Chocolate Zucchini Banana Bread Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Do you squeeze out the liquid from zucchini for bread? ›

But unless your zucchini is excessively juicy, squeezing the squash could be removing some of the moisture you really do want in the bread. It's up to you, though. Squeeze for lighter, drier bread. Leave it as is for denser, moister bread.

Don't peel the zucchini – Yes, it's tempting to remove the zucchini's skin, but there is no need to do that. Zucchini melts into the bread, so peeling is just an unnecessary step. Do grate the zucchini – I don't know about you, but when it comes to zucchini in bread, I want it there – but I don't want to see it.

Have you ever made zucchini bread and it turned out dense and wet in the center? It's likely that too much liquid was added to the batter. I've tested dozens of zucchini bread recipes and, depending on the other ingredients involved, it's sometimes necessary to squeeze the excess liquid from the shredded zucchini.

If you are using regular milk, you would normally use baking powder. Banana bread normally calls for sour milk, sour cream or buttermilk; all of these are acidic, so in this case what you need is baking soda.

You need 2 cups of grated zucchini for the recipe, so you will need about 3 small zucchini, 2 medium zucchini, or 1 large zucchini.

You do not need to peel zucchini for zucchini bread.

You can use a box grater or food processor to shred the zucchini. Using a box grater, place grater on firm surface such a cutting board. Hold the box grater firmly in one hand and the zucchini firmly in the other hand.

Use the fine side of your grater for smaller shredded zucchini. (as you can see in the pictures) If you use the larger side, the coarser pieces will have a slightly more noticeable flavor and texture in a finished cake or bread recipe.

Check your leavening agent

What is this? Expired leaveners: Always check the freshness of your leaveners. Expired or ineffective baking powder and baking soda will not leaven your quick bread. Adding too much or insufficient leavening agents: Adding too much leaveners will cause your quick bread to sink in the middle.

When sliced, 1 medium zucchiniyielded about 1 to 1.25 cups and if grated, you end up with about 2/3 cup of tamped down zucchini. If you need 1 cup of cooked sliced zucchini, due to shrinkage while heated it will take about 3 medium zucchini, sliced, to hit the mark.

This zucchini chocolate chip bread is also made with the right balance of butter, sour cream, and flour. Too much of either of these ingredients could lead to a zucchini bread that's either too soft OR too dry.

How can you tell when zucchini bread is done? ›

Make perfectly-done zucchini bread with friends, and for your friends. Remember to check the internal temp and pull it at 200°F (93°C) for this or any other quick bread.

Bitter Taste: Excessive baking soda can leave a bitter taste in the bread. Baking soda is alkaline, and an excessive amount of it can result in an unpleasant flavor. Unpleasant Texture: Too much baking soda can lead to a coarse and crumbly texture in the bread.

Banana bread recipes typically ask you to use overripe bananas so that they're easier to mush. This means it's tempting to toss all your bananas into the mix when you're ready to bake, to avoid food waste. But if you add too much of the fruit into your batter, your bread could turn out mushy, heavy, and wet.

In much smaller quantities, the baking soda still has a chemical reaction with acid. Low and behold the acidic component is in bananas, so any excess baking soda that doesn't help the banana bread rise will react, hence green or blue banana bread slices the next day.

Baking soda works best in conjunction with an acidic ingredient. In the case of banana bread, this may be buttermilk, brown sugar, molasses or the bananas themselves. Recipes generally include just enough baking soda to balance the acidity in the batter.

For some recipes, that extra water is not needed and could even ruin what you're trying to make. Adding drained shredded zucchini to baked goods, or even zucchini pancakes will make the dish fluffy and not mushy. To learn the basics, learn how to cook zucchini in three new ways.

If you've ever wondered if you should try and squeeze out some of the water from your shredded zucchini before adding it to batter or dough, the answer (happily) is no! Zucchini recipes are written to accommodate their water content.

Squeeze the water out – Place the shredded zucchini between paper towels or in a tea towel and press as much water out as possible. Freeze – Place shredded zucchini in airtight freezer bags or freezer containers. Pick a freezer container that minimizes air exposure.