Banana Zucchini Bread

Pretty sure August and September are zucchini bread season, right? At least in the midwest when summer gardens start to go crazy.

My mom used to make a mean zucchini bread. I remember loaves of it being stored in the freezer. It had that hint of spice but the perfect amount of sweetness and even my young super picky self enjoyed zucchini bread – I just ignored the green specks and pretended they weren’t there. I also recall being confused as to how I could enjoy a piece of bread that had green specks in it…

Anyways, zucchini bread is some of the best quick bread around. As is banana bread… so obviously they had a love child in my kitchen and that is what we’ve got here today.

What You Need

Not too many ingredients in this quick bread and (likely) already in your pantry.

That’s the best, right? When you say to yourself, “I want to bake zucchini bread today!” And then you rummage through your cupboards and fridge and realize you have everything you need.

Dry Ingredients

For the dry ingredients we’re using whole wheat pastry flour (but you can also use half all-purpose and half whole wheat), baking soda for the leavening agent, salt to balance flavor and plenty of cinnamon with a hint of nutmeg.

Wet Ingredients

The wet ingredients are extra ripe spotty bananas (for the best flavor), granulated sugar (coconut sugar, brown or another kind works), light olive oil for moisture, an egg (can sub flaxseed egg), vanilla extract and grated zucchini.

How to Make

Here’s a quick rundown of how to make banana zucchini bread, with more details and notes in the Recipe Card at the bottom of the post.

Combine dry ingredients together in one bowl and set aside.

In a large bowl, begin combining mashed banana, honey, oil and vanilla extract, then whisk in egg until smooth.

Add half the dry ingredients to the large bowl of wet ingredients, then gently fold in in shredded zucchini and walnuts or chocolate chips (if using) and the rest of the dry ingredients, stirring until just combined – be careful not to over-stir or you’ll end up with a tough bread.

Pour batter into prepared loaf pan and bake for 30 minutes uncovered, then another 12-18 minutes covered with foil. Edges should brown and top should be golden. Check center with toothpick to ensure it’s done (no wet batter).

Baking Notes

Flour:  I used whole wheat pastry flour to give the bread a nice soft texture, and the wheat flavor isn’t overpowering. You can also use all whole wheat white, or a mix of whole wheat and all-purpose. If you’re looking for a gluten-free alternative, I always have great luck subbing 1:1 gluten-free baking flour (I like Bob’s Red Mill). But I am not sure how the gluten free flour blend would work along with a vegan egg replacement.

Sweetener: You can use honey or maple syrup here. If you want a sweeter bread, add the additional granulated sugar. If your bananas are super black or extra spotty, you may be okay with the natural sweetness from the bananas.

Banana: Also make sure your bananas are super ripe – lots of brown spots – for the best flavor. If you don’t use extra ripe bananas, the bread might not be as sweet as you hope. If using frozen banana (thawed), make sure to remove some of the excess liquid.

Baking time: My bread took a good 45 minutes, but keep an eye on it after 40 minutes or so. Everyone’s oven is different. Test the loaf for any west batter by inserting a toothpick in various spots.

This Banana Zucchini Bread is:

• Soft and fluffy
• Has perfect banana flavor and small bits of zucchini
• Deliciously spiced
• Amazing with a little slab of salted sweet cream butter.

I hope you love it as much as we do!