Low sugar zucchini bread that is moist, dense, and really simple to put together. You can add chocolate chips or nuts or dry fruit and make it a tiny bit different each time.
Every year I plant fewer zucchini plants and every year I am overwhelmed with the amount of zucchini I harvest! I am not sure how this is making any sense but it’s just how it is. Not that I’m complaining… I love zucchini, however, it’s not as easy to preserve as other vegetables.
I don’t can zucchini (can you can zucchini? I’ve never tried…) and I don’t like freezing it. It’s simple enough but mushy when I thaw it and I just don’t care for it much. So instead, I make loaves of this low sugar zucchini bread, freeze it, and call it my way of preserving zucchini!
Low Sugar Zucchini Bread Recipe…
There are many ingredients that you can change in this recipe to make it even healthier, and there are many different kinds of add-ins that you can add to make it a bit different each time, but we’ll go over the basic recipe first and I’ll list all the other options below.
Ingredients…
- 1/2 cup melted butter
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 eggs at room temperature
- 1/2 cup milk at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cups of all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups of grated zucchini (probably about two medium zucchinis. Make sure to squeeze it so it’s as dry as possible)
- 1 cup of add-ins like nuts, raisins, or chocolate chips (more options below)
Kitchen Tools…
- Large mixing bowl
- A hand mixer – I prefer using a mixing bowl and a hand mixer but, of course, you can make this bread with a stand mixer as well.
- Flour sifter
- Grater – hand-operated one or you can use the food processor to grate the zucchinis.
- Spatula
- Bread pan – you can butter it, oil it or line it with parchment paper.
- Cooling rack
How to Make Low Sugar Zucchini Bread Step by Step…
Step 1 – mix the wet ingredients. To the bowl, add melted butter and sugar. Use the mixer to combine…
Add two eggs, milk, and vanilla extract and mix them in.
Step 2 – add the dry ingredients. Place the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in the sifter and sift them into the bowl.
Then, mix the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients just until combined.
Step 3 – add grated zucchini and add-ins. Cut the two ends off the zucchini and grate it. I never peel my zucchini but you can if you’d like.
To the bowl, add 1 1/2 cup of grated zucchini and up to one cup of add-ins and fold them in with a spatula. This time I used almonds but there are many other options (they are listed in the FAQ section below).
Step 4 – bake the bread. Butter a 9″ x 5″ loaf pan and pour the batter into the pan. Bake in a preheated 350 degree Fahrenheit oven for 60-75 minutes.
To check if the bread is ready, you can insert a toothpick in the center of it. If it comes out clean then the bread is baked all the way, if it comes out wet then the center is not baked and the bread needs some more baking time.
I usually check if the bread is ready after 60 minutes, but most of the time in my oven, it takes about 75 minutes. Every oven is a bit different so make sure you check your bread after 50 or 60 minutes. After you make it a couple of times you’ll know better how long you need to bake it.
Once it’s done, take it out of the oven and let it cool in the pan for ten minutes or so. Then take it out of the pan and set on the cooling rack to cool all the way.
How to Serve Low Sugar Zucchini Bread…
So obviously, since we only used 1/4 cup of sugar per loaf, this bread is not going to be as sweet as most other zucchini bread recipes. For me personally, it’s sweet enough, however, my kids like it a bit sweeter so usually I drizzle some honey on each slice or I serve each slice spread with a fruit jam of their choice (here are all the jam recipes that are on this blog).
I love using it for breakfast! I’ll just serve a slice of this low sugar zucchini bread with a slice of cheese and a fresh fruit (a banana works really well!). It’s a simple, healthy, and filling breakfast. Of course, you can always serve it next to a cup of coffee or just as a snack throughout the day.
Frequently Asked Questions…
You can substitute some of the ingredients for healthier alternatives to make this bread even healthier or even vegan if you’d like. You can replace the milk with almond milk. You can replace the sugar with ½ cup of honey. Replace some of the flour with whole wheat flour. You can replace the butter with coconut oil and you can replace the eggs with ground flax seeds (1 egg = 1 tablespoon of ground flax seed + 3 tablespoons of water).
Add a total of one cup of add-ins per loaf. You can add any kind of nut like pecans, almonds, walnuts and so on. You can add seeds like pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, flax seeds, etc. You can add any kind of dry fruit like cranberries, diced dry apricot, raisins, and so on. Add chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, etc. Or you can add chia seeds or hemp seeds, or flax seeds (don’t add a whole cup of those just a few tablespoons).
Someone asked me this question in the comments… The problem with almond flour is that it doesn’t absorb liquid as well as other kinds of flour. You might be able to substitute some of the flour for almond flour, however, I wouldn’t substitute the whole amount. You can try to substitute with other flours, though… Like spelt or einkorn if you’d like. You just want a kind of flour that can absorb some of the moisture of the zucchini.
Yes, sure. You can use 1/2 cup of sugar or even 3/4 cup of sugar instead of the 1/4 if you want to make it a bit sweeter. If you want to up the other flavors as well, feel free to use a bit more cinnamon or add some ground clove or nutmeg.
Sure you can!
It will last a couple of days at room temperature in a sealed container or wrapped in plastic wrap, however, I think that it’s best to store it in the fridge. It will last a couple of weeks in the fridge.
Yes! As I mentioned in the beginning of this post, I use this bread as a method to preserve the zucchini that comes out of my garden. Just wrap it well with plastic wrap and place in the freezer (you can pre-slice it if you’d like). It should last up to a year in the freezer. When you are ready to serve it, take it out of the freezer and place on the kitchen counter or the fridge to thaw. Then, if you’d like, you can heat each slice of bread for a few seconds in the microwave before serving it.
This is such an easy recipe! I honestly don’t see a reason to use a lot of sugar when making quick bread. If you’ve been looking for an easy low sugar quick bread recipe, this is it! One of my readers even informed me that she uses this as a basic recipe to make other kinds of loaves of bread too (like using carrots instead of the zucchini and so on). I hope that you’ll give it a try!
Other Quick Bread Recipes on the Blog…
- Old Fashion Sweet Potato Bread – a very simple recipe and a great way to use sweet potatoes.
- Simple Strawberry Bread Recipe – when spring comes and the strawberry plants start to produce, this is a recipe we turn to!
- Low Sugar Pumpkin Bread – I used to sift through a million pumpkin bread recipes every fall in search of one that uses fresh pumpkin puree and less sugar. I was so frustrated that I never could find a good one, so I wrote my own!
- Death By Chocolate Zucchini Bread – if you love chocolate, this is an amazing chocolate bread and another great way to use/preserve zucchinis.
Also, if you are looking for other ways to use zucchini, try this amazing Mediterranean zucchini casserole recipe and these zucchini and corn fritters.
Low Sugar Zucchini Bread
Moist, dense, and delicious low sugar zucchini bread that is very quick and easy to put together.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup melted butter
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 eggs at room temperature
- 1/2 cup milk at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups of grated zucchini (probably about two medium zucchinis. Make sure to squeeze the grated zucchini so it’s as dry as possible)
- 1 cup of add-ins like nuts, raisins, or chocolate chips (more options in the notes below)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- In a bowl, mix the melted butter and sugar.
- Add the eggs, milk, and vanilla extract.
- Add the flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon into a sifter and sift onto the wet ingredients.
- Mix the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients.
- Add the add-ins and grated zucchini and mix them in with a spatula or a wooden spoon.
- Line a loaf pan with parchment paper and transfer the batter to the loaf pan.
- Bake for 60 to 75 minutes. To check if the bread is ready, insert a toothpick in the center of it. If the toothpick comes out clean, the bread is ready.
- Let cool slightly after removing from the oven. Then remove the bread from the pan and set on a wire rack to cool all the way. Serve or wrap in food plastic wrap and freeze for later.
Notes
To make this bread even healthier, here are a few substitute options...
You can substitute some of the ingredients for healthier alternatives to make this bread even healthier or even vegan if you’d like. You can replace the milk with almond milk. You can replace the sugar with ½ cup of honey. Replace some of the flour with whole wheat flour. You can replace the butter with coconut oil and you can replace the eggs with ground flax seeds (1 egg = 1 tablespoon of ground flax seed + 3 tablespoons of water).
Options for add-ins...
Add a total of one cup of add-ins per loaf. You can add any kind of nut like pecans, almonds, walnuts and so on. You can add seeds like pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, flax seeds, etc. You can add any kind of dry fruit like cranberries, diced dry apricot, raisins, and so on. Add chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, etc. Or you can add chia seeds or hemp seeds, or flax seeds (don’t add a whole cup of those just a few tablespoons).
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 9 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 360Total Fat: 21gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 70mgSodium: 405mgCarbohydrates: 36gFiber: 3gSugar: 12gProtein: 8g
Hi! I’m Lady Lee. I help homesteaders simplify their homesteading journey while still producing a ton of food! I am a single mother of four, I was born in Israel and raised in an agricultural commune called a Kibbutz. Now I homestead in central NC.
This recipe turned out really well! I did add 1/2 cup of Coconut sugar , walnuts and mini chocolate chips. Delicious! I can definitely tell the difference with my body on the reduction of sugar!! Thanks so much!
Awesome! And great idea to add coconut sugar. I’ve never tried that before.
Absolutely wonderful! I made the recipe as published but substituted the regular milk with extra-protein flax milk, added about a cup of chopped walnuts, and some nutmeg. Tastes great with coffee in the morning or with tea in the afternoon. Thank you so much for sharing!
I’m so glad you liked it! Thanks for stopping by.
If I’m using the mini bread pans how many minutes do I bake in the oven?
Great recipe! I used some honey butter that I had made at Christmas instead of the the butter and sugar the recipe calls for and then added dried cranberries and white chocolate chips, 1/2 cup each. It turned out wonderful! I was questioning on how sweet it would be without the sugar but it was fabulous! Thanks!
So glad you liked it! I always tell people that it’s super easy to just drizzle honey on individual slices if you find out that it’s not sweet enough after you made it.
Thanks for the easy recipe! My husband is diabetic and has been dying for some zucchini bread! I varied the recipe by substituting honey for sugar, almond milk for regular milk. I also increased cinnamon from 1/2 tsp to one (1) heaping tsp (because we love cinnamon), decreased salt from 1/2 tsp to 1/8 tsp, added 1/8 tsp of allspice and one (1) cup of chopped walnuts. I preheated the over to 325 and baked the batter for 1 hour & 25 minutes. It turned out delicious!!! I’ve had many “Zucchini Recipe” requests and I have YOU to thank! Thanks again.
Cindy S. from Michigan
Yay! So glad you liked it. These are great substitutes too. Thanks for sharing this with us!