Gluten-Free Chocolate Zucchini Bread
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Let’s Make Gluten-Free Chocolate Zucchini Bread! This ultra chocolatey gluten-free zucchini bread is AMAZING. The perfect way to use up extra zucchini in the summer! (Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free)
It’s that time of summer where All The Zucchini are ready to be used, and we’re looking for ways to use this green summer vegetable!
I’m happy to tuck shredded zucchini into chicken meatballs or roast them with some tomatoes, but my favorite way to eat zucchini is probably always going to be paired with chocolate. Because yum.
Last year, it was a CRAZY delicious Almond Flour Chocolate Zucchini Cake. This year, it’s Gluten-Free Chocolate Zucchini Bread.
This ultra-chocolatey chocolate zucchini bread is made with an all-purpose gluten-free flour blend so it’s easy to pull together (no need to mix and match flours!), and the end result is fudgy, tender, and perfectly studded with chocolate chips.
Here’s what you need to get started on our easy gluten-free chocolate zucchini bread recipe…
HERE’S WHAT GOES INTO OUR GLUTEN-FREE CHOCOLATE ZUCCHINI BREAD:
- GRATED ZUCCHINI. Grated zucchini makes our gluten-free chocolate zucchini bread nice and moist. I know that’s the grossest word ever, but it’s true! (See the FAQ for a tip for grating zucchini!)
- EGGS + AVOCADO OIL. Eggs + avocado oil give this chocolate zucchini bread plenty of body and prevent it from getting dry.
- COCONUT SUGAR + VANILLA. To round out the wet ingredients, you’ll add coconut sugar and vanilla. You can totally use white or light brown sugar if you prefer in your chocolate zucchini bread.
- DARK COCOA POWDER. To give this gluten-free chocolate zucchini bread that ultra chocolatey look and taste, I use dark unsweetened cocoa powder, sometimes labeled Dutch-processed cocoa or alkalized cocoa powder. Dark cocoa powder tends to be less expensive and easier to find. Dutch processed cocoa is nice if you can find it!
- GLUTEN-FREE FLOUR. I use a simple 1:1 gluten-free flour to keep things simple. I prefer King Arthur Flour Measure-for-Measure gluten-free flour blend. It’s got a nice mix of flours, no strange taste or smell, and no grittiness. If you use other blends, you may have slightly different results.
- BAKING SODA + SALT. To finish up the dry ingredients, I add baking soda and salt. This will help the chocolate zucchini bread rise and balance the flavors nicely.
- CHOCOLATE CHIPS. Aaaaand I love adding plenty of chocolate chips for even more chocolate flavor. A few on the top and plenty inside mean that you’ll get a little chocolate in every bite. Which is exactly how I like my chocolate zucchini bread.
FAQ + TIPS & TRICKS FOR THE BEST GLUTEN-FREE CHOCOLATE ZUCCHINI BREAD:
A TRICK FOR GRATING ZUCCHINI. If you’ve got a food processor, grating zucchini takes less than 30 seconds. Just use the grating attachment, cut your zucchini in half, and get to work! Otherwise, I love this style of grater, which gathers everything up for you nice and tidily.
WHAT’S THE BEST GLUTEN-FREE FLOUR FOR ZUCCHINI BREAD? I recommend using a 1:1 or measure-for-measure gluten-free flour blend for our chocolate zucchini bread. We highly recommend King Arthur Flour’s Measure-for-Measure flour. Our second choice is Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 gluten-free flour blend.
CAN I MAKE THIS WITH REGULAR COCOA POWDER? Yes, though it won’t look or taste *quite* as chocolatey. You can find dark cocoa powder at lots of regular grocery stores, or you can order Dutch-processed cocoa here.
HAVE YOU TRIED THIS WITHOUT EGGS? I haven’t yet. I’d probably start with flax eggs or powdered egg replacer if I were going to try a substitute.
HOW DO YOU STORE LEFTOVER CHOCOLATE ZUCCHINI BREAD? With most gluten-free baked goods, I prefer to put them in the refrigerator or freezer. This will keep in the fridge 2-3 days and in the freezer for about a month. (I like freezing it cut in slices so I can pull one out at a time.)
LOVE A GOOD ZUCCHINI RECIPE? YOU MIGHT LIKE:
HELPFUL TOOLS + INGREDIENTS FOR MAKING CHOCOLATE ZUCCHINI BREAD:
Gluten-Free Chocolate Zucchini Bread
- Total Time: 70-80 minutes
- Yield: 1 loaf chocolate zucchini bread (about 12 slices) 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Gluten-Free Chocolate Zucchini Bread – This ultra chocolatey gluten-free zucchini bread is AMAZING. The perfect way to use up extra zucchini in the summer! (Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free)
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups packed grated zucchini (don’t peel)
- 3 large eggs
- 1/2 cup avocado oil (or another neutral/melted oil*)
- 3/4 cup coconut sugar (or brown sugar)
- 1/2 cup dark cocoa powder (sometimes labeled alkalized or Dutch-processed)
- 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup gluten-free measure-for-measure or 1:1 gluten-free flour**
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips (2–3 Tbsp. set aside)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Grease a loaf pan (mine is a 9″x5″ loaf pan) and line with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, combine eggs, oil, coconut sugar, cocoa powder, and vanilla. Stir or whisk to combine well.
- Add grated zucchini and fold in with a spatula.
- Add flour, baking soda, and salt. Stir in with a spatula until just a few white spots remain.
- Set aside 2-3 Tbsp. chocolate chips for the top of the bread and add the rest to the batter.
- Fold in chocolate chips (there shouldn’t be any white/unmixed sections of flour left).
- Pour batter into prepared loaf pan and sprinkle with remaining chocolate chips.
- Bake at 350 degrees F. for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean with only a few moist crumbs. (A little melted chocolate chip is ok, but you don’t want any wet batter.)
- Place pan on a cooling rack for about 15 minutes, then run a knife around the edges of the bread and transfer the bread out of the pan and onto a wire rack to finish cooling before slicing. (If you’ve used parchment, you can usually just lift the bread out of the pan using the parchment as “handles.”)
Notes
*You can use canola oil, melted & cooled coconut oil, melted vegan butter, or melted butter.
**We recommend King Arthur Flour Measure-for-Measure Gluten-Free Flour for this recipe. Our runner up is Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 gluten-free flour. Results may vary if you use another brand.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 50-60 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
This was delicious! More cake like than bready, but not crumbly.
I used canola oil and brown sugar, also flour blend from America’s test kitchen with a little xanthan gum.
Made this but as muffins bc I didn’t have a loaf tin. All the adults wanted seconds! And kids loved it too!
Oh, that makes me so happy! I guess I need to make a batch as muffins now! 🙂
I need to use coconut flour-would it work?
Not for this recipe, I’m sorry Lisa! Coconut flour isn’t a 1:1 substitute for any other kind of flour without adjusting the amount of flour use and/or the amount of liquid in the recipe since it absorbs several times its volume in liquid. I’m sorry!
Looove this!! So delicious and rich without being sweet! So easy to make. Thx for posting this!! My new fave!!
Oh, good! I’m so glad!
Just made this and it came out amazing! Thank you!!
I’m so glad you loved it Katherine! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review. 🙂
I have two batches made with home grown yellow squash in the oven baking right now! I added 1 tsp. Of espresso powder, and used almond flavoring instead of vanilla to change it up slightly. I snuck a taste of the batter, and it tasted fantastic. It looked amazing going in, and I
I can’t wait to taste it.
Ooh, that sounds delicious!
Sounds amazing…can flax eggs or any other egg substitute be used?
I haven’t tried this with any egg substitutes, but I’d love to know how it goes if you do!
Amazing Recipe! I used chopped walnuts instead of chocolate chips and only a half cup of sugar. So, so good!
Thanks for the recipe 🙂
SO glad you loved it Dorene! That’s fantstic!
Can I use almond flour to make this? and Monkfruit sweetener?
Hi Judy! This recipe wasn’t developed for either. If you’d like an almond flour recipe, I recommend our Chocolate Zucchini Cake. 🙂
So good! first gluten free zucchini recipe I’ve tried that was actually tasty!
Made this for my sister who was advised to go gluten free, recently. I used a different brand of flour alternative, than those mentioned. Only because those were not available at the store on the day I was shopping. I did use avocado oil, the Dutch processed cocoa, etc. per the recipe. I baked in a dark loaf pan for 60 minutes, I checked at 50 minutes. It was still not ready and at 60 minutes was perfect. Honestly this was very delicious, not at all a “gluten-free” good enough kind of quick bread!
I’m so glad it was a win for you!!! Thanks for sharing your notes, too!
Made this for my GF daughter and family – they LOVED it. This was super moist and choclatey and uncomplicated to make. This is a winner for family and guests – you can’t go wrong.
This was absolutely delicious! I had olive oil on hand, so I subbed that for the avocado. Otherwise I followed the recipe, and my kiddo and I both loved it. 😋
I had so much zucchini I made two loaves. One barely made it to cool completely and the other I had to hide so it could cool and I could freeze it for later! My three teen devoured the first loaf!