Got Zucchini?


It's summer and the zucchini is ripe and ready! I don't have a garden, but I've been getting some fresh zucchini from my parents and my mother-in-law. Maybe you've been getting some from a gardening relative or friend, too. If you're like me, and end up with more than you can eat in its natural state, then you might consider making some delicious zucchini bread.

Today I'm going to share the Betty Crocker recipe I've been using to make zucchini bread for almost 20 years! I'll include a link to this recipe at the end of my post, but first I'd like to share a few changes to make the bread more healthy and moist.

If you've never made zucchini bread, you may not realize how simple it is to get the zucchini ready to use. Begin by washing and drying the outside of your zucchini. Then, cut the tips off either end and shred the rest into a bowl using an ordinary cheese grater. This recipe requires three cups of zucchini and makes two loaves.



Because I like to make four loaves at a time, I grate six cups of zucchini. If I have any extra, I put 3 cup amounts of grated zucchini in quart sized ziploc bags and store them in the freezer. Before using, I thaw these out for a day or two, draining the thawed zucchini in a colander before I put it in the batter.


A few tips to make the bread more healthy:

1. Use applesauce instead of vegetable oil. The Betty Crocker recipe calls for 2/3 cup vegetable oil, but I always use applesauce instead.

2. Use whole wheat flour. The recipe calls for 3 cups all-purpose or wheat flour. Definitely go with the whole wheat if you're looking to make this a healthier bread.

3. If you'd like to avoid cooking with eggs, you can substitute 1 Tbsp soy flour plus 1 Tbsp water for each egg.

4. Feel free to leave out the nuts and raisins. This recipe calls for chopped nuts and raisins, but my kids don't like them.

And one tip to make it more tasty!

4. Add one cup chocolate chips. This won't make the bread more healthy, but it will make it a sweeter treat! My son loves the bread this way and eats it up quickly!

The full Betty Crocker recipe can be found here.


I hope you'll be enjoying some of this fantastic bread soon!



30 comments:

  1. I love zucchini bread! I like your idea of adding chocolate chips.

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  2. I have zucchini sitting on my counter that I've meaning to make into bread for a nearly a week now! I didn't like the last recipe I tried and was looking for a new one. Thanks for sharing! Looks yummy!

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  3. This looks yummy! Will have to try it!

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  4. I love that you freeze grated zucchini! I've got to do that. Thanks so much for the recipe and tips!
    ~ Ashley

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    1. My mom uses glass jars to freeze hers and says it turns out perfectly that way, too! I don't have enough room in my freezer for those though.

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  5. Hi Marie!
    We're big fans of Zucchini bread too, especially chocolate zucchini bread!
    With such an abundance of it this time of year, I love making zucchini pancakes for breakfast and zucchini cakes for dinner. I love the idea of freezing it! Thanks for sharing.
    I hope you're having a great start to your week,
    Suzanne

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    1. Thanks, Suzanne! Zucchini pancakes sound good! I much prefer zucchini in baked goods than plain, unless it's grilled.

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  6. I have just made the simplest soup ever which has zucchini, spinach and peas all wilted in veg stock with a bit of added (cooked) rice and chicken. You are meant to swirl some pesto on top - I'll let you know if it's any good when I have it for my lunch tomorrow! I've always meant to make zucchini bread. I like that kind of thing and I also got a bit addicted to chocolate bread when my local grocery store trialled a loaf out for a while - so delicious! Unfortunately I've cut right back on bread lately in an attempt to, if not lose weight then at least stop gaining! :-)

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    1. That soup sounds delicious! I love soups. They're always so comforting!

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  7. Always on the lookout for good zucchini recipes, because we grow too much, and my neighbors don't want any more :). This looks yummy and I like the healthy substitutions - I can trick the teenagers!

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  8. I love Zucchini bread! I just picked some up at a farm today and was planning on making up a batch tomorrow :) Love your healthy changes to the recipe :)

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  9. i love a good recipe. Thank you ever so much for sharing this one as I also love zucchini bread or zucchini anything for that matter. They call is courgette in the ukk and it took me forever to figure that out but once I did I started cooking again with it. Buba loves it I need to try this bread out too as he can't have eggs love all the substitute options. Thanks for linking up to Share With Me #sharewithme

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    1. When I was writing the post, courgette came up as another name for zucchini! I'd never heard of it before that!

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  10. This looks great! We have some growing in our garden and I love making bread so will definitely give this a go x #SHINEbloghop

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  11. Zucchini bread is my all-time favorite. IMHO, it easily beats out banana bread. YuMmY!

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    1. I agree, I've gotten a little tired of banana bread. I think I made it too often for awhile!

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  12. Looks yummy! I usually make banana bread but this will be next on my list.

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  13. Thanks so much for doing this...it really helps to have a traditional recipe re-done in a healthier way. It sounds great. Thanks for sharing with the Thursday Blog Hop!

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  14. Hi Marie, I popped over from the Thursday Blog Hop!
    We just picked our first zucchini today! yay! We shred dozens of quarts over the summer to make cakes & breads. I like to add it to spaghetti sauce too. Thanks so much for sharing some healthy tips, I never thought to use applesauce!
    Enjoy your day!

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    1. I've heard of adding it to spaghetti sauce, but forgot all about it. It's supposed to be tasty that way!

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  15. I am really going to try this as both my daughters always say they really hate zucchini and always scrape it to the side of the plate if I cook it in anything! I won't let them know what the ingredients are in the bread until after they say it's delicious! Thank you for sharing this :)

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  16. This sounds delicious and I love your tips for exchanging ingredients & for freezing zucchini! I haven't grown it myself either but a neighbor said he'd give me one of his last year and came over with one the size of a pumpkin!! I was frantically looking for recipes. Became zucchini muffins; a cake loaf and zucchini lasagne... Just when I was really getting into it, it ran out!
    I'll definitely be pinning this & trying it out next time.

    Thanks for linking to the #SHINEbloghop :-)

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    1. Wow! That must have been a huge zucchini. Muffins sound really good!

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  17. This was delicious and guess what? I didn't change anything and I certainly didn't substitute any apple sauce for the oil because if your gonna bake, then BAKE.

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Thanks for taking the time to comment. I love hearing from you!