It’s here! The chocolaty, rich, naturally sweet, tender zucchini bread of my dreams. Have I convinced you of how delicious this is yet? Let me show you how!
This recipe is incredibly easy to make, requiring just 1 bowl and simple, wholesome ingredients.
The base is a blend of flax eggs, coconut oil, zucchini, and applesauce, while maple syrup and coconut sugar add the perfect amount of natural sweetness. Then comes plenty of cocoa powder for that rich chocolate flavor.
For gluten-free flours, I tested many combinations, but a mixture of oat flour, gluten-free flour, and almond flour worked best! It created a fluffy, tender zucchini bread that was moist but not at all gummy in the center.
Once your bread has baked, it’s important to let it cool all the way. I know! It’s tough. But the longer this bread cools, the fluffier and more tender it becomes.
I hope you all LOVE this zucchini bread! It’s:
Wholesome
Naturally sweetened
Chocolaty
Fluffy
Tender
& Totally drool-worthy
This would make the perfect breakfast (pair it with coconut butter or coconut yogurt!), snack, or healthier dessert. I even enjoyed mine with a bit of creamy peanut butter for a bit more protein. Serious yum.
For more delicious baked goods, check out our 1-Bowl Chocolate Chocolate Chip Muffins, Peanut Butter & Jelly Muffins, 1-Bowl Gluten-Free Banana Bread, Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies, and 5-Ingredient Vegan Gluten-Free Cookies!
If you try this recipe, be sure to let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a picture #minimalistbaker on Instagram so we can see! Cheers, friends!
1-Bowl Chocolate Zucchini Bread
Ingredients
- 2 batches flax egg (2 Tbsp (14 g) flaxseed meal + 5 Tbsp (75 ml) water as original recipe is written)
- 1/4 cup applesauce
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/3 cup coconut sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup melted coconut oil (or sub another neutral oil)
- 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 cup grated zucchini (squeezed dry and lightly packed in measuring cup)
- 3/4 cup gluten-free flour blend
- 1/3 cup gluten-free oat flour (finely ground rolled oats)
- 1/3 cup almond flour (or almond meal, though I haven't tested it this way)
- 1/3 cup dairy-free semisweet chocolate chips (plus more for topping // I like Enjoy Life brand)
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 C) and line a standard 9x5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper (as original recipe is written // use fewer or more pans if altering batch size).
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In a large mixing bowl, prepare flax eggs and let rest for 5 minutes. Then add applesauce, maple syrup, coconut sugar, baking soda, baking powder, sea salt, and cocoa powder, and whisk again.
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Next add the melted coconut oil and almond milk and whisk to combine. Add grated zucchini (that's been squeezed of excess moisture) and stir to combine.
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Add gluten-free flour, oat flour, and almond flour and whisk until just combined. If the batter appears too thick, add a touch more almond milk. But it should be thick and scoopable.
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Lastly, stir in chocolate chips. Then transfer batter to the loaf pan and top with a few more chocolate chips (optional).
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Bake 45 minutes - 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean and the edges feel semi-firm to the touch.
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Let cool for 5 minutes in the pan. Then carefully lift onto a cooling rack using the parchment paper. Texture is best when cooled completely. Will keep covered at room temperature for 3-4 days or in the freezer up to 1 month.
Notes
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate.
*Recipe adapted from my Chocolate Chocolate Chip Muffins.
Nutrition Per Serving (1 of 10 slices)
- Calories: 216
- Fat: 10.8g
- Saturated fat: 7.1g
- Sodium: 58mg
- Carbohydrates: 31.1g
- Fiber: 4.1g
- Sugar: 15g
- Protein: 3.4g
Great bread! Can’t even taste the zucchini! 😄
I baked it for 75 min. Delicious! Thank you I love all your recepies!
Whoop! Thanks, Vicky! xo
i LOVE this recipe! It’s my fav and I make it all the time! It’s winter now and zucchini isn’t in season, think this would work with any winter squash?? Maybe spaghetti squash?
Hi Emily, grated apples or pears or maybe butternut squash might work. But we think spaghetti squash would be stringy. Let us know if you do some experimenting!
INCREDIBLE! I just made this for the first time tonight and it is so delicious. It’s moist and has just the right amount of chocolate. Will definitely make again and again!
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Bailey! Thanks so much for sharing! xo
If making these muffins instead, what would be the bake time?
Bake for about 20-30 minutes. You can use this recipe for reference. Let us know how it goes!
Great! I did 30 min and it turned out perfectly! They were fantastic!
I have made this bread a few times now and live it!
The first time I baked i actually forgot the zucchini and didn’t turn out so well. It definitely needs it. The second time I baked it I used buckwheat flour instead of all purpose flour As I just used what I had at the time and still worked out great. This cake is yummy and my favourite and my go-to cake when I really want chocolate ? ❤️
We’re so glad you enjoy this recipe, Rhian! Thanks so much for the lovely review!
This is my favorite and now go-to recipe when I want chocolate cake! Not too sweet and always perfectly moist. I usually substitute raw cane sugar for coconut sugar and almond meal instead of almond flour (and use AP flour and finely ground rolled oats). Thanks Dana!
We’re so glad you enjoy this recipe! Thanks so much for the lovely review and for sharing your modifications!
I’m normally very skittish about baking, but thought I’d try this recipe out. I’ve made this several times this summer and each time was delicious! It’s hard to wait for it to totally cool but it’s worth being patient — it’s so tender and lovely. I used AP flour rather than GF (1:1) and brown sugar instead of coconut sugar since I didn’t have the latter. Thanks, Dana!
Yay! Thanks for sharing, Kanika!
Does the Trader Joes gluten free flour blend work well? I’ve never tried it before, and it’s the only gluten free flour I have available to me. If I used APF, how much would I use in place of the amount in the recipe? Would this recipe work well if I made it into muffins instead of a loaf, and how would that effect the cooking time?
Thanks, I love all your recipes!
Hi Anne, we haven’t tried this recipe with the Trader Joe’s blend, but it might work! We think that blend tends to be a lighter texture though so it may not hold together as well. We also haven’t tried all purpose flour, but other readers have mentioned doing so with success. Just use the same amount as GF. And yes, we think it would work well as muffins- cook for about 20-30 minutes. You can use this recipe for reference.
Thanks for your help, they turned out great! Honestly, they probably would have been a little better with the GF blend you used; I think the APF was a little too heavy for the combination of the cacao powder and zucchini. Maybe it would work better if I used a little less cacao powder when using APF and more zucchini? Idk, but I think the balance between flavors was a bit off with regular flour. I will try this again sometimes with the GF blend!
Thank you again, you’re recipes are always the best V and GF that I can find!
Thanks so much for sharing, Anne! Enjoy! xo
This is perfect! I was worried about the effort-to-enjoyment ratio here because there are lots of ingredients and recipes within the recipe, but I assure you this is a great value. I am vegan, and I followed this recipe as written. I used exactly the gluten free flour blend (including the xanthan gum) recipe and the flax egg. Instead of coconut oil, I used sunflower oil. Because there were so many ingredients and because I have an abundance of garden zucchini, I decided to go all in and double it for two loaves – one for the freezer. I baked it for about 1 hour and 5 minutes – the toothpick kept coming out gummy up until then. It is absolutely delicious with the right amount of rich chocolate and sweetness. And, once cooled, the crumb was light and airy. Thank you, thank you!
Yay! Thanks for sharing, Brande!
This recipe is fantastic and came out perfect. My husband loved and that is unbelievable!
I tried this recipe. I was hopeful, but found it not as good as I had hoped. I did wonder if there were some things that I might have done incorrectly based on not being 100% sure about some ingredients. For example, does it matter if I used fine sea salt or course sea salt? Is the coconut oil 1/4 before melting or after melting? (Does it make a difference?) There are different brands of gluten free flour. With or without xylitol? Is there a brand that works better? Same with almond flour. I know that baking with various flours can be tricky to get the right combination. Learning as I go, but since it is so expensive to buy these various types of products, I would love any help.
Thanks.
Hi Shawn, we would say the gluten free flour blend would make the biggest difference. We used our homemade blend (link in recipe). The closest store bought substitute we have found is Bob’s Red Mill 1-1 Gluten-Free Baking Flour. Our favorite brand of almond flour is also linked in the recipe. We would say fine sea salt would be preferable and it shouldn’t make a big difference whether the coconut oil is measured before or after, but we measure before. Hope that helps!
Thank you so much! That does help. I will make those adjustments. Found that I enjoyed it more warmed up with a little butter on it.
I love this recipe! Easy to make and delicious.
I’m wondering if its freezer friendly??
Thanks,
Jen
Yes! Up to 1 month.
Fantastic flavor and texture- not overly sweet, but tastes like an indulgence. Hit with the family. I used Namaste Perfect Flour Blend for the gluten-free flour blend because I had it on hand and used 2 T. semi-sweet chocolate chips as the topping (in addition to the 1/3 cup in the batter). Costco’s Kirlkland chocolate chips are dairy-free, use real vanilla, and taste amazing! Not to mention they are affordable- I store the bag in my deep freeze when not baking. Thanks for sharing a great recipe with us!
We are so glad your family enjoyed this recipe! Thanks so much for sharing! xo
Costco’s chocolate chips are vegan?!?!?!
The 4.5 lb bag of Kirkland Semisweet chocolate chips I have lists the ingredients as: chocolate liquor, sugar, soy lecithen (an emulsifier), and vanilla. The allergen statement reads: “Allergen information: Processed on equipment that also packages products that may contain peanuts, tree nuts, wheat, soybeans, milk, and eggs. Consumers with food allergies and food sensitivities, please read the ingredient list carefully.” SO, I thought that it was dairy-free. Then I just noticed there is a U with a circle around it next to a “D” on the front of the package, which indicates it does contain dairy- so there must be some in the chocolate liquor? Unless the “D” on the package is because it ‘could’ contain dairy due to being processed on the same equipment. (sigh) I guess I’ll be trying to call the company to ask. Thank you for commenting to ask me I hadn’t thought of chocolate liquor as being a cuprit as it is often made with cocoa beans and cocoa butter. If anyone has any insight on these tricky labels please share. After all the years we’ve had food allergies and sensitivities, I am still learning.
I did find an article explaining that the Kosher symbol “D” will appear on foods that are processed or potentially processed on the same equipment as dairy-containing products. (Phew!) That makes sense because my sons have never had a reaction to the Kirkland chocolate chips.
this is really delicious, easy and rich ..the texture is beautiful..
I made it without maple syrup and coconut sugar and instead I used agava syrup and date syrup, but I will definitely try coconut sugar in another version of this bread : )
Also I replaced gluten-free flour blend with only white rice flour, almond flour with almond meal and almond milk with rice milk. Next time I will make it without baking powder. It’s perfect !
thank you :)
So glad you enjoyed it, Monika! Thanks so much for sharing! xo
I am in love with the texture of this zucchini bread! Not dense and chewy like standard GF bread, but moist and light! I did modify it a bit to suit my needs, I subbed:
2 eggs instead of flax
More coconut oil instead of applesauce
Cane sugar instead of coconut sugar
Used more oat flour since I didn’t have almond flour
1 tbsp cinnamon and 1/2 tsp ginger instead of cocoa (I didn’t want the chocolate flavor for this batch)
No choc chips
Very tasty, although I do think it needs more of a spice kick if omitting the chocolate flavor, so I think next time I would increase the cinnamon, ginger, maybe add cloves and some chopped walnuts. A definite winner! :)
Oh, and I also made them into muffins since I didn’t have a bread pan, they baked in 20 min
So wonderful! Thanks for sharing your experience and changes, Jade! SO helpful! xoxo
Seriously good! I’ve made it twice now in two weeks. I subbed 2 eggs and more gluten-free oat flour instead of gluten-free flour blend, and it worked great. Also added some walnuts.
This recipe was perfect! We have LOVED all of your 1-bowl quick bread recipes and if you see this I have a request. A 1 bowl date nut quick bread recipe. It’s a tradition in my family at Thanksgiving but the recipe I use is so unhealthy, I have been searching for a “cleaner” version. Thank you for sharing your amazing recipes!
Hi Kristen, thanks so much for the sweet note and lovely review. We will add your idea to our requests list!
AMAZING!! I really hate bananas so I’m always up for any recipe that is developed without those and with chocolate.
A few adjustments:
Grated apples in place of applesauce. I saw a few comments where people’d done this and I have no complaints. I also made muffins which only took about 15 minutes to bake.
A few adjustments:
Swapped cacao powder for cocoa.
Skipped the coconut sugar completely. I don’t gave much of a sweet tooth and with the maple syrup and chocolate chunks I think they’re perfect. My sweets loving boyfriend even agreed.
Mixed some massive chunks of chocolate, cacao nibs and chia seeds in.
The sweetness is just about right, the cocoa flavour is delightful and it’s perfectly moist: awesome recipe, as always!
Thanks so much, Bobby! xo
I made this and it was a huge success!
I had to improvise a bit with what i had on hand so instead of almond milk I used a a couple spoonfuls of coconut Yoghurt+water, I also omitted the chocolate chips because I didn’t have any and I didn’t want it to be too sweet and I also used blanched almond meal instead of flour. It turned out so delicious with an incredible texture. Thanks so much for yet another amazing recipe that I’ll definitely be making again.
Yay! So glad you enjoyed it, Klyne! Thanks so much for the lovely review! xo
I just made this today and because I didn’t make the oat flour, my rating could be off. I still really liked it, wondering if leaving the Oat flour out and replacing with the almond would make a difference. Mine was slightly dry but still really good. Also wondering if adding some sweet potato would add moist. Nonetheless, still really good.
My daughter (11) and I made this delicious, moist bread today, though we’re calling it cake because it’s so super yummy and decadent. We used whole wheat pastry flour as a sub for the gluten free flour. Also we used soy milk because it’s what we had on hand. Thank you for the recipe for this simple, sweet treat!
I made this today and loved it! I thought I had applesauce but I didn’t so I microwaved an apple for a few minutes and mashed it. I used whole wheat flour instead of the gluten free flour/oat flour combo. Lovely recipe!
Smart! Thanks for sharing, Julie!
I really enjoy your recipes and this was no exception. I did substitute banana for applesauce and coconut milk for almond milk. Easy to mix up. Delicious ?
Thanks so much for the lovely review, Lynn. We are so glad you enjoyed it! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much! xo
I made this recipe as cupcakes instead of the loaf to serve as part of our dessert table for my son’s birthday. They are absolutely delicious. The only modification I made was using 2 eggs instead of flax eggs. It made a dozen cupcakes baked at 350 for approximately 24 minutes. Thank you for your recipes. They are always spot on.
Aww thanks so much for your kind words and lovely review, Lois! xo
Great recipe, thank you dana! It tastes so delicious! I baked it for 75 minutes.
So glad you enjoyed it, Laura! Thanks for the lovely review!
so yummy!!!! I used all purpose flour and they came out perfect!!!!! thank you sooo much for the time you take our of your day to master incredible vegan food and share it with the world! xo
xoxo!
Hey!!!! Can I sub the coconut oil for something else? I don’t want to use any oil…
You could try applesauce or nut butter!
Hello Dana,
As with every other recipe I have tried from your website, this one turned out very, very good!
I used white whole wheat in place of the gluten free flour and eggs and substituted sucanat sugar for both maple syrup and coconut sugar. It made a tasty and nutritious evening snack for my daughter.
You are a genius, and I think the only way for me to truly thank you is to buy your cookbook, which I am going to do promptly.
Cheers,
-Debs
Thanks so much for the sweet note and lovely review, Debs. We are so glad you enjoy our recipes! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much! xo
How Man y eggs did you use?
Where has this recipe been all my life?! This is the most amazing chocolate zucchini bread! The texture was perfect – definitely on the cake-y side but still moist (not too moist like a lot of other gf breads/muffins I’ve tried). If I hadn’t made them I would have no idea that they were gluten free! I made some modifications based on what I had in my pantry:
– Subbed honey for maple syrup, and used slightly less than 1/4 cup
– Subbed raw can sugar for coconut sugar 1:1
– Subbed macadamia nut milk for almond milk 1:1
– Subbed the oat flour for additional gluten free flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 baking flour and it worked wonderfully!)
I also didn’t have a bread pan so I divided the batter into muffin cups. I baked them for 30 minutes instead of 45 at 375 and they came out just right!
Thanks so much for sharing!
I love this recipe I make it all the time, I use regular eggs, and honey instead of maple syrup. Often I just skip the sugar and it still taste great! Definitely the hardest part is waiting for the loaf to cool before cutting it. I live alone so I slice it and freeze the pieces individually in a container. They don’t stay in the freezer long but taste just as good after being frozen!
reposted because I forgot to rate it :)
I love this recipe I make it all the time, I use regular eggs, and honey instead of maple syrup. Often I just skip the sugar and it still taste great! Definitely the hardest part is waiting for the loaf to cool before cutting it. I live alone so I slice it and freeze the pieces individually in a container. They don’t stay in the freezer long but taste just as good after being frozen!
Hi, please can you tell me whether I can substitute eggs for the flax eggs? Many thanks.
Hi Loulou, yes, that should work! Let us know if you give it a try!
I just love this recipe. It’s so easy, moist and delicious, not too sweet.
Thanks, Lori!!
Thoughts on using all almond flour instead of the gf flour mix?
Hmm, we haven’t tested it, but perhaps?! Let us know if you give it a try!
Awesome! Turned them into muffins, and halved the cooking time. Subbed lax egg with chicken egg, applesauce with a grated apple, maple syrup with honey, coconut sugar with brown sugar, coconut with olive oil, GF flour with normal flour, oat flour with rice flour. Still came out great.
Damn, this is good! This was my first time baking a vegan cake. The only thing I will do differently is stick to flaxseed meal egg rather than chia seed egg. Great recipe!
Thanks so much for the lovely review, Maggy. We are so glad you enjoyed it! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much! xo
Tastes like chocolate cake- the best chocolate cake I’ve ever eaten ❤️ Thank you for the recipes! I made these into muffins, and they’re perfect ❤️ Every time I make a double batch of your bread recipes to freeze them, we still end up eating them all before they make it to the freezer.
I was really looking forward to this recipe – I love your blog so much but I was disappointed in this one. It turned out really crumbly. When I let it out the pan it cracked in about 6 different pieces.
Wondering if I did something wrong. However we still ate it and it was delicious :)
Hi Rebecca, sorry to hear this didn’t turn out quite as your were expecting. It does have a slightly cake-y consistency, rather than a dense bread so it’s not implausible that it would be a little crumbly. We would recommend trying to bake a little less next time or let it rest in the pan longer after removing from oven. Hope that helps!
“2 batches flax egg (2 Tbsp (14 g) flaxseed meal + 5 Tbsp)”
I’m confused by your saying “2 batches” – Are you saying to double the 2 Tablespoons flax so this recipe would use 4 tablespoons flax and 10 Tbsp water? Or are you saying that the amount you put in the parenthesis is the doubled amount to use?
Thanks.
“2 batches” is 2 Tbsp (14 g) of flaxseed meal + 5 Tbsp (75 ml) water! The amount in the parenthesis is the doubled amount to use.
I made these last night as muffins and they were absolutely devine; never had any better.
For flour, I used half whole wheat pastry flower, half almond flour, to get to the full required quantity.
As sweetner, I doubled the maple syrup quantity; omitted the sugar.
And in the batter I added shredded coconut.
Oh, and the milk was coconut milk, I don’t like almond milk.
My girls had it with some unsweetened coconut yogurt this morning and were thrilled.
Dana, you’re the uncrowned Queen of vegan cuisine. For a few years now, I hardly make any other recipes than yours :) You rock!!
I made a non-vegan version of this with 2 eggs instead of the flax eggs…I also only had almond flour and brown rice flour so I used a mix of those instead….and I didn’t have a bread pan so I put them in cupcake cups instead, they came out great!
The second time I made these I mis-measured and forgot 3/4 of the flour, and it still came out great, just a bit more moist. So these are pretty hard to screw up haha.
Oh I also replaced coconut sugar with agave syrup with good results!
Also I would recommend adding a dash of cinnamon, and I would not recommend leaving out the chocolate chips, this recipe is not very sweet so having the chocolate chips melt into everything add a lot!
HI,
I wanted to know if I can use all purpose flour instead of the gluten-free flour blend you outlined? I want to save on the cost of the flour….
Also, can I leave out the chocolate chips?
THANK YOU! :)
Yes, both of those recipe changes should work!
I have made this recipe many, many times and my family and I have loved it every time! It’s the best recipe I have found on your blog and I will continue to make this recipe for years to come! Thank you so much for sharing it!
I loved this recipe (as I do all of your recipes… I always make those jalapeno biscuits). Anyway, I added a little less sugar (1/4 C) and used regular flour instead of the GF flour (but did use ground oats and almond flour) and it came out great :)
Thanks for always helping me in the kitchen!
I recently made this, following the recipe exactly. It was delicious! Moist, but not dense. Wonderful chocolate flavor. My husband loved it.
It’s challenging to feed my vegan family, while keeping things GF for my celiac husband. Thank you for your fabulous recipes!
Loved this! Did muffins instead of a loaf pan, cooked for 18mins at 375 (my oven runs hot) AMAZING, I want to eat every single one. I do wonder if I could drop the oil and increase the applesauce to make it even healthier… any thoughts on this?
What can I use to substitute for the oat flour ? I have celiac diseases and react bad to oats/oat flour even if it says its gluten free !
Hi Ashly! Another reader subbed an equal quantity of GF flour in place of oat flour and that worked for them, so that might be worth a shot!
Awesome! Recently found out that our son has many food sensitivities, and he was feeling down about missing out on all his favorite foods. This worked for him, and he loved it! Followed the recipe exactly, and it worked out great. Thank you!!
Whoop! We’re glad to hear that, Beth!
Sooo good! Instead of making this in a loaf pan I doubled the recipe and it made exactly 2 dozen muffins and really tasted like chocolate cupcakes- perfect for a birthday party!
Smart! Thanks for sharing, Julia!
Dana, I’ve made this recipe a lot and love it but I want to try something different. Can you tell me how to make this same recipe without the cocoa powder and the chocolate chips? I’m wondering if I have to add some other ingredient to replace the 1/2 cup of cocoa powder?
Thank you,
Lynda
Made this twice following the recipe except for substituting carob for chocolate. Today I don’t have zucchini. I know it’s a zucchini recipe but what can I use instead?
Hi Kathy! Carrot perhaps? Zucchini has a much higher water content than carrots, so there would likely be a texture change after baking which you might not notice in the batter. Carrots also have a higher sugar content so you should probably take that into account. We haven’t tried this and cannot guarantee successful results but let us know if you experiment!
I’m sure I’ve already commented, but I need to say that today while I made another triple batch of this delicious recipe, I pulled out the beautiful loaves and right next to where they were cooling was the melted coconut oil that I hadn’t added to the batch. (I was baking while I had not one, but three sick kids home from school- never again!) I have to say, the recipe may not even need the oil. Maybe only a teensy bit dryer than the original version but I think if you were avoiding oil this would be a great recipe! It wasn’t detected at all by my husband or my 3 kids and they were happy enough to inhale their allotted amounts before slicing, wrapping and freezing for lunches. I also didn’t have any apple sauce, so I used a tin of canned pears and blended them right there in my food processor. Maybe that had something to do with it, but seriously it was fine without the oil!?
We are so glad to hear that it was delicious without the oil, Carmella! Thanks for sharing :)
Love this, exchanged coconut milk instead of almond milk, its what I had on hand, and chopped up an apple instead of applesauce, and made in muffin tin, makes 12. Delicious. Will make again
I made this last night and only got to have a slice today. It is truly an exceptional chocolate cake-and the fact that it’s vegan is a major bonus! Perfect texture and amazing chocolatey flavour. I used chia eggs instead of flax and white spelt flour instead of gf flour. Also used ground almonds (almond meal )instead of almond flour. I also subbed soft brown sugar for coconut sugar. I have a fan forced oven so reduced temp of oven to 170c. (I presume the oven temps given are for conventional ovens?) It took 55mins. Thanks Dana for yet another excellent recipe!
We are so glad you enjoyed it, Viv! Thanks for sharing your recipe changes with us :D
I’m Nicola’s sister (see above) and she made this for our dessert at lunch today. My son who dislikes most vegetables scoffed two pieces before we told him it was made with zucchini! Its as beautiful as all the reviewers have said! I can’t wait to make this and other recipes from this site!
Whoop! Thats a win in our books, Lynda!
The chocolate zucchini bread was delicious. One bowl preparation is a bonus. I didn’t have coconut sugar or apple sauce but I substituted with cranberry juice. The mixture was still scoopable as suggested it would be. Lovely and moist and healthy!
I love this recipe and I tried to make it for my colleagues but it was really crumbly and fell apart. I know this is my fault and I’v done something wrong but can’t figure it out …. any suggestions? I really want to make it again successfully! I’m British so not familiar with the cup measurements and it’s possibly something to do with that! Thank you for bringing this delicious recipe to us <3
Did you change any of the ingredients?
Just made this! Substituted brown sugar for coconut sugar, flax milk for almond milk and apple juice for apple sauce (1:1 for all) because that’s all I had on hand. It’s so delish! Thanks!
Whoop! Thanks for sharing your recipe changes!
Made this for 4th of July. The only substitution I had to make was regular flour for the gf flour blend (didn’t have anything on hand). This bread tastes like a chewy chocolate brownie. Definitely making this again. One of my favorite recipes of yours (and I make many of them and they are all delicious).
What if you’re not gluten free? What flour and how much would you recommend? Thanks!
Hi! Yeah! I’d suggest spelt flour at a 1:1 swap for the GF.
My daughter has a nut allergy. Could I use only GF flour instead of the almond flour?
You could try using extra oat flour? Let us know how it goes!
This recipe was awesome. I made several substitutions, mostly was due to not having ingredients and wanting to make it anyway! My version tasted rich but not *too* rich – it tasted great alone, but also especially with peanut butter + sliced strawberries as an extra treat.
Modifications:
-Instead of the ‘flax eggs’ I used your recipe for ‘chia eggs’
-No coconut oil but used 4 oz. apple sauce in total
-1:1 replacement of all the flours for just white flour
-1:1 Cacao powder instead of cocoa powder
-No maple syrup (did not use a replacement, just omitted)
-I had some fresh rhubarb I wanted to use up so I added 3 grated stalks of that to the batter
Thanks for sharing your recipe changes, Jackie! We are glad you enjoyed it.
This is my most recommended recipe! It’s seriously SOOOO good. Moist and chocolately and yet you don’t feel guilty about slicing yourself an extra piece.
Yummm. I made this two days in a row.
Woot woot! Glad you enjoyed it, Shannon!
Hello,
I am on a keto diet and am really craving desserts. Just curious how you think this would turn out if I only used almond Flour?
Thanks!
Hi Teeda! I am not sure it would work out well to just use almond flour. If you give it a try though, report back on how it goes! Good luck!
Beautiful bread I have made several times. Always comes out nice. Sweet enough for a dessert, but not-so-sweet you can’t get away with considering it breakfast. Fiance says it is one of his favorite baked goods I have ever made.
Yay! Thanks for sharing, Brandy!
Can I make these into muffins easily?
Yes! Just cook for less time!
SO good! I’m not GF, so I just replaced all flour options with all-purpose flour. This bread was so fluffy, not overly-sweet, and delicious! Also, it was super easy — will definitely make again :)
Thanks for sharing your recipe change, Merilla! Glad you enjoyed it :D
Hi!
I’m allergic to apples. What would be a good applesauce sub?
Thanks!
Banana should work!
Awesome! Thanks!!!
I used whole milk yogurt, if you’re okay with dairy!
Overall absolutely delicious.
been vegan for 8 months and never had time for baking… made this today and my GOD! so moist and perfect in every way… great recipe
Yay! We’re glad you enjoyed it!
Does anyone know if I can replace the gluten free flour blend with quinoa flour, amaranth, or something similar?
I made these as muffins – substituted 1/2 a ripe mashed banana for applesauce, reduced the sweetner by 1/3rd and used spelt flour. Came out absolutely delicious! Light but moist texture – great way to use up old zucchini’s.
Thanks for sharing your recipe changes, Selvi! Glad you enjoyed the muffins!
Can I replace gluten free flour for spelt flour?
Yes, spelt should work!
So dense and satisfying, huge hit! Best flavor and texture after complete cooling.
Made this for breakfast upon my husbands request. It’s so tasty! I was out of almond flour so I substituted with more oat flour in place of the almond. It was great still. We couldn’t help but eat half the loaf already.
This. Bread. Is. Amazing. I’ve made it several times, I’ve even omitted the maple syrup and it is still delicious – you don’t even miss the extra sweetness one bit! Definitely better when cooled completely as stated in the recipe. Makes a delicious breakfast or snack! Can’t believe it’s GF and V.
I made this chocoalte zucchini bread and it is awesome. It is my first time using flax egg and I ran out if glute free flour so I used regular flour. It was very delicious. I am going to make it with gluten free flour and will see if that will change the texture of the bread. My husband loved the fact that zucchini is hidden inside this amazing bread
I made this recipe (doubled it for two loaves) with the following substitutions:
– used food processor to chop zucchini finely instead of grating it, then squeezed out excess liquid with a fine strainer. Three small to medium zucchini gave me enough for the double recipe.
– had no applesauce, used one banana instead
– used chia eggs instead of flax eggs
– used regular sugar instead of coconut sugar
– only half the almond milk was unsweetened as I ran out. The other half was sweetened vanilla almond milk.
And it still turned out delicious! I have also made the gluten free and vegan pumpkin bread and banana bread from the site and all have been delicious.
This is the first recipe I have used oat flour instead of whole oats and I think I personally prefer the chewiness of whole rolled oats and may try that next time.
The loaves turned out dense and fudgy. When I poured the batter in the pans it seemed like less than the previous two recipes I have made, and while the finished loaves were not as large as the pumpkin or banana bread recipes, they still rose well. I couldn’t taste the banana or zucchini in the presence of all that delicious chocolate!
I’d love to see more gluten free and vegan breads here in the future! Great recipe!
I tried this recipe and everything came together very well, although it is very dense. You can’t really taste the zucchini past all the chocolate, but it was still delightful.
What can i substitute the almont flr for?
I omit the sugar..and its still good. Better refridgerated overnight!
This looks so amazing. I have heard of zucchini bread and have seen a few recipes but I haven’t brought myself to trying it out yet. This one looks too good to resist. Thanks for sharing!
Dana,
My husband and I are trying to make things without flour. I do have almond meal.
Is there something I can use to replace the oat flour and the gluten free flour blend?
This vegan gluten free zucchini bread is TDF- to die for! Thank you Dana for creating such a glorious treat…..not sure I’m even going to share this one with the kiddos! ??
This was absolutely decadent. Ended up skipping the gf flour and just using more oat/almond mix – probably a little bit less smooth in texture but it doesn’t take away from it at all. Can’t eat apple (high FODMAP) so replaced with a little smashed banana. Never had such delicious gf/vegan (& semi guilt-free!) cake before. Amazing, amazing recipe.
I did the same; omitted gf flour blend (didn’t have any on hand) and used 3/4C of oat flour and 2/3C almond flour. I baked mine for about an hour and 15 minutes and it was still gummy in the center…even after cooling.
Everyone else has had such great experiences and every other recipe I’ve made of yours has been amazing so I’ll have to try it again.
I have done it recently after many successes this time was on the gummy side as I tried to do it as base for tiered cake. I swapped gluten free to organic einkorn fluor and did not noticed that baking temp is aqually 190 not 180. As I have dane it many times, did not payed enough attention to details. It was clearly mu fault.
I just made this today and it is delicious. Thank you, Dana, for this and all your great recipes…you’ve made going whole food plant based pretty stinkin’ easy!
Hi Dana!
These recipes have changed my life. Your website has transformed my previously meat-and-dairy-oriented diet to one of vegan-and-plant-based happiness. God bless ya, you angel. Call me sometime.
The cake is incredible and just sweet enough without making you feel sick afterward.
Merci
I made this for the second time tonight. The first time around I tried to cut the sugar and it turned out not sweet enough, but the second time I stuck to the recipe and it came out amazing. Used almond meal instead of almond flour.
This recipe looks really delicious, even from simple pictures of the ingredients used. Chocolate? Bread? Count me in, this recipe is definitely worth a try if you’re looking for a crave. I’m not much of a vegan myself, but even as a meat eater, this sure does look good.
Made this last night, ate it this morning and it was super tasty.. Just like the other comments – moist and perfect! Your recipes never cease to amaze, Dana! Thank you! :)
I’m failing to see how many of your recipes (whilst the photos look good) are ‘minimalist’. For example – 15 ingredients for the zucchini chocolate cake, 13 for the banana bread. I thought your ‘minimalist’ claim boasts ‘10 ingredients or less’.
Maybe I’m missing something – please enlighten me.
With gratitude and curiosity…
Hi Elle! Thank you for inquiring, all of our recipes are either 10 ingredients or less, or made in 1 bowl or 30 minutes or less.
For a minimalist (the title caught my attention, as I like simple, delicious, few ingredients recipes), I thought that are way too many ingredients for the recipe. It looks awesome though :-)!
Made this for my daughter-in-law and she loved it!!!
If I want to use eggs would it be two eggs?
Hi K! 2 eggs will work!
Absolutely delicious – you are a a creative genius with the recipes you make. I have tried several of your recipes and every single one is deliciousness uncovered. I made three loaves in one day, two for friends, cannot wait to share the Chocolate Zucchini bread with them. Thank you.
Wow, this was amazing… especially served warm. I did use almond meal in place of almond flour which I already had on hand. It left a few almond bits to chew afterwards, but I did not mind that at all. Texture was amazing and so delicious. Excellent with a cold glass of coconut milk. :)
I made this recipe yesterday with almond meal instead of almond flour and it turned out great! Thank you for the great recipe!!
I am a very inexperienced baker to say the least… so this was ambitious for me. i had my doubts because i had to bake mine for about 1 hour 10 minutes and a toothpick still didnt come out perfectly clean… but it was SO worth the wait. this is the best thing i have ever baked!!! it is unbelievably fluffy, soft, and moist. and it is scrumptious with coconut yogurt on top!
I used oat and spelt at the same time reducing the amount of sugar and oil to make this and it was delicious! The bread was very rich and moist. It can definitely pass as a cake and my family loved it.
I love this blog so much, it has drastically changed the way I eat for the better. Thank you Dana for these recipes, amazing content!
I am a seasoned baker and my sister in law has Celiac and this was absolutely amazing! Thank you. Only thing I changed was using cane sugar. Delicious!
I made this last week and it was amazing! I gave some to one of my co-workers and he could not believe it was vegan! I think the almond flour really gives it an extra kick.
I doubled the recipe (ish) and made it in an 8×8 pan and did not add any sugar, just the maple syrup. I added a shredded apple to help sweeten it up. It was AMAZING!!! I am so happy with this recipe and will be making it again soon!
Thank you Dana :)
This was incredible. I have another zucchini on standby waiting to get shredded! I used 1/3 c coconut flour instead of oat flour because I had it on hand, and WOW…what a keeper. Thank you, Dana! Love your recipes.
My kids think this is the “best chocolate cake ever”.
As we have no allergies, I used regular eggs, a combo of standard flour with a bit of wholemeal and a bit of spelt flour and almond meal not almond flour. Will definitely make again. Super delicious.
Also froze this in slices and it thawed perfectly.
Thanks for another awesome recipe.
Zucchini bread phenomenal! Carnivore husband asked for umpteen slices and while I had not
Expected this kinda success; I’m thrilled to share that I’ll be preparing many times going forward!
I made this last night. This came out really dry. Why?
Hi Arlene! I am sorry to hear that. Did you modify the recipe at all?
I followed the recipe exactly. I would like to make it again. My only guess is squeezing out the moisture from the zucchini could have caused it to become dry. Does it all get squeezed out?
Hits the chocolate craving spot! I played around a bit, I didn’t have applesauce nor almond milk so I used apricot jam and coconut spread, respectively. It turned out much more moist and thick, similar to the consistency of a brownie.
Just made this (it’s still kind of warm…yum). This is a terrific recipe, and I subbed the oil for aquafaba…BAM! Cut down on the fat and calories. Moist, chocolatey, and it rose like crazy! This one’s going in my rotation, for sure. Dana, you are such a kitchen (and photography) whiz and I always appreciate your recipes and photos. I wish I could attach a pic….
Hey Lauren,
Did you use the same amount (1/4 cup) of aquafaba?
Thanks!
Yes, plus another 1 Tbls. Came out perfect.
Thanks so much for the info :-)
I made this and OMG, it was SO MOIST with a rich, dark chocolate flavor. I followed the directions to a ‘T’ and it came out beautifully!
Thanks so much! xo
This looks so good! I’m definitely going to have to try it, especially because I’m fairly new to veganism. I love it, though, and I’m never going back.
Annah
I baked this for the first time last night and served it up at a meditation retreat today. Everyone commented how moist and not too sweet it was! I used plain flour as that’s all I had and sprinkled cacao nibs on top instead of the choc chips. Peanut butter spread was a hit too!
Thanks Rebecca! xo
AMAZING! I use many of your recipes and this one ROCKS. Filled the chocolate hole in my being today. My favorite food blog…
Thanks Diana! xo
HOW DO YOU DO IT? This is the best zucchini bread I’ve ever had, I truly don’t understand how you make vegan and gluten free things so effing delicious, but I am forever grateful for it. Thank you again!
Lovely – thanks Nora!
I use a spiralizer to shred a bunch of zucchini at once and I freeze it in batches. Would it be alright to use the thawed shredded zucchini?
That should work, as long as it’s finely shredded and not spiralized.
Made this for a group of 15 people last night (I made 2 bc one loaf wouldn’t be enough… duh) and it was a hit!! I am allergic to 6 of the top 8 allergens so these recipes you make are wonderful and I’ve learned that you can substitute a lot of things for other things and it tastes the same (i.e. I used unbleached flour only, olive oil instead of coconut and flaxmilk instead of Almond). I use a lot of these recipes to cook and bake for my friends and they don’t even notice what’s “missing”. I might even try putting a little coconut extract and top it with coconut shavings next time! Who knows?
Also just a question, Dana do you come up with these recipes just from your mind?
So kind! Thanks Kendall! I dream up recipes and also use past recipes I’ve already mastered to modify from! xoxo
Made this and it’s delicious!!!
Thanks for sharing, Aylie! Lovely name, btw ;D
I’m out of cocoa powder and was going to use cacao powder instead…can I use a 1:1 ratio or should I use less cacao? Thanks, can’t wait to try!
Yes!
This zucchini bread looks delicious. I’ve loved all your recipes that I’ve tried and can’t wait to add this one to the list. I’m always looking for ways to use up that end of summer zucchini from the garden!
Replaced all three flours with an equal amount of all purpose flour and it turned out great! The only other modification I made was maple sugar for coconut sugar because I didn’t have any.
Oh great – thanks for sharing Cristiana! xoxo
Christina; you’re lucky to be in the US with more choices…..see the Vitacost.com site for Enjoy Life products and more! I even order maaaannnny products from Canada because it’s still a deal! BTW, my fav is Enjoy Life DF chocolate chunks. Aaaannnd this is a great recipe! ( I use farm fresh eggs because I can!) Best, Judy
Thanks Judy!
Hi! Wondering if I can substitute for real eggs v.s flax eggs. Thanks!!
Hi Sarah! Yes you can!
Made this last night, and it came out AMAZING. I used regular white flour (I need to get some spelt flour) and trader joe’s semi sweet chocolate chips. Baking time was about an hour until I got a toothpick to come out clean. I am bringing to work today to share my vegan treat with co workers!
One of my favorite recipes. Thank you so much!
Thanks for sharing, Alex! xoxo
Delicious! So moist, and chocolately! It felt more like a cake than a (zucchini) bread – which is totally fine by me, the chocolate just makes it so rich. I used almond meal (instead of flour) and all-purpose instead of gluten-free blend and let it cool over night. Oh — and I ran out of flax. I had exactly 1 tb left, so I only made 1 flax egg but, if it does make a difference… I couldn’t tell! Loved this recipe, Dana. Thank you! I’ve been trying to use my loaf pan more often and I find that I don’t have much success with breads but this was a beauty!
Thanks Tatiana! xoxo
Hi! Lots of questions, sorry in advance!!
Is there any way to leave out the oil and sub it for something else? And can i sub the cocoa w carob powder? Lastly, using stevia instead of coconut sugar? All help would be greatly appreciated!!
Jenny – I think you could sub the oil for more applesauce. I think you could sub cacao for carob. And yes, I think coconut sugar would work. Good luck!
I have an oat allergy. What was the next best gluten-free flour combination. I have noticed you use oat flour or oats (over night oats) for breakfast, are there any substitutes that are comparable?
Hi Elizabeth! I’d recommend a blend of more almond flour and GF flour. Or, if not GF, try subbing spelt. Otherwise, the blend of almond and GF should work!
This recipe looks great so I have saved it to pinterest for future reference. The flaxeggs have me intrigued. Thanks for sharing, Pauline
Ha ha Thanks Dana for this. I was just given 2 giant zuchinni today and was figuring out what to make. I think I’ll make a few of these and freeze. These look great!
Your recipes are always so yummy!
I am totally lactose intolerant. what would you recommend as a replacement. I have tried the extra dark chocolate and can’t get past the bitterness
My husband is allergic to eggs, corn, dairy and chocolate. I finally found a chocolate he could eat without any problems “semi-sweet chocolate chips by Enjoy Life.” I spent quite a bit of time on their website researching and finally connected with an employee who emailed me a complete list of ingredients + she told me which chocolate products I should avoid! These folks are incredibly nice, helpful and thorough. Visit Enjoy Life online and talk to them. If they can help, they will & it will put your mind at ease. Hope you are successful!
I cant have chocolate because of migraines. Id love to have a look at what the employee said and see if there are any I CAN eat
I just did a search and there is no where in my region to buy their products. grrrrr
Christina – Unfortunately, it has been many years since I did this research and I no longer have her responses. The ingredients list she sent was only for the semi-sweet chocolate chips, not for any of their other chocolate offerings. She verbally told me which ones to avoid & I found the semi-sweet chocolate chips all I needed to create special treats for my husband. Have you thought about ordering them directly from their website (after you have a chance to research them)? I believe Amazon carries the chocolate chips also, but not completely sure.
Dana’s suggestion is brilliant! I use raw cacao both in powder and nib form to make a list of items. That is a wonderful source if it works for you. The bags I have are both Sunfood Super Foods and they are in the raw organic form. Try their website: sunfood.com and their phone number 888-729-3663. Keeping my fingers crossed for you.
Ramona – can you just try using cacao nibs?
I want to make so many of your baked goods, but the gf flours tend to put me off. I’m not gluten free at all and don’t ever have any of those flours on hand; would it be okay to just use an ap flour instead? or would something like a bread flour work better? also, I usually use a box egg replacer that I think is tapioca flour or something like that (I know, I include so many details); would it be possible to use that instead of flax meal? if not I’m totally open to buying some, I see so many recipes that call for it that I know I’d use it. this looks toooo good so I finally broke down and asked and I’m honestly happy I am~
I’d recommend AP or spelt for the GF in a 1:1 swap ratio. As for egg replacers, I can’t comment on if those would work! Never tried them. Good luck!
I would be interested in knowing that because I can’t have flax, let us know how it works.
Maybe you could use chia instead of flax :)
Thank you! Will give it a try.
You could try aquafaba – the liquid that comes out of a can of chickpeas.
Thanks!
Can you eat eggs? I always just make this with eggs instead of flax.
Yes 2 eggs worked for me!
MY daughter an allergic to nuts so I’m going to use extra oat flour… hopefully that works! ??
Let us know how it goes!
Can I also use plain flour? Not gluten free and all those are quite hard to get hold of…do I need to use less?
Yeah! I’d suggest spelt flour at a 1:1 swap for the GF.
Hi!! Just wondering if I can use regular eggs instead of flax eggs, since I’m not plant based?
Thanks!! xx
Hi Mitra! Yes you can!
I might of just seen this recipe pop up in my IG feed and started making it STAT! It’s just out of the oven and I couldn’t’ resist a piece, it is DELICOUS! So moist and chocolatey, another great recipe! Followed the recipe exact except used date sugar instead of coconut. FYI – It only took 40 minutes to cook for me.
Lovely, thanks Stephanie! xoxo
All I have to say is “YAAAASSSSSSS.” Can’t wait to make!
haha, yay! xoxo
This looks fab!! Do you think I could pour the batter into muffin tins and make muffins with it, or would it require additional substitutions? Thanks!
Hi Hanusia! That should work, I would just adjust the baking time (less time)!
Would you be able to use regular flour if not gluten-free? So excited to try this! <3
Yes, I would love to know the same! I’m not GF and would want to make with regular all purpose flour if possible.
I’ve tried the other zucchini bread recipe from this site with regular flour, and it worked great for me! I even did half AP and half whole wheat flour and it still turned out delicious!
yeah! A regular flour should work, such as spelt!
Thank you!! :)
Yes, I use regular flour in place of the gf flour and it turned out wonderful!
I replaced all of the flours with all-purpose flour, and it came out amazing! Im about to make it again!
This was my question! Thanks!
I have a nice big zucchini from my garden and cannot wait to use it for this recipe! Can I sub something for the almond flour since I don’t have any on hand? Maybe all purpose or wheat flour since I don’t really have to worry about GF? I do have Bob’s GF flour. Thanks!
Hi Emmarie! You can replace it with all purpose flour!
Love all of your recipes that I have tried so far! This one looks like a keeper – but I can’t have potatoes. Any way to sub arrowroot or cornstarch for the potato starch?
Hi Christina! Either would work!
I know, you get a zillion substitution questions…BUT here goes…do you think I could leave out the oat flour and replace it with an equal quantity of GF flour? Thanks! Love your recipes :)
I have the same question! I’m allergic to pats and need a substitute for it.
I did exactly this yesterday, and it came out PERFECT! I know this question is a month old, so you’ve probably found your own answer by now anyway, but I was really happy with the results.
Yum yum!!!!! Love hiding zucchini because it’s so easy to desguise!
Can’t wait to try this! My daughter is gf but hates chocolate, crazy huh?! I’m assuming I could just leave out the cocoa powder and chocolate chips and it would be just like regular zucchini bread?, which she loves!!
I’m wondering the same!!
Want to do the same, just vegan zucchini bread with out the chocolate. Let us know how yours turned out. :-)
I’ve done this once before. If you leave out the chocolate I recommend using a bit of cinnamon (I can’t remember how much I used) in it’s place for flavor. Otherwise you might feel like it’s missing something.