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A few weeks ago, my husband Jack returned from a business trip singing the praises of some delicious zucchini bread that one of his co-workers named Troy had brought to the meeting to share with everyone. It was a homemade zucchini bread baked by Troy’s wife Lannette – and Jack said it was the Best Zucchini Bread Ever!
Seriously – Jack would not stop talking about this zucchini bread! For days, he talked about how moist and delicious it was, and that it was perfectly sweet and spicy. And for days, Jack pestered Troy for the recipe so we could make it at home and possibly share it here on A Family Feast.
So I was thrilled when I was introduced to Lannette – and she graciously allowed us to share the recipe with all of you.
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This really is the best zucchini bread ever! It is super moist and almost cake-like thanks to a generous amount of shredded zucchini in the batter (we actually used a combination of zucchini and summer squash – which is why you see a little bit of yellow in our bread photos) as well as some applesauce! This bread is perfectly seasoned with cinnamon, and a generous amount of chopped pecans add crunch and texture.
Great recipe Lannette and thanks again for sharing! 🙂
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PrintBest Zucchini Bread Ever
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 60 mins
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 2 loaves
Ingredients
- Butter and flour for preparing baking pans
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 3½ cups grated zucchini (you can use as few as 2 cups and as much as 4 cups)
- 3 eggs
- ½ cup apple sauce
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 2¼ cups granulated sugar
- 4 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Generously butter and lightly flour two 8”x4” loaf pans.
- In a medium bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and cinnamon. Stir gently to combine.
- Shred zucchini, lightly packing it down as you measure it.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer beat eggs, applesauce, oil, sugar and vanilla extract. Mix very well.
- Slowly add the dry ingredients (about 1/3 at a time) mixing as you go – then beat well to fully combine.
- With a rubber scraper or wooden spoon, stir in shredded zucchini and nuts into the batter and mix well.
- Pour half of the batter into each prepared pan.
- Bake for 45 to 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out cleanly. (The bake time will vary depending on how much shredded zucchini you add to the batter.)
- Remove from the pans and cool on wire racks.
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Viva la Violette
I’m so glad you liked my recipe and thank you for the shout out! A Family Feast is so well done I can only hope my Blog can be half as good as yours.
Hi Lannette! (Ooops – I just corrected the spelling of your name!) Thank YOU so much for sharing your recipe with us! It is fantastic!
Mmmmm it really does look amazing! I love zucchini bread!
I love when other bloggers share each others fantastic recipes! You introduced us to a new blog and she gave this awesome recipe to share!
This zucchini bread is probably the only way half my family will eat zucchini! Thanks to Lannette from Awesome Family Food for passing it on!
This is a fabulous zucchini bread recipe – Lannette has some serious baking skills. I’m going to have to check out her blog! Your photos, as always, perfection!
Thanks Aly! (And yes – please visit Lannette’s blog!) 🙂
Lannette’s zucchini bread looks to die for. I must confess the couple times I attempted it I failed. I will try this version. I am sure I won’t be disappointed!
I am loving this recipe, it looks so moist (I know, I know, we all hate that word, lol) and yummy. So amazing, nothing like fresh bread!!!
I’ve been a sucker for zucchini bread every since I tasted my mother-in-law’s when I first met my husband. Your version looks very similar to hers – and, believe me, that’s a very good thing! 🙂
I adore zucchini bread! I can’t wait to make this I have so much zucchini now!
Summer really isn’t completely until a slice of zucchini bread is consumed. This version does look perfect and the more zucchini the better!
Zucchini bread is my favorite thing about summer. We made loaf after loaf growing up and I would always toast it up and slather it with butter. Now I have a big time craving!
Hi, is the apple sauce sweet or unsweetened? Thanks
We used unsweetened- but either will work!
Hi! When you shred and pack the zucchini do you drain any of the moisture out first, or does it all go in? this looks like a yummy recipe!
Hi Elizabeth – It all went in! I suppose if you are using the full 4 cups and it seems extremely wet, you could drain it a bit – but otherwise, just shred it and put it in the batter! Hope you enjoy the recipe!
this is the recipe EXACTLY that I’ve made for almost 40 years EXCEPT, what they did was lower the oil from 1c to 1/2 plus 1/2 applesauce (making it slightly healthier) and do not add more than 2c sugar. 2 1/4 is over kill unless you are going to add that incredible amount of zucchini, it’s usually 2-3c zucchini. Just saying.
Thanks so much for sharing more about the background of this recipe Mary. If you’ve been making it for 40 years – it must be the best around!
could you exchange sugar for brown sugar?
Hi Jackie – I’ve never tried it myself with this recipe. Here’s a great article to read with more info: https://www.chowhound.com/food-news/55228/are-brown-and-white-sugar-interchangeable-when-baking/ – Hope this helps!
Thank you for sharing this recipe. It came out just as stated, moist and extremely tasty. Not to mention, it made my house and car smell great as I took it to work after baking it that morning. Everyone loved it and told me next time I won’t make it out of the parking lot with the loaves in my hand (if they know I’m coming with it). 🙂 Thank you again, this is definitely the BEST Zucchini bread
You’re very welcome Abbe Jo!
Hi! Going to a farmer’s market this weekend and really want to try to make this bread! About how many zucchini’s should I get? 3?
Hi Erin – It depends on the size of the zucchini! 🙂 If they are small – probably 3-4 will definitely be enough. If they are huge – you might get away with just one. Enjoy!
Would you please let me know where I can find your recipe for Glazed Lemon Zuchinni
Bread.
Thanks,
Hi Isabel – we included it in our Garden Zucchini recipe round up but it is from Mom On Timeout http://www.momontimeout.com/2014/06/zucchini-bundt-cake-with-orange-glaze/
please provide me wit recipe for Glazed Lemon Zuchinni Bread.
Hi Isabel – We don’t have a Glazed Lemon Zucchini Bread recipe on our site! Sorry!
Thank you! This recipe looks great. I’ve never made any type of zucchini baked goods myself, so sorry if this is a silly question, but does it matter how thick or fine you grate the zucchini and what would you recommend? Also, has anyone tried freezing this to eat later? I have been gifted a lot of zucchini. 🙂
Hi Leah – I used the largest grate size on a box grater – but a smaller grate will work too. We have frozen some of this bread ourselves and it thaws beautifully! Just be sure to wrap it well to avoid any freezer burn. Hope you enjoy the recipe!
This looks amazing! Has anyone used a different oil instead of vegetable oil?
Thanks Julie – I don’t know!
Hi Julie–I used 1/3 C coconut oil. I also increased my applesauce to just shy of 1 C and reduced the sugar to 1.5 C. I also decreased the cinnamon to 1 T and added 1 tsp Allspice and 1/4 tsp cloves. Thbread came out absolutely fabulous!
Thank you to Martha for sharing your recipe.
Sounds like some great adaptations Charity! Thanks for sharing!
I did the recipe and is just simple amazing. Thank you for sharing.
You’re very welcome – so glad you enjoyed the bread as much as we do!
Hi. I love zucchini bread and glad I found this recipe. I tried it today and it was delicious. Only problem is that the sides came out a little crisp, the middle was moist. How can I avoid the crispness?
Hi Susan – Glad you enjoyed the recipe. Hard to give you exact advice without knowing more – but you could try a different baking pan (not sure if you used a glass or metal loaf pan?) or maybe wrapping some foil around the outer top edges to prevent it from crisping up too much. If the bottom and sides were just generally overcooked – it sounds like your oven might run hotter than ours and reducing the total baking might help. Hope those ideas are helpful!
I had the opposite problem. My top and sides were perfect, but the bottom just would not cook fully and it got very dense, gooey, and heavy in the bottom. It didn’t rise up as much as expected or as it appears in your photos. Overall it tasted amazing, but any tips for a less dense/heavy result?
It’s hard to say what went wrong Izzy! I’m wondering if all of the ingredients were mixed thoroughly? (Maybe more of the zucchini shreds were near the bottom of the loaf pan when it baked?) Also – were both your baking soda and baking powder fresh? I’m sorry you had problems with the recipe!
Just popped this out of the oven and wow…this really is the best recipe I’ve tried yet. It did take me much longer to cook (1 hour & 10 min) but it was worth it. Very yummy and not too sweet even with all those ingredients. Perfect. Definitely a keeper. Thank you for this recipe!
So glad you enjoyed the recipe Katie! Thanks for taking the time to write to us today!
Hello! I’ve made this once before and it was simply amazing!! I’m trying to stay healthy so do you think if I used a wheat flour it would make much of a difference?
Hi Natalie – I think whole wheat flour will work fine! The texture will probably be a little more dense but still delicious.
I’ve had a Zuchini surplus this year. Just made 4 loaves! This bread is yummy and moist and the recipe was very easy to follow. Headed to my son’s house in AZ with 2 of them. Boy, will they be happy!
So glad you enjoyed the recipe Beverly!
Delicious recipe. I made it an it was awesome! I changed it a little though, I used half carrot half zuchinni and it was delicious!
Sounds great Dalila – I’ll have to try that!
So I made this last week and even my picky mother in law loved it. She actually has requested more. Good thing the garden is doing well
Wow Amand – thanks! We always love hearing when picky eaters enjoy our recipes! 🙂 Thanks for taking the time to write to us today!
Could you bake this in a 9×13 pan instead of loaf pans and if so how long would you need to bake it?
Hi Leslie – We’ve only made this ourselves in the loaf pans. If you give it a try in the 9×13 pan – please let us know how it comes out!
Great recipe, family lived it.
Thanks Corinne!
Can I bake this as mini loaves? Do you know about how many mini loaves it would bake and about how long they would bake? Thanks!! This looks absolutely delicious–I know I’ll want to share it with some neighbors!
Hi Marla – I’ve only made this recipe in the full-size loaf pans so I’m not sure how it will convert (might depend on the size of your mini’s) or the baking time. But this article looks to have some good suggestions: http://www.thekitchn.com/good-questions-38-104585 (Hope this helps!)
I only had one loaf pan and two mini. So I used the minis and they turned out great! I’m sure four mini pans would work maybe even five!
Thanks Amanda! So glad it worked out well for you!
Thanks for the recipe! I cut the recipe in half — 1 egg + 1 egg white, used half a cup of raw cane sugar + 2-3 tablespoons of honey, coconut oil and walnuts. Next time I’ll try 2 parts white flour and 1 part whole wheat. My bread came out perfectly at 50 minutes.
You’re very welcome Shala!
What a great recipe! So moist with tons of flavor. I had to improvise a bit as I did not have any applesauce. I substituted with canned pumpkin and a tablespoon of honey. I also used fresh duck eggs in place of regular eggs as that is what I had on the counter at the moment and they tend to be better in baked goods anyway. This is a keeper.
Thanks Ashley! So glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Wow that you so so much for posting this!! I just shared it on my Facebook. Sooooo good. I made 2 loaves and 9 muffins. Great recipe.
Thanks so much Danielle!
I just made this today and didn’t have any applesauce. I replaced with crushed pineapple. Turned out perfect. My grandmother used pineapple and I loved it. Thanks for sharing
You’re very welcome Melody – and thanks for letting us know about a substitution that works just as well for the applesauce.
I must have a dozen zucchini bread recipes, but this one is by far the best! Now I have to confess that I made one change that was unintentional. I did not have any applesauce, so I substituted strawberry jam!! I know it sounds weird, and I thought so, too, but it was really really good. Of course I cut way back on the sugar as the jam was really sweet. Next time I will make it with applesauce and I know it will be even better. This is a great recipe.
Thank you so much Janet!
Hi. Is there any way to use honey instead of all that sugar?
Hi Rennea – We haven’t tried swapping in honey ourselves so I can’t say for sure. It will add a lot more moisture to the recipe so I’d only be guessing without actually making a test batch. Sorry I can’t be more help!
Hi thank you for your response. It’s hard finding a recipe that doesn’t use sugar.
I used half honey half sugar and it turned out delicious!
Thanks Rachel!
My family always relies on the old-fashioned recipes. When I mentioned this recipe and gave it a shot, everyone loved it! It’s a big hit! This will definitely stay in our household.
Thanks Nicole – So glad everyone loved the recipe!
This bread IS delicious, however, I am following the Weight Watcher plan; any suggestions on how to modify this recipe to a healthier choice (lessen sugar/oils)…or can you give me the points for one think slice 1/2 in thick?
Hi Claudia – I think your best bet would be to search on the Weight Watchers site for a zucchini bread recipe as an alternative to ours. Without a fair amount of recipe testing, I would only be guessing about what changes you could make to the recipe to have it fit the program.
Hi Claudia,
I made mine with Stevia instead of sugar and I used EVOO instead of vegetable oil. I kept the amounts the same. I also did half regular flour and half whole wheat flour. It still came out great. You could probably try some honey or agave but they are wet so might have to try adjusting other ingredients. Good luck!
Thanks for the suggestions Niccole!
Thank you for this recipe i love zucchini bread. I have not try to bake one but I’m going to give it a try. Sounds so like mmmmmm. Hope the one i bake will be as good as it looks.
We hope you love it as much as we do Hermelinda!
Bonjour je suie ton bée a amour avec tout les recettes et le lin de la fête en familles c’est toute un vie dertre heureux avec seurt que on aime merci merci merci de Céline
Thank you Celine! Merci! 🙂
Hi, I’m going to try your recipe I’m wondering if I need to adjust for high altitude? This look really good so I’m anxious to try it! Thank you
Hi Debbie – I have to admit, I’m not an expert at all on high altitude baking and knowing when adjustments are necessary. Sorry I can’t be more help!
Stupid question but how do you store it? Counter top? Fridge? Freezer?! I just made it and it is amazing. My non veg eating husband even gave me
Props on how good our house smells. 🙂
Hi Camerin – Not a stupid question at all. My answer is ‘all of the above’. We made some ourselves this weekend – gave one away and the other we’ve wrapped in plastic and it has been on our kitchen counter for the last two days. I will probably put it in the fridge later today just to keep it from getting stale. It can also be frozen – just be sure to wrap it well to avoid freezer burn. Hope that helps and we’re very glad you both enjoyed the recipe!
Hi Martha! Can you tell me what a serving size of this would be?
Thanks,
Kristen
Hi Kristen – The recipe makes two 8-inch loaves so you can vary the serving size depending on how thickly you slices each loaf. I’d estimate that you can get 8 generous slices or 10-12 thinner slices from each loaf.
This zucchini bread recipe is good, though not spectacular, very similar to anything else I have found off the internet. I like the fact that it has apple sauce in it, so you use less oil. I cut the sugar down to 1.5 cups, as over one cup of sugar per loaf sounded like a lot, and sure enough it is plenty sweet with the reduced sugar amount. Honesty I am getting a little weary of all these gushing recipes that make it sound like you have stumbled across the best thing ever. Certainly worth trying, but I would HIGHLY recommend cutting back significantly on the sugar unless you want your teeth to ache every time you take a bite.
I’m glad you found an adaptation of the recipe that works for you Angela!
This recipe is outstanding. Made it twice in one week. Thank you for sharing it.
Thanks Kirill! So glad you enjoyed it!
Just shared on our FBpage cause this is my new favorite zucchini bread recipe. Thank you for sharing
The first batch I made a couple months ago about 8 loaves. Wrapped (plastic wrap and freezer paper) after cooling and put them in the freezer for around the year. Got one out yesterday and still delish!
Thanks so much Hilary!
I’ve made this twice and it turned out just like the picture and tasted just as good. This is the best zucchini bread I’ve ever tasted. I used fresh zucchini out of the garden both times. At summer’s end I still had zucchini so I froze some in the amounts I would need for this recipe. When I took them out of the freezer and let them thaw, there was a LOT of water in the bag which leaked out as it thawed. I still have all the water/juice as I had set it inside a bowl to thaw. Has anyone tried this with frozen zucchini?
Hmmm, not sure. Freezing anything, especially a high water content vegetable like zucchini is going to change the finished product. Let’s see if anyone else has tried this. Sorry, wish I had a better answer.
Can you sub brown sugar for reg sugar?
Hi Jessica – I haven’t tried substituting brown sugar. If you try – please let us know how it comes out!
Delicious! I made this bread today, thank u!!
You’re very welcome Stacy! Glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Love this recipe. The best zucchini bread ever.
Thanks Rosa! I agree!
Love this recipe! I like to add more spices to mine like cloves, nutmeg, and allspice. My husband and son love them!! (I also like to add Liv fit superfood blend with protein and it’s awesome!) Was wondering where I could find the nutrition facts for these?
★★★★★
Hi Christina – Sounds like you’ve made some great adaptations to the recipe! We unfortunately don’t include nutritional facts for our recipes at this time, but I’ve found that MyFitnessPal is a good, free app that you could use to do the calculations. Hope that helps!
I’m making this now with frozen grated zucchini from last years garden. I’m draining it as there is a lot of moisture in it.
I’m adding chocolate chips so I took out 3/4 cup of sugar. I’m still putting in some pecans.
I also replaced one tsp of cinnamon with nutmeg.
Hope my frozen zucchini doesn’t ruin it.
Thanks for a great recipe!
Hope you loved the recipe Joanne!
It turned out great. The drained frozen zucchini worked well. This is a great site.
What can i use in substitute for eggs?
Hi Ami – We’ve never tried making this bread using an egg substitute so I can’t say for sure what will work. Sorry I can be more help!
This was a total fail for me. After 30 minutes of baking, it was like soup.
Was I supposed to put apple sauce in place of oil? I’ve never seen to use both.
I’m sorry to hear that you had problems with the recipe Laura – yes, you’ll use both – exactly as written. If it was still like soup after baking, it sounds like you might have mis-measured an ingredient along the way or your oven might not have been working correctly? Hard to tell…
Do you peel the zucchini before grating?
Hi Shannon – No, we shredded the zucchini without peeling it first.
easy recipe that taste great and easy to make.
★★★★★
Thanks Nancy!
Does it matter how big the zucchini is I have a very large one is it still okay to use or do I have to use medium size ?
Hi Sherry – A large zucchini is fine to use. I’d suggest scooping out the seeds before you shred the zucchini.
Best recipe that I have ever tried.
★★★★★
Wow Judi! Thank you! So glad you enjoyed the zucchini bread!
Thank You for sharing zucchini bread recipe. It’s the Best!!
You’re very welcome Noella – so glad you enjoyed it!
This bread is incredible!! Perfect crispy carmelized crust and moist inside. This is being added to my favorite recipes!
Thanks Maggie! We’re so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
I’d like to make this in 3×5 pans…how many pans will it make and what is the baking time?
Thank you . Rita
Hi Rita – I’m guessing it will make 4-5 of the small loafs depending on how deep your pans are. I haven’t tried making this in that size so I’d only be guessing at the baking time – it will definitely be less.
great taste and texture. i used shortening instead of oil. i am back a second time this week to make more. i have so many zucchinis from the garden and these are great to freeze. thanks
★★★★★
You’re very welcome Jeanne – so glad you are enjoying the recipe!
IT Is the best Zucchini Bread Ever!!!!
Easy and a big hit!
★★★★★
Thanks Jude!
Made it! Love it! A bit with the family! Can’t get enough of it!
★★★★★
Thanks Angelita! So glad you enjoyed the zucchini bread!
Looking for a calarie number for this bread. Has anyone ever crunched the numbers?
I don’t know June! There are some free online calorie calculators such as MyFitnessPal that you could use.
This looks yummy. Have you made it with frozen zucchini, if so I assume you drain it? Thanks, marie from Canada
Hi Marie – As long as it’s just the liquid from the zucchini, you really don’t have to drain it – just stir it in! Hope you love the recipe!
I had the very best revipe for zucchini bread but lost in when I moved. I have tried several other recipes with no satisfaction, so hoping this recipe is as good as the comments I’ve read here. Thanks for sharing.
Fingers crossed for you Mary – I hope our recipe is as good as your lost recipe! (I had a similar experience with an apple crisp recipe – which I eventually found and it’s now here on our blog. But for years…none of the other recipes I tried could compare!)
I just made this today, for the first time. It is amazing. It came out perfect. And so so delicious 😊
Thank you Tammy! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! 🙂
Best recipe!!!!!
★★★★★
Thanks Anne!