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This Chocolate Chunk Zucchini Bread is soft and moist with a tender crumb, and it’s not too sweet. This quick bread is Paleo friendly, gluten-free, grain-free, and refined sugar-free.
**2017 Update** As summer continues and my crisper drawer is filled with zucchini, I had a hankering for zucchini bread – this Paleo Chocolate Chunk Zucchini Bread came to mind, and its original photos from August 2014 weren’t doing the recipe justice.
I reshot the recipe with some nice new photos, and have been devouring this bread slice by slice. Sometimes straight from the fridge, more often after 20 seconds in the microwave to melt those chocolate chips. It’s also scrumptious slathered with nut butter. This one is a must try – read the original post below for recipe details and enjoy!
Sooo this was the first time I’ve ever had zucchini bread, but now I totally get what all the fuss is about. This stuff is delicious!
Now I wish I was one of those people who had the problem of way too many zucchinis in the summer, because in addition to my spiralized zucchini dinners that I’ve been obsessed with this summer, I now want to make this zucchini bread all. the. time.
For my first time making zucchini bread, I decided to go the “healthy” route, because I figured what the heck is the point of putting a vegetable in your baked goods if you just go and overload with a whole bunch of sugar, oil, and flour? The best part about this healthy route though, is that not one of the people who tried it (which was a lot) noted that it was healthy. I take that as a major win, because isn’t that the whole point of making healthy desserts?
I read a lot about making zucchini breads before I dove into do it myself, and I noticed a lot of complaints about sogginess and too much moisture. I really wanted to avoid that, so I took two precautions: 1) squeeze the heeeeck out of that zucchini! I squeezed the grated zucchini over the sink to get as much water out as I could, and then I laid it out on a paper towel and squeezed it in that too. My zucchini was pretty dry by that point, and I recommend you follow the same steps so you don’t end up with a soggy loaf!
The second precaution is the use of coconut flour. Please don’t be tempted to switch it for something else – coconut flour is magical at soaking up that little extra bit of moisture in a recipe, because it acts like a sponge. You only need a little bit, but it makes all the difference in this recipe! (It’s also pretty easy to get now – they even have it at Trader Joe’s for a really good price!)
I’m in the camp that believes chocolate makes absolutely everything better, so of course I threw in some chopped chocolate chunks. The bread isn’t too sweet on it’s own, since it only uses 3 tablespoons of maple syrup, so the chocolate adds a nice bit of extra sweetness to the bread.
I didn’t use too many – just enough for a bit of the decadence chopped chocolate brings. In loaves like this, I prefer chopped chocolate over chocolate chips, because the waxes in chocolate chips prevent them from melting to that super ooey gooey melty texture that absolutely makes a bread like this that much better. Try it – you’ll see what I mean. If you want to make sure this bread stays Paleo/refined sugar free, try making your own paleo-friendly chocolate chunks!
The texture of this bread is amazing – it’s soft and tender and definitely not dry, but also not overly soggy or wet. I also love the green streaks running through it from the zucchini, though you may want to peel the zucchini if you’re trying to hide the veggies from your kiddos. Kids will absolutely love this as well. Though there isn’t a lot of added sweetener, the banana also helps sweeten the bread up so you definitely don’t miss the extra sugar so many quick breads call for.
I could ramble on more and more about how awesome this bread is, but I literally just got up from writing this post to go take another bite of the (very small) piece that’s left, and I don’t even know what else to say but…go try it. As far as quick breads go, this is up there as one of my favorites with my almond banana bread and chocolate chunk banana bread.
And I need to finish this post so I can go get another piece. Enjoy!
Want more quick breads?! Then you’ve got to try these delicious favorites…
- Paleo Chocolate Chunk Banana Bread
- Paleo Carrot Bread
- Paleo Double Chocolate Banana Bread
- Paleo Apple Cinnamon Bread
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Remember to #bakerita if you try the recipe!
Chocolate Chunk Zucchini Bread
Ingredients
- 1½ cups (6 oz.) almond flour
- 3 tablespoons 0.75 oz. coconut flour
- 1½ teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 cup grated zucchini, water squeezed out after measuring
- 3 eggs, room temperature
- 3 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 medium banana, mashed
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil, melted
- ½ cup 3 oz. dark chocolate chunks
Instructions
- Grease one 9"x5" loaf pan (or 8"x8" square pan) and preheat the oven to 350ºF.
- In a large bowl or mixer, combine the eggs, maple syrup, mashed banana, and coconut oil. Mix for medium for about 2 minutes. Add zucchini and stir to combine.
- Add the almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Stir until combined. Fold in the chocolate chunks.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread it evenly.
- Bake in the preheated oven for about 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool on a wire rack for about 1/2 hour. Flip out onto a cooling rack to finish cooling.
- Store in an airtight container for 2 days at room temperature, or up to 5 days in the refrigerator. Can also be stored tightly wrapped in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Yay for healthy zucchini bread, it looks absolutely amazing! I love that you added chocolate and the coconut flour is such a great tip! Can’t wait to try this – pinning:)
Thanks for the pin, Kelly! :)
I want this nowwww! Just bought some coconut flour :)
Yum!! Gimme gimme!
This bread looks so perfectly moist! Yum!
I’ve been getting one big zucchini per day (at least) out of my garden and at first, I was loving it. But now I’m all “UNCLE!” I would be happy to give you some of mine! But first, I must make this bread, because it looks in-freaking-credible.
Oh, I wish I could have some of your zucchini!! Definitely try this bread before giving any away though :) I think you’ll love it!
If this is healthy than sign me up! This looks so moist and delicious I could probably eat the whole thing myself—would that still be healthy?
I’m so excited to try this recipe but unfortunately I don’t have neither a 9×5 nor an 8×8 pan. Is there any other alternative? Or if not will I have to change the baking time if I use a different sized pan?
Hi Nefeli. Another similarly sized pan would work, like a 9×9, but I wouldn’t go too much smaller – you don’t want it to overflow! If you use a larger pan, the baking time will be decreased because the bread will be thinner – it’s ready when a toothpick comes out clean. Hope this helps!
I can’t have bananas. Is there a sub for that?
You could use applesauce instead!
Looking forward to making this yummy treat! Appreciate your creativity and sharing! What could I substitute for the banana? I know it’s the perfect ingredient, but is there any other option for this one item?
Hi Alison, you could probably sub about 1/3 cup applesauce for the banana.
Oops! Just saw your suggestion of applesauce. Have you ever created zucchini bread without a banana ingredient? I love bananas but have currently eliminated them from my diet. I may add them back at some point. Just hoping you can point me to a similar, delicious one in the future if your creativity leads you there. But the applesauce just might do the trick too!
I wish people would write how it tastes …I can SEE how it looks!
Tired of just comments when no one has tried it.
Hi Jane, most comments from people who’ve tried it come to me via Instagram – a number of people have made this and really enjoyed it. Trust me, I wish people would remember to leave comments here too! I hope you’ll give it a go :)