Zucchini happens to be one of my favorite vegetables and it's in season right now! This is a delicious way to use zucchini in a spiced bread that kinda trumps the usual banana variety.
Zucchini is so versatile. As you know, you can blend it into a cream sauce like in my popular carbonara recipe. You can also make a life-changing pasta called spaghetti alla nerano that uses fried zucchini as the base for its sauce. I included a vegan recipe for this in my latest issue of EAT IT by hot for food, as well as another zucchini recipe using zoodles to make a light and refreshing cacio e pepe.
Zucchini is so versatile. As you know, you can blend it into a cream sauce like in my popular carbonara recipe. You can also make a life-changing pasta called spaghetti alla nerano. It uses fried zucchini as the base for its sauce. I included a vegan recipe for this in my latest issue of EAT IT by hot for food. There's even another zucchini recipe using zoodles to make a light and refreshing cacio e pepe.
I love the cardamom, cinnamon, and nutmeg combo in this zucchini bread and the addition of crunchy buttery pecans. The zucchini is used to add moisture to this loaf, but what a clever way to get in some more veggies too!
You could swap pecans for chocolate chips, of course! And if you want to stick with the classic banana bread loaf I have a popular recipe here. Looking for even more ways to use zucchini? You can bake it into something a little sweeter like this zucchini pistachio cake. Or for something savory try making some savory corn and zucchini fritters.
Ingredients
- 1 C pecans, toasted and roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon golden flax meal
- 3 tablespoon water
- 2 ½ C shredded zucchini (about 2 medium to large zucchini)
- 1 ¾ C all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon cardamom
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ½ C packed light brown sugar
- ½ C granulated cane sugar
- ⅓ C melted refined coconut oil
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Toast the pecans either on the stove top in a pan over low heat or in the oven on a baking sheet for 5 to 10 minutes or until fragrant and toasted. Chop the pecans and set aside.
- Combine the ground flax and water and stir to combine. Set aside to thicken while you prepare the remaining recipe.
- Shred zucchini and add to a large mixing bowl.
- In another large mixing bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cardamom, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Toss the chopped pecans in the dry ingredients and set this aside.
- In the bowl with the zucchini add brown sugar, granulated sugar, coconut oil, vanilla, and thickened flax mixture and stir to combine well until it appears liquidy.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to combine well so no dry ingredients are visible.
- Add to a lined loaf pan. Bake for 55 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean from the center. Allow the bread loaf to cool in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Then lift the sides of the parchment paper to remove the loaf and continue to cool on a wire rack before slicing and serving. Store loosly covered at room temperature or in the frige.
Dex
I love zucchini bread but have never been able to pull off a vegan version. Thank you for this recipe!
ellen
I think this is the only way I could have my kids eat zucchini lol thank you for the recipe! Have to try it this weekend!
Jamila
Made it twice now! It’s so flavorful!
I squeezed shredded zucchini first time and the batter was too dry;had to add some milk and it didn’t bake through but was still delish. Second time I left zucchini’s as is it turned out sooo tender and baked through and was just yum. Thank you!
Lauren Toyota
ya no need to squeeze out the zucchini!