Zucchini Cheese Bread

This Zucchini Cheese Bread has a subtle zucchini flavor, but packs a powerful, cheesy punch thanks to lots of sharp cheddar and Parmesan.

I love zucchini, but to me, CHEESE will always be #1 in my heart! So, I came up with this zucchini cheese bread recipe that has a subtle zucchini flavor, but LOTS of cheesy goodness. In fact, there are equal parts cheese and zucchini in this recipe! I also love this recipe because you don’t need to squeeze out the moisture in the zucchini beforehand. So, it’s pretty easy to make too!

Zucchini bread is also a great way to use up any leftover zucchini you have floating around in your fridge. Since the zucchini is shredded up, it doesn’t matter if your zucchini is slightly dented or a little soft.

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Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make this recipe for Zucchini Cheese Bread:

• Zucchini
• Sharp cheddar: you could substitute other cheeses that have a similar texture to cheddar, like Jack, Colby, or even pepper Jack would be really good. But, for me I like the pungent bite you get from sharp cheddar.
• Parmesan: you could also substitute other hard cheeses that are similar to Parmesan, like Romano or Asiago.
• Sour cream
• All-purpose flour
• Kosher salt
• Garlic powder
• Onion powder
• Eggs
• Melted butter
• Baking powder

How to make zucchini cheese bread

The steps for this zucchini cheese bread are pretty basic, here is a quick rundown (but be sure to follow the recipe card down below for the full instructions!):

1. Whisk together the dry ingredients.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs.
3. Then, add in the sour cream and melted butter.
4. Stir in the cheeses and zucchini to the wet ingredients.
5. Combine the wet and dry ingredients into a stiff batter. (Use your hands to do the final mix if stirring gets too hard.)
6. Add to a greased loaf pan and bake!

What size loaf pan do I need?

This recipe calls for a 8 ½ x 4 ½ inch loaf pan (pictured above on the right). I’ve also seen this called a “medium” sized loaf pan, or a “1 pound” loaf pan. From what I can tell, this is pretty much the “standard” sized loaf pan. This size will allow you to get a nice, fairly tall loaf. The one I used here is the USA Pan Aluminized Steel Loaf Pan (affiliate link).

However, the 9 x 5 inch size (pictured above on the left) is also a common size. If you only have that size, you can use that too. The loaf will be a little shallow, and will probably cook a little bit faster. So, just keep an eye on it during the last 10 minutes or so of the baking time and take it out when it’s deep golden brown and firm on top.

Helpful tips

Here are a couple helpful tips for making this zucchini cheese bread recipe:

Weigh the zucchini if possible

I recommend measuring the zucchini by weight rather than volume. Using a scale is more accurate than volume measurements. This is important because you are not wringing it out before adding it to the dough, meaning it will release moisture into the bread.

Controlling the amount of moisture in the bread will make sure you don’t end up with a too-dense loaf. So, use a scale for the zucchini if you’ve got one! If you don’t have a kitchen scale, I really recommend one they are so handy! I have the Escali Primo Baking Scale (affiliate link).

If you don’t have a scale, I did include a volume measurement. If you are going to use that, just keep in mind that this measurement is for packed zucchini, but not firmly packed. (Basically, I pressed it into the cup but not super hard!)

Mixing and shaping the dough

The dough will be very firm – don’t be alarmed, this is correct! It seems stiff, but the zucchini will release moisture into the bread as it bakes, as discussed above. You may even need to use your hands to get the final bits of flour to incorporate. You don’t need to knead the dough however, stop mixing just after the last bit of flour is combined.

And, when you add the dough into the greased pan, you can smooth the top out and make sure it reaches all the corners, but please don’t press it down into the loaf pan. I did this during one of my tests, and it made the bottom of the loaf a little bit dense. Just spread it out gently and you are good to go.

If you’ve tried this recipe for Zucchini Cheese Bread, please let me know what you thought about it in the comments down below, I would love to hear from you! You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest to see more delicious recipes from Nibble and Dine!

And before you go, do you want to look at a couple other delicious snack recipes? If so, please check out these recipes for Chocolate Potato Chip Pretzel Mix and Apricot Orange Energy Balls!

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