Whole Wheat Chocolate Zucchini Bread

Made with two kinds of chocolate, whole wheat pastry flour & lightly spiced with cinnamon & nutmeg, this whole wheat chocolate zucchini bread is your next breakfast or snack time hit!

This is the quick bread I make for breakfast almost once a week in the summer, when zucchini handouts are easy to come by (thank you, family and friends!) and we want something easy, sweet and wholesome to munch on in the mornings. It also makes a wonderful snack. I’m sure you don’t need me to list all the ways you can blow through a loaf of this delicious whole wheat chocolate zucchini bread!  The best part about this recipe is that it makes two loaves, one for you and one to share with a neighbor. Or, freeze one and pull it out in a few weeks. 

This recipe was given to me by my friend Mary when we lived in Oregon.  I’ve tweaked it over the years, reducing the amount of oil and sugar and swapping in whole wheat pastry flour for the white flour. Seriously, you would never know this is made entirely with whole wheat pastry flour, but this bread so much more nutritious than if it were made with all-purpose flour.  That means I can justify chocolate zucchini bread as breakfast on an average Tuesday morning in our house.

What is the difference between whole wheat pastry flour and whole wheat flour?

Whole wheat pastry flour, also known as white whole-wheat flour, is ground from soft white wheat instead of the usual red wheat. It has a lower protein content than whole wheat flour so it’s well suited for pastries like biscuits, quick breads, pie crusts, cookies, pancakes, etc. It’s more nutrient dense than white flour because it hasn’t been refined to remove the bran and the germ but it still yields pastries with a desirable, tender texture. 

how to measure a loaf pan

This recipe calls for 2 – 8.5 by 4.5 loaf pans but you can also use a 9 by 5 size. You’ll just want to reduce the baking time by about 10 minutes and start checking at 45 minutes. If you’re not sure which size you have, pull out a ruler, and measure the broad, top portion to double check. This is important to get the time right!

Whole Wheat Chocolate Zucchini Bread Ingredients

– makes 2 loaves –

4 cups whole-wheat pastry flour
1 cup sugar
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 cup plain yogurt
8 tablespoons butter
¼ cup avocado oil (or coconut or walnut oil)
1 ½ cup buttermilk
3 eggs
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups shredded zucchini (about 2 small zucchini)
1 cup chocolate chips

How to make whole-wheat chocolate zucchini bread

Get ready

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and set oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle racks. Butter two 8.5 by 4.5 inch loaf pans.

make whole wheat chocolate zucchini batter

1. Cream butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy and the butter is visibly lighter in color. Add eggs, one at a time, until well incorporated.

2. Stir together dry ingredients with a whisk to make sure they’re fully combined, including the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. 

3. In a medium bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, yogurt, vanilla and zucchini. 

4. Stir in 1/3 of the dry ingredients into the butter/sugar mixture, followed by ½ of the zucchini mixture, another 1/3 of the dry ingredients, the remaining zucchini mixture, and finally, the last of the dry ingredients, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl between each addition. Try not to overmix. 

5. Gently stir in the chocolate chips (these are my favorite!).

Bake

7. Pour into prepared loaf pans as evenly as possible. Place on loaf on the upper-middle rack and the other on the lower-middle rack. Bake for 55-65 minutes, rotating loaves from bottom to top and top to bottom halfway through bake time.

8. Remove from oven and place on cooling rack. Cool for 5 minutes before running a knife around the sides of the pan and removing to the cooling rack to cool completely. Slice with a serrated knife.

9. Store this bread at room temperature for 2-3 days or refrigerated for up to 5 days. It freezes beautifully. Just wrap it in foil and place in a re-sealable bag. Thaw at room temperature overnight or pop in the oven for 10-15 minutes to melt the chocolate chips. 

Want to make whole-wheat chocolate zucchini muffins instead?

To make muffins, line a muffin pans with muffin liners or grease and fill a little more than 2/3 of the way full. Bake for about 15-17 minutes. Makes about 30 muffins.

Storing & Freezing Zucchini Bread

Store zucchini bread in the refrigerator for up to five days. To reheat, place a slice in the microwave for 15-20 seconds to melt the chocolate chips.

how to freeze zucchini bread

To freeze an extra loaf of zucchini bread, wrap well in plastic wrap and then wrap a second time in foil. Place in tightly sealed ziplock bag or glass-lock container and place in freezer for up to two months. To thaw, place at room temperature overnight. If you’d like, you can reheat the thawed loaf in the oven at 350 degrees for 5-10 minutes.

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread

Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread: Two kinds of chocolate + grated zucchini + nutmeg & cinnamon

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time1 hour hr

Total Time1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Keyword: chocolate zucchini bread, zucchini bread

Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 4 cups whole wheat pastry flour aka white whole wheat flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 cup avocado oil walnut or coconut oil also good
• 8 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup plain yogurt
• 1 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 3 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• 2 cups shredded zucchini about 2 small zucchini

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and set oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle racks. Butter two 8.5 by 4.5 inch loaf pans.
• Cream butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy and the butter is visibly lighter in color. Add eggs, one at a time, until well incorporated.
• Stir together dry ingredients with a whisk to make sure they’re fully combined, including the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. 
• In a medium bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, yogurt, vanilla and zucchini. 
• Stir in 1/3 of the dry ingredients into the butter/sugar mixture, followed by ½ of the zucchini mixture, another 1/3 of the dry ingredients, the remaining zucchini mixture, and finally, the last of the dry ingredients, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl between each addition. Try not to overmix. 
• Gently stir in the chocolate chips.
• Pour into prepared loaf pans as evenly as possible. Place on loaf on the upper-middle rack and the other on the lower-middle rack. Bake for 55-65 minutes, rotating loaves from bottom to top and top to bottom halfway through bake time.
• Remove from oven and place on cooling rack. Cool for 5 minutes before running a knife around the sides of the pan and removing to the cooling rack to cool completely. Slice with a serrated knife.
• Store this bread at room temperature for 2-3 days or refrigerated for up to 5 days. It freezes beautifully. Just wrap it in foil and place in a re-sealable bag. Thaw at room temperature overnight or pop in the oven for 10-15 minutes to melt the chocolate chips. 

Notes

1. For Muffins: Line a muffin tin (or 2!) with muffin liners or grease a muffin pan and fill a little more than 2/3 of the way full. Bake for about 15-17 minutes. Makes about 30 muffins.
2. You can use 2-9X5 loaf pans instead. Just reduce the cooking time by about 10 minutes. You’ll want to start checking them around 45 minutes.