat zucchini before baking? ›
How to Sweat Zucchini. Lay your zucchini slices over a double layer of paper towels and sprinkle both sides with salt. Allow the zucchini to rest for about 10 minutes. The salt will draw out the excess water and you'll see beads of moisture on the surface.
How to dry out zucchini? ›
Arrange the zucchini on dehydrator trays, utilizing a mesh liner to prevent the zucchini from falling through the holes as it shrinks. Dehydrate at 125ºF (52ºC) for 6-12 hours until the zucchini is dry and brittle—it should break, not bend (see note 2).
How do you keep baked zucchini from getting soggy? ›
ELEVATE THE ZUCCHINI by placing it on a baking rack, then setting that baking rack on top of your regular baking sheet. This allows air to circulate on all sides of the zucchini and helps water evaporate so the zucchini is beautifully caramelized, not soggy.
