Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread

Every June my counter turns into a zucchini holding pen. Somebody at the farmers market hands me one the size of a baseball bat, my neighbor leaves two on the porch like a love note, and suddenly I am the woman with seven zucchini and a plan to use exactly none of them in a salad.

So we make bread. This chocolate chip zucchini bread is the one recipe that gets my kids to eat a vegetable without a single negotiation, mostly because they have no idea it is in there. It is soft, a little fudgy from the chocolate, and somehow tastes like the coziest part of summer even when it is ninety degrees outside.

Heads up, a couple of the links below are affiliate links, which just means if you grab something I get a tiny commission at no extra cost to you. Only the stuff actually sitting in my kitchen made the cut.

Why you will love this one

It is genuinely a two bowl situation. One bowl for the wet, one for the dry, a spatula, and a 9×5 loaf pan. No mixer, no creaming butter, no waiting for anything to soften.

The zucchini is the secret weapon. You do not taste it, you just get this incredibly moist crumb that stays soft for days, which almost never happens with quick breads. And it hides a whole cup of vegetable in a slice my four year old calls cake. I let her think that.

It is also forgiving. Big zucchini, little zucchini, oil or melted butter, chips or chunks. This bread does not care, and on a Tuesday in July, neither do I.

Ingredients you will need

Nothing fancy here, most of it is already in your pantry. You will want a box grater for the zucchini and a good bag of semisweet chocolate chips.

• 1 1/2 cups grated zucchini, lightly packed (about 1 medium)
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil or melted butter
• 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, plus a handful for the top

How to make chocolate chip zucchini bread

Start by heating the oven to 350 degrees and lining a loaf pan with a strip of parchment paper so you can lift the whole loaf out later. Future you will be grateful.

Grate your zucchini and give it a light blot with a clean towel. Here is the one thing people get wrong: do not wring it bone dry. That moisture is exactly what makes this bread so soft, so leave it be.

Whisk your dry ingredients in one bowl. In a bigger bowl, whisk the eggs, both sugars, oil, yogurt, and vanilla until smooth, then stir in the zucchini. Add the dry to the wet and fold gently, just until the flour disappears. Overmixing is how you get a hockey puck, so stop early.

Fold in the chocolate chips, pour it into the pan, scatter a few more chips on top because we are not shy, and bake 50 to 60 minutes. A toothpick should come out with moist crumbs and a little melted chocolate, not wet batter. Cool it in the pan for 15 minutes before lifting it out.

Tips, variations, and make-ahead

Want muffins instead? Scoop the batter into a lined tin and bake at 350 for 18 to 22 minutes. You will get about fourteen, and they vanish faster than the loaf, somehow.

If your crowd likes nuts, fold in a half cup of chopped walnuts. Mine stages a small protest at the sight of a walnut, so I leave them out. You can also swap the chips for a mix of chocolate and a little cinnamon sugar swirl if you are feeling extra.

This bread keeps beautifully. Wrapped on the counter it is good for three days, and it freezes like a dream. I slice the whole loaf, freeze the slices flat, and pull one out for breakfast all month. Fifteen seconds in the microwave and it tastes fresh baked.

Quick recipe details

Prep time is about 15 minutes, bake time runs 50 to 60 minutes, and you will get roughly 10 slices from one loaf. Store wrapped at room temperature for up to 3 days, in the fridge for a week, or freeze up to 3 months. The full printable card with exact amounts and steps is right below.

Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread

Impossibly moist chocolate chip zucchini bread that hides a whole cup of garden zucchini in the coziest, most kid-approved loaf. One bowl for the wet, one for the dry, and no fancy equipment.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 55 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

Servings: 10 slices

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 1 1/2 cups grated zucchini, lightly packed (about 1 medium) lightly blotted, not wrung dry
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 large eggs room temperature
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil or melted butter
• 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips plus a small handful for the top

Method

 

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan and line it with a strip of parchment so you can lift the bread out later.
2. Grate the zucchini on the large holes of a box grater. Give it a light blot with a clean towel to catch any pooling water, but do not wring it out. You want that moisture.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
4. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, granulated sugar, brown sugar, oil, yogurt, and vanilla until smooth. Stir in the grated zucchini.
5. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and fold gently with a spatula until just combined. A few streaks of flour are fine. Do not overmix or the bread turns tough.
6. Fold in the chocolate chips. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and scatter a few extra chips over the top.
7. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until the top is set and a toothpick in the center comes out with moist crumbs and melted chocolate, not wet batter. Tent with foil at the 40 minute mark if it is browning fast.
8. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then lift the loaf out onto a rack. Try to wait until it is at least warm, not molten, before slicing. Or do not. I never do.

Notes

Storage: Keep wrapped at room temperature for up to 3 days, or in the fridge for up to a week.
Freezer: Wrap the whole loaf or individual slices and freeze up to 3 months. Thaw on the counter or warm a slice for about 15 seconds.
Make it muffins: Divide the batter into a lined muffin tin and bake at 350F for 18 to 22 minutes. Makes about 14.
Add-ins: A half cup of chopped walnuts or pecans is lovely if your crowd is pro-nut. Mine is not, so I leave them out.
Do not wring the zucchini dry. A light blot is all it needs. That moisture is the whole point.

The takeaway

If you are staring down a pile of summer zucchini and wondering what on earth to do with all of it, this is your answer. It is easy, it is cozy, and it turns a vegetable nobody asked for into the thing everyone reaches for. That is my kind of magic trick.

If you make it, come tell me how it went, and whether your people figured out the secret ingredient or not. Drop it in the comments, my oven is always on.

So glad you are here.
xo, Pam