Like my chocolate zucchini cake, this moist and fudge-like double chocolate zucchini bread raises a huge question: How on earth is there a vegetable in THIS?! Readers have loved this recipe for years, and it’s on my menu all summer long when zucchini is plentiful.
I originally published this recipe in 2015 and have since added new photos, a video tutorial, and more success tips. I also made a few small changes to the recipe to yield a more moist, flavorful loaf.
One reader, Kristin, commented: “I never review recipes, but had to write one for this one. This bread, cake, dessert—whatever you want to call it—is fabulous! Just the right amount of sweet, chocolate, and is perfectly moist. I have made it for different people (just in the last two weeks because I can’t stop thinking about it) and everyone has loved it. I made no substitutions to anything and it was perfect… ★★★★★”
I firmly believe that the biggest baking mistake one could ever make is… not doubling today’s recipe. After 1 slice, you’ll instantly realize you need far more than 1 loaf of this chocolate bliss. With its moist and rich fudge-like crumb, deep chocolate flavor, and melty chocolate chips inside, it’s almost impossible to believe there’s zucchini in the batter.
One reader, Deb, commented: “Wow! I made this today and it is sooo good! Even my guys (who don’t want anything to do with zucchini) LOVED it! No one can believe there is shredded zucchini in it. One mistake I made—I only made one. ★★★★★“
Here’s What You’ll Love About This Chocolate Zucchini Bread
- Batter comes together quickly and easily
- Sneaks in veggies (which, along with the Greek yogurt, make it one of my healthier dessert recipe ideas)
- Freezes well—make several loaves when zucchini is plentiful, and freeze for future chocolate cravings
- Use this recipe for muffins or cupcakes, too
- Super moist and deeply chocolatey—just read the reviews!
Why Bake With Zucchini?
If you’re new to combining zucchini + chocolate, welcome to the not-so-secret club!
Zucchini is one of my favorite baking ingredients and I have a lot of published recipes using this summer vegetable. My recipes for zucchini bread and zucchini muffins are both incredibly popular with readers, and you’ll find a whopping 3 cups of the nutrition-boosting green shreds in my chocolate zucchini cake, but only if you are looking for it—no one will know if you don’t tell them!
It sounds odd to bake with a green vegetable, but here’s why you should:
- There are only so many zucchini side dishes to make (looking at you, zucchini casserole). Zucchini is abundant in the summer months, so sneaking it into baked goods is a great way to use up a bounty of squash.
- Zucchini adds flavorless moisture. We’re talking pure moisture with zero savory vegetable flavor. You’ve had carrot cake, right? Well, zucchini adds even more moisture and hides even better!
Once you’re convinced, try this zucchini cake with brown butter cream cheese frosting next. For even more inspiration, see all my favorite zucchini recipes—both sweet and savory! You absolutely don’t want to miss these savory zucchini biscuits.
Success Tip: Shredding Zucchini
Today’s zucchini bread comes together in just minutes with simple kitchen tools including a couple bowls, a whisk, and a 9×5-inch loaf pan or an 8×4-inch loaf pan like this one or this one. You also need a grater to shred the zucchini. If you’re looking for recommendations, I own and love this box grater because it’s easy to use, grates quickly, and has held up well with regular use. It’s what I use when making zucchini fritters, too.
Key Ingredients You Need & Why
- Zucchini: Zucchini can vary in size, but 1 medium zucchini is plenty for this recipe. You need 1 and 1/2 cups shredded, which is about 180g, depending on how tightly you pack it.
- Flour: Doesn’t seem like a lot of flour, and it’s not. Keep in mind there’s also cocoa powder which is another dry ingredient. Most of the volume is the zucchini!
- Cocoa Powder: Make sure to use unsweetened natural cocoa powder, not Dutch-process, in this recipe. Read about the difference between Dutch-process vs natural cocoa powder.
- Instant Coffee/Espresso Powder: A little espresso powder gives this double chocolate zucchini bread the richest-tasting chocolate flavor; the bread doesn’t taste like coffee, rather, the espresso powder deepens the flavor of the cocoa. It’s a trick I use in chocolate chess pie and chocolate cake, too.
- Chocolate Chips: Chocolate chips provide some sweetness, while also creating melty pockets of chocolate throughout every slice.
- Oil: I prefer to use oil in my quick breads, like in strawberry bread and peach quick bread, because of the unparalleled moisture it provides. Lately I’ve been making this chocolate zucchini bread with melted coconut oil.
- Plain Greek Yogurt: Greek yogurt adds protein, while also adding tenderness. I always use nonfat here, but you can use low-fat or full-fat Greek yogurt, or regular yogurt, if you prefer.
You also need 2 eggs, baking powder, baking soda, salt, vanilla, and sugar.
If you love this recipe, you’ll also love my double chocolate banana bread which uses many of the same ingredients. And if you like some peanut butter with your chocolate, my peanut butter chocolate chip zucchini bread is right up your alley!
If you don’t have or don’t want to use coconut oil, a neutral oil such as vegetable oil works instead. Expect a very, very thick batter:
The bread takes about 50 minutes to bake. Begin checking at 45 minutes, though, just in case your oven works extra hard!
While it’s incredibly tempting to slice right into this double chocolate zucchini bread while it’s warm, try to resist. I’ve found that with most baked goods starring zucchini, the flavor is noticeably better once it’s completely cooled. This goes for zucchini oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, too.
You can peel the zucchini if you’d like, but I never do. There’s no taste or texture difference. If you’re worried that picky eaters will be suspicious, peeling the zucchini will prevent any trace of green specks sharp eyes might detect.
Slice the bottom end off of the zucchini, hold onto the stem end, and scrape the squash against the shredder side of a box grater like this one until you get to the stem you’re holding. The shredder side is the one with the largest holes.
When I first published this recipe in 2015, I included a step for blotting some moisture out of the zucchini. I don’t find this necessary anymore. In fact, you WANT that extra moisture in every single slice. Just shred the zucchini and add right to the batter.
Fan-Favorite Chocolate Zucchini Bread
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Yield: 1 loaf; 10 slices
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
This double chocolate zucchini bread is moist and fudge-like, and comes together quickly with a couple bowls and a whisk. Readers have loved this recipe for years, and it’s on my menu all summer long when zucchini is plentiful. See recipe Notes for freezing and doubling instructions.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (125g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/2 cup (41g) unsweetened natural cocoa powder (not Dutch process)*
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon espresso powder*
- 3/4 cup (135g) semi-sweet chocolate chips*
- 2 large eggs
- 1/4 cup (60ml) vegetable oil or melted coconut oil
- 1/3 cup (80g) plain Greek yogurt or sour cream*
- 2/3 cup (135g) granulated sugar*
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 and 1/2 cups (180g) shredded zucchini (no need to blot)*
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan or 8×4-inch loaf pan (for a taller loaf) with nonstick spray. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and espresso powder together until combined. Mix in the chocolate chips. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs, oil, yogurt, granulated sugar, and vanilla together until combined. Slowly pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and gently whisk to combine. Fold in the zucchini. The batter is very thick.
- Bake for 45–55 minutes, making sure to loosely cover the bread with aluminum foil halfway through to prevent the top from over-cooking. The bread is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean with only a few small moist crumbs. The 9×5-inch pan takes closer to 45 minutes, and the 8×4-inch pan takes closer to 55 minutes. All ovens vary, so begin checking around the 45-minute mark.
- Remove bread from the oven and allow the bread to cool in the pan set on a wire rack for 1 hour. While it’s still warm, I gently press a few more chocolate chips into the top; this is optional and only for looks.
- Remove bread from the pan and place the loaf directly on the wire rack to cool completely.
- Cover and store bread at room temperature for 5 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Freeze baked & cooled loaf, tightly wrapped, for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. If desired, bring to room temperature before serving. To learn more details about how to freeze quick breads, see my post called Make-Ahead Baking.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 9×5-inch Loaf Pan or 8×4-inch Loaf Pan | Box Grater | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Silicone Spatula | Cooling Rack
- Double the Recipe: You can double the recipe by doubling all of the ingredients and dividing the batter between 2 loaf pans. If the batter seems much too thick, you can add a splash of milk.
- Chocolate Zucchini Muffins: Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C) and spray a 12-count pan with nonstick spray or line with cupcake liners. Prepare batter as directed above, fill each liner to the top with batter and bake the muffins for 5 minutes at 425°F (218°C). Then, keeping the muffins in the oven, lower the temperature to 350°F (177°C) and continue to bake for an additional 14–15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Makes 10–12 muffins.
- Chocolate Zucchini Cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C) and line a 12-count pan with cupcake liners. Prepare batter as directed above, fill each liner 2/3 full with batter and bake for 19–20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely, then frost with chocolate buttercream. Makes 12 cupcakes.
- Cocoa Powder: Use natural cocoa powder, not Dutch-process. See Dutch-process vs natural cocoa powder for more information.
- Espresso Powder: Espresso powder deepens the chocolate flavor. You can skip it or use 1 teaspoon of instant coffee powder instead.
- Chocolate Chips: Don’t leave these out! They sweeten the bread and give the bread more chocolate flavor. The bread is a little bland without them.
- Yogurt: I usually use nonfat plain Greek yogurt. You can use full-fat, low-fat, or even vanilla Greek yogurt instead. Or use regular plain yogurt, or sour cream. Prior to 2023, this recipe called for 1/4 cup (60g) yogurt, but I now use 1/3 cup (80g) as listed above. Extra moisture!
- Sugar: For a sweeter bread, use 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar.
- Zucchini: I do not peel the zucchini before shredding, but you certainly can if you’d like. I like to use a box grater for shredding zucchini. Zucchini can vary in size, but 1 medium zucchini is plenty for this recipe. If using frozen zucchini, thaw first and lightly blot before using.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 246
- Sugar: 20 g
- Sodium: 76.4 mg
- Fat: 11.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 33.2 g
- Protein: 5.4 g
- Cholesterol: 37.6 mg
This recipe is delicious. But I found it a little drier than expected. Any suggestions to make it a little moister?
Hi Diane! The bread should be plenty moist, so be careful not to over-bake. Your oven may run a little hot – be sure to check on the bread as it is baking and use a toothpick to test for doneness.
I’ve made this twice now & it’s absolutely delicious! My family loves it. I have a question though. Serving size says one slice, but I’m not sure what size slice. I used the 9×5 loaf pan, how many servings per pan (how many slices?) I’m counting calories for weight loss, so this is very important. Thanks !
Hi Angela, we’re so glad you enjoyed it! The serving size accounts for 10 slices from one loaf.
I’ve made the King Arthur and Once Upon a Chef versions of this recipe, and based on how good those were, decided to try this variation. No. Not enough flour, not enough salt, too much cocoa powder, and it’s a very small recipe — made exactly 6 large muffins (nowhere near the 10-12 in the recipe instructions). Baking the muffins for the recommended time produced a clean tester toothpick, but once cooled, it was apparent the muffins were way underdone with the zucchini not fully tender and the inside of the muffin tasting of raw dough. The muffins had to be toasted split open to become edible. Just not a good recipe variation.
Hi Anya, thank you for the feedback. If the recipe only yielded 6 muffins for you, it sounds like there was a lot of batter in each, and therefore the muffins didn’t cook through in the given time. Sorry for the trouble here, but the recipe should yield 10 to 12 standard size muffins/cupcakes, filling each about 2/3 full with batter. Did you use a jumbo muffin pan?
I saw this on Instagram reels and it looked delicious! I thought that the Zucchini would’ve altered the taste, but I was surprised because I couldn’t taste it at ALL! Definitely making again very very soon
Hi! Can you substitute Tapioca flour in this recipe? Trying to make it gluten free and saw the comment already about not using almond flour.
Hi Debbie, we don’t recommend tapioca flour either. If you have it available to you, a 1:1 gluten free all purpose flour blend would likely work best here. Let us know if you try it!
Can you use cottage cheese instead of yogurt
Hi Caroline, we haven’t tested that substitution but we’d love to know how it turns out if you give it a try!
Great recipe! Only thing I flinched at was opening the oven half way through to put foil on the top. Won’t this make the loaf fall? Just like with a cake, if you open the oven half way through?
Hi Janey, no, the loaf shouldn’t fall. We’re so glad you enjoyed the bread!
This recipe is so delicious and can’t taste the zucchini. I made cupcakes out of the recipe (makes 12 exactly). The kids luv them and don’t know they’re eating veggies
Time and temp for a confection oven and mini loaves???!! Got some ready to bake and don’t want to burn them!!
Hi, we always provide the temperature for a conventional oven bake setting, so I’m unsure of the results of baking this recipe in a convection oven, but I think you need to lower the temperature. The bake time will depend on the exact size of your mini loaf pans. Keep a close eye on them and use a toothpick to test for doneness. I’d begin checking at 20 minutes. Hope they turn out great!
If I only have Dutchncocoa powder is there a way to adjust the recipe to make that work?
Hi Beth, it would require some testing so we can’t guarantee results, but we’ve had a few readers use dutch processed cocoa powder and add a touch of an acidic ingredient, such as 1/2 teaspoon white vinegar. Let us know if you do give it a try!
I loved this recipe but I added mocha icing to top it off and a tablespoon of kahlua to the icing… Was wonderful!
Love ❤️ love ❤️ love this recipe! I’ve been making it every week because the family eats it up so fast. Follow recipe exactly as written and then stir in half cup of walnuts in the end.
If I hadn’t put the zucchini in myself I wouldn’t have known this had zucchini in it. My family who think they hate zucchini loved this chocolate loaf and had no idea their was a vegetable in it. Easy to make and come together fast. You will want to double this one!
I can’t wait to try this!! Can I use half almond flour and half ap?? I plan on doing muffins!
Hi Gabriella, we don’t recommend using almond flour here, as it has very different baking properties than all-purpose flour and isn’t always a 1:1 swap. Best to stick with all-purpose flour here!
Hi, can I make this recipe egg free?
Hi Jenny, we haven’t tested any egg substitutes in this recipe so we’re unsure of the best option. If you give anything a try, we’d love to know how it goes! In the meantime, here are all of our egg-free recipes.
The bread is definitely chocolatey and moist, almost too moist as it did not stay intact when I turned the loaf pan over as the bottom was not done even after 50 mins. I flipped it back into the loaf pan and baked for 10 more minutes but I left it in the pan this time. Great w ice cream.
This is an outstanding recipe, works very well, and produces a deliciously moist, chocolaty bread. Dark enough for dark chocolate lovers, but not too dark for those who prefer milk chocolate. I used olive oil and baked in an 8×8 pan, but otherwise followed this as is. This is a keeper, I’m adding it to my favorite go to recipes!
This is delicious. Very easy recipe. The bread is super chocolaty and moist. Will definitely make this again and again.
5 star love!!
Absolutely delicious!
What can I replace the yoghurt with if we are a dairy free family?
Hi HL, you could try a dairy-free yogurt (like coconut-based yogurt) in its place.