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overhead view of the healthy zucchini bread recipe, sliced on a cutting board
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5 from 12 votes

Healthy Zucchini Bread (Chocolate Chips + Walnuts)

Healthy zucchini bread is perfectly moist, slightly sweet, with bites of chocolate chips and walnuts. With no refined sugar, just a touch of coconut oil, and whole wheat flour, it's a healthier treat to enjoy with a cup of coffee.
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time1 hour
Total Time1 hour 20 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Diet: Vegetarian
Servings: 10 slices
Calories: 235kcal
Author: Denise Bustard

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ cups zucchini shredded; firmly packed; 160 g
  • 1 ½ cups whole wheat flour 180 g
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • ¼ cup coconut oil melted; 52 g
  • ½ cup applesauce 130 g
  • ½ cup maple syrup 130 g; or honey
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 eggs
  • ½ cup walnuts chopped; 58 g
  • ¼ cup mini chocolate chips 48 g

Instructions

  • Prepare- Heat oven to 325°F. Spray and flour a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan, set aside.
  • Zucchini- Shred zucchini on a box grater. Place on a paper towel and cover with a second paper towel. Allow to sit for ten minutes, and gently press to transfer extra liquid to the paper towels.
    shredded zucchini on a paper towel lined plate
  • Dry ingredients- In a large bowl, stir together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon.
    dry ingredients for zucchini bread mixed up in bowl
  • Wet ingredients- In a large microwave safe bowl, melt the coconut oil. Stir in the applesauce, maple syrup, vanilla and eggs. If coconut oil starts to solidify, microwave the liquids for 20 seconds at a time until coconut oil is melted again.
    wet ingredients for zucchini bread mixed up in bowl
  • Combine- Stir the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until no flour clumps remain. Fold in the zucchini, chocolate chips and walnuts.
    zucchini, walnuts and chocolate chips on top of zucchini bread batter
  • Pan- Transfer to the loaf pan and bake for 55- 1h5m, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
    zucchini bread in loaf pan before baking
  • Cool- Allow to cool completely. Run a knife around the outside of the pan to loosen, then invert the pan and give it a couple of firm smacks to release the loaf from the pan.
    zucchini bread in loaf pan after baking

Video

Notes

I used a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan similar to this one. If you have an 8 x 4 inch loaf pan, keep an eye on the zucchini bread, it may be baked through sooner (start checking at 40 min)
Storage
  • Fridge- store for up to 1 week wrapped in plastic or beeswax wrap in the fridge.
  • Freeze- for up to 3 months.
  • Thaw- overnight in the fridge.
Swaps + variations
  • zucchini- swap for yellow squash, shredded carrots or shredded apples
  • walnuts- swap for pecans, almonds, or any other nut you’d like (or leave them out!)
  • flour- swap the whole wheat flour for white whole wheat or all purpose; it has not been tested with gluten-free or any alternative flours
  • coconut oil- swap for vegetable oil or butter
  • maple syrup- swap for honey

Nutrition

Serving: 1/10 of the loaf | Calories: 235kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 33mg | Sodium: 190mg | Potassium: 217mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 95IU | Vitamin C: 3.5mg | Calcium: 55mg | Iron: 1.2mg