Wholesome and delicious vegan zucchini bread. It’s fluffy and perfectly moist and you’ll never suspect it’s hiding green vegetables!
This vegan zucchini bread is so delicious. You’d never know there was zucchini in it! But also, it’s so great that there’s zucchini in it!
Basically, zucchini in baked goods is a fabulous idea. It’s almost undetectable in the final baked result, but it adds heaps of moisture and you get a couple of servings of veggies from your baked goods too. This is very much a win/win situation.
Yes, you can see little flecks of green zucchini in there and it’s super pretty, but don’t worry, it does not taste anything like green vegetables.
We’ve incorporated zucchini into a bunch of baked goods already, like our vegan chocolate zucchini cake, vegan zucchini muffins and vegan zucchini brownies.
This bread is so delicious it can count as dessert. But it also has a wonderfully wholesome vibe so you’d feel very comfortable eating it for breakfast too. Or lunch, or a snack. It’s pretty much great to have a loaf of this around to eat anytime.
And for more zucchini recipes also check out our vegan zucchini fritters and our vegan zucchini soup.
Ingredients You’ll Need:
Ingredient Notes
- Walnuts – are entirely optional. You could also use chopped pecans.
- Flax egg – this recipe uses 1 flax egg which is made by mixing 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed meal with 3 tablespoons of hot water.
- Zucchini – should be freshly grated. There is no need to peel them, just cut off the ends and grate them in your food processor (the easiest option) or in a box grater.
- Mashed banana – we use ⅓ cup of mashed banana in this recipe which gives it just a touch of banana bread flavor. Which is divine because who doesn’t love banana bread? But it’s just a touch, a hint, and it combines beautifully with the cinnamon, nutmeg and brown sugar in this recipe. An alternative to mashed banana would be applesauce, in the same quantity.
- Coconut oil – we use melted coconut oil, but you can also substitute this for any vegetable oil or even melted vegan butter.
- Soy milk – can be replaced with any non-dairy milk.
How To Make Vegan Zucchini Bread
You will find full instructions and measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.
- Sift all purpose flour into a mixing bowl and add white granulated sugar, light brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Mix together.
- Prepare your flax egg by mixing 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed meal with 3 tablespoons hot water and allow it to sit for a minute to become gloopy.
- Add the flax egg, shredded zucchini, mashed banana, soy milk, melted coconut oil and vanilla extract to the mixing bowl and mix in briefly. It will seem like there is not enough wet ingredients to mix in properly, don’t worry. Leave the mixing bowl for a couple of minutes and then come back to it. The zucchini will release more water into the mix and you should be able to form it into a thick batter. Mix it in properly, but don’t overmix.
- Add chopped walnuts and mix in.
- Transfer to a parchment lined loaf pan and smooth down evenly. Place a few more chopped walnuts directly on top of the bread before baking.
- Place into the oven and bake at 350°F for 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Let the bread cool in the pan for a few minutes before transferring it to a wire cooling rack to cool completely before slicing.
Pro Tips for Vegan Zucchini Bread
The batter is very thick. In fact you will likely think I’ve left something important out of the recipe, like a lot of extra liquid! But don’t worry, it does come together. Once you have added your zucchini and other wet ingredients to your batter, mix it in a little and then step away from the bowl for a minute or two. The zucchini will release extra moisture into the batter, making it easy to mix when you come back to it.
Don’t overmix the batter. Something to keep in mind is not to overmix the batter. This is why you want to do a quick mix, and then just leave the bowl for a couple of minutes and then come back and mix again. You have to be careful not to overmix, because this can cause your bread to not rise properly.
Recipe FAQ
There is no need to squeeze the water out of the zucchini. Just shred the zucchini and use it right away. If there is any water pooled at the bottom of your food processor or bowl after shredding, you can throw that out, but there is no need to squeeze the water out of the shredded zucchini itself.
There is no need to peel the zucchini. The peels are very soft, so they bake into the bread perfectly.
Store the bread in an airtight container at room temperature where it will keep for 2-3 days.
You can freeze it for up to 3 months. Allow it to cool completely before freezing and then ideally wrap it in plastic wrap and then in foil before freezing. Thaw in the fridge overnight and let it come to room temperature on the counter before serving.
More Delicious Vegan Bread Recipes
- Vegan Banana Bread
- Vegan Cornbread
- Vegan Pumpkin Bread
- Vegan Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
- Vegan Chocolate Banana Bread
- Vegan Soda Bread
Vegan Zucchini Bread
Ingredients
- 2 cups All Purpose Flour (250g)
- ½ cup White Granulated Sugar (100g)
- ½ cup Light Brown Sugar (100g)
- 3 tsp Baking Powder
- 1 tsp Cinnamon
- ¼ tsp Nutmeg
- ½ tsp Salt
- 1 Flax Egg 1 Tbsp Ground Flaxseed Meal + 3 Tbsp Hot Water
- 1 cup Shredded Zucchini (140g) Packed Cup
- ⅓ cup Mashed Ripe Banana (75g)
- ¼ cup Soy Milk (60ml) or other non-dairy milk
- ¼ cup Coconut Oil (60ml) Melted
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 cup Walnuts (100g) Chopped, plus more to place directly on top of the bread before baking*
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Spray a 9×5 loaf pan with non-stick spray and line the bottom with parchment paper.
- Sift the all purpose flour into a mixing bowl and add the white granulated sugar, light brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Mix together.
- Prepare your flax egg by mixing 1 Tbsp Ground Flaxseed Meal with 3 Tbsp Hot Water and allow to sit for a minute to become gloopy.
- Add the flax egg, shredded zucchini, mashed banana, soy milk, melted coconut oil and vanilla extract to the mixing bowl and mix in briefly. It will seem like there is not enough wet ingredients to mix in properly, don’t worry. Leave the mixing bowl for a couple of minutes. When you come back to it the zucchini will have released more water into the mix and you should be able to form it into a thick batter. Mix it in properly, but don’t overmix.
- Add chopped walnuts and mix in.
- Transfer to your prepared loaf pan and smooth down evenly. Add a few chopped walnuts directly to the top of the bread before baking.
- Place into the oven and bake for 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Let the bread cool for a few minutes before removing it from the pan and placing onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Measure the flour correctly either using the ‘spoon and level’ method – spoon it into your measuring cup and then level off the top with a knife – or weigh it on a food scale.
- Zucchini: I usually shred my zucchini in the food processor (you shred it with the skins on, no need to peel it first) as it’s the easiest way to do it.
- Coconut oil: This can be replaced with a different oil or even melted vegan butter.
- Walnuts: These are optional. Pecans would also work great.
- Storing and Freezing: Store the bread in an airtight container at room temperature where it will keep for 2-3 days. You can freeze it for up to 3 months. Allow it to cool completely before freezing and then ideally wrap it in plastic wrap and then in foil before freezing. Thaw in the fridge overnight and let it come to room temperature on the counter before serving.
- This recipe was first published in August 2018. It has been updated with new photos and extra tips. The recipe itself (except for the addition of walnuts) is unchanged).
Yum! I made a double batch of this for Thanksgiving. Didn’t have nutmeg so used allspice instead. Also had some vegan egg substitute made from psyllium and tapioca so used that. Came out great!
That’s great Vicky! Glad the recipe worked out for you. Thanks for your wonderful review!
my family loved this loaf, I used chocolate chips instead of nuts, and freshly grated nutmeg-my family said it reminded them of Christmas! I’ll definitely be making this again.
Happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe Susie! Thanks for your great review!
Hi. Do you think you could use shredded zucchini that has been frozen?
Sure Tanya!
Absolutely heavenly, light, perfect crumb and not dense and stodgy like so much vegan baking can be. I did not have any flax meal left for the vegan egg so used powdered “egg replacer” and did the equivalent of two eggs. My oven does not run hot so did an extra 7 minutes. This is a hit with my non-vegan husband who is very fussy when it comes to vegan cakes and loaves. Have devoured this and about to make another one and probably one for the freezer as the zucchini are coming thick and fast off our plants.
Your recipes are always superb and work perfectly. PS: Our other favourite is good old Malva pudding – was sooo good to find a vegan version of that 🙂
Thanks so much for the amazing review Christine! So happy you enjoyed the recipe and so glad you love the malva pudding too! 🙂
Have you made this with less sugar? Can I use half the sugars? Thanks.
I haven’t tried reducing the sugar, but you can definitely try it and see how you go.
Hello Alison,
Your recipe is simply PERFECT!!!
The best vegan bread I have ever made and tasted.
Thank your so much for sharing!
Thanks so much Genevieve! That’s awesome!
Hi Alison, I baked mini loaves for some coworkers and they were a hit! One of them requested a full loaf but with almond flour, would it be the same amount as the all-purpose flour? I’d love to hear back for you, really excited to try something new!
Hi Kat, almond flour doesn’t make a great substitute for regular flour as it behaves very differently, if it’s just about making it gluten-free then using an all purpose gluten free blend would be the best option. 🙂
First time I simply let the zucchini sit with the dry ingredients before mixing. Excellent outcome. Not too moist as often is the case with other zucchini bread recipes.
Awesome Jason, so glad it came out well! Thanks for the wonderful review!
Can I add seeds?
Sure!
Love this recipe. I’ve made it several times and every time it comes out perfect. I use only 1/2 of turbinado sugar and decrease the liquids by a bit. It’s so delicious!
That’s awesome Paula, thanks for sharing!
I have made this twice before & its never failed! I was wondering if if I subbed the flour for gluten free flour would it be ok? I want to make it for a GF friend.
Hi Daisy, I think as long as it’s a gluten-free all purpose blend then it should work fine. 🙂
I like that you think this is going to last for five days ???? Very easy, delicious recipe but definitely needs less sugar. I used 75g of each sugar and I think it is still very sweet and I have a sweet tooth.
It smells amazing as it bakes!
Thanks for sharing Susie!
Have attempted many baked vegan goods, and have struggled with getting it just right. I love the simplicity of this recipe and am happy to say the bread came out fluffy, moist and delicious!
Wonderful! Thanks Vicki!
Hi Alison. Do you think this would work without the banana? I have everything on hand except for that. No apple sauce either. Any ideas?
Hi Gem, hmmm, it might work to just use an extra 1/3 cup of shredded zucchini. I’m not entirely sure how well it will work though, but the worst that could happen is it might be a tiny bit dry if it’s not a perfect swap.
Hi Alison
Absolutely great recipe with just the right amount of spices and lovely and moist.
I added a handful of sultanas for a bit of a spiced fruity type bread.
Great recipe and easy to follow. Thank you.
Thanks Jane!