If you want to bake an one-bowl, quick bread absolutely no one will suspect is gluten-free, this ultimately fudgy double chocolate zucchini bread is the magic ticket. There’s two simple tricks to making a gluten-free chocolate zucchini bread ultra moist, but not soggy or sunken in the middle. Don’t worry, it’s easy peasy and I’ll show you how!
Chocolate Gluten Free Zucchini Bread? Yes Please!
When it comes to making quick breads with gluten-free flour, the process is simple. Take this chocolate chip zucchini bread made with gluten-free flour and cocoa powder. It’s a one bowl recipe, works with a variety of gluten-free flour blends, and like this 5-star gluten-free apple bread it’s as simple as mix, pour and bake.
So where do all the secret gluten-free baking tricks come in? Well, after developing hundreds of homemade gluten-free bread recipes, I’ve learned what throws off the texture the most is the ratio of wet to dry ingredients. GF flour can be a little stubborn when it comes to soaking up moisture.
In the case making chocolate zucchini bread gluten-free, you have a little bit of advantage because the cocoa powder assists absorbing water from the grated zucchini. But, unfortunately that doesn’t go far enough.
The first thing I experiment with when gluten-free breads sink, is baking lower and slower. That worked wonders with banana bread made with gluten-free flour, and it did the job with chocolate chip zucchini bread as well.
The other easy step I use for gluten-free zucchini recipes is squeezing excess moisture from the grated summer squash. It gives that extra oomph of tender, fluffy crumb, but since zucchini is made of mostly water, don’t worry about the bread drying. I do this for my famous almond flour zucchini muffins to chocolate chip gluten-free zucchini cookies and everything in between.
Ingredient Notes
- Zucchini – Grate with box grater or a grater disc on a food processor with the skin on. Soak up extra moisture by blotting grated zucchini dry with paper towels or a dish towel before adding to batter.
- Egg – For a vegan version, use an egg replacer, such as flax egg.
- Brown sugar – Adds a caramel flavor and slight chewiness. Can reduce slightly for less sugar or replace with coconut sugar.
- Oil or coconut oil – Use any preferred oil. I usually use canola, but evidently people have some strong opinions on that…Since there is no butter in the recipe, the bread dairy-free, as long as you use a dairy-free all-purpose gluten-free flour. More on that below.
- All purpose gluten free flour – I highly recommend Cup4Cup gluten-free flour for yeast bread recipes, but quick breads are more forgiving, so use any preferred. Just a note, Cup4Cup is not dairy-free because it contains milk powder.
- Unsweetened Cocoa Powder – I prefer the rich, smooth taste of dutch-processed cocoa powder, but if you only have natural unsweetened cocoa powder on hand, don’t let it stop you from making this!
- Chocolate chips – When making quick breads or cakes with chocolate chips, I like to use a mixture of semi-sweet and miniature so the chips are evenly dispersed and don’t sink to the bottom. Of course, dairy-free chips work as well!
Let’s Make This Together!
(Below shows step-by-step photos and modified instructions. For the complete recipe, along with ingredient amounts, scroll down to the recipe card.)
Grate and blot
Grate the unpeeled zucchini and lay in a double layer paper towel or dish towel. Squeeze gently to soak up excess water and set aside. I like to do this before making the bread so it has extra time to dry out a bit.
Whisk Wet Ingredients
I don’t believe in dirtying up extra bowls when it doesn’t really make a difference. Take the shortcut and whisk together the sugars, oil, egg, and vanilla extract in a large mixing bowl. Then stir in your slightly dried zucchini.
Stir in dry ingredients
Add GF flour, unsweetened cocoa, baking powder, and baking soda. Stir until very well combined, and no flour pockets remain. Then stir in the chocolate chips, reserving some for the top.
Pour and Bake
Grease a 8X4 loaf pan. I prefer to use that over a 9X5 so the bread rises higher into a nice domed loaf. Grease with nonstick cooking spray. If you bread pan has a tendency to stick, I would line the bottom with piece of parchment paper. Bake in a 325ºF oven for 1 hour to 1 hour 5 minutes. Be sure that it is fully baked through before pulling out, or it will sink.
Avoiding Gluten-Free Breads sinking
If you are often plagued with the sinking gluten-free bread blues, here’s my go-to tips to make sure that doesn’t happen. High moisture breads, such as zucchini bread or banana bread, often have this problem.
- Make sure the wet to dry ingredient ratios are accurate. It’s better to use gluten-free recipes specifically developed for gluten-free flour (ahem) then just swapping out a 1-to-1 GF flour in a wheat flour recipe. That’s where the majority of those dense or gummy results come from.
- High moisture breads need to bake longer to evaporate the liquids. It’s best to do this is a lower oven to extend the baking time and make sure it doesn’t rise too quickly, which risks sinking.
- Instead of increasing GF flour to absorb moisture, cut back on the liquid. More flour will lead to a dry, crumby texture. I prefer to use the least amount of flour to hold its shape and manipulate the amount of liquids.
Let’s try some tasty variations
If you have a hard time leaving well enough alone, we are kindred spirits. Every time I bake, the alternative possibilities swim through my head. In the case of homemade chocolate chip zucchini bread, consider adding any of these to the batter, or inspire me your great ideas in the comments below!
- 1 tsp espresso powder with dry ingredients
- Mexican Chocolate – add 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/8 tsp chili powder, 1/8 tsp ground cayenne pepper to dry ingredients
- Chocolate Orange – 1 tbsp orange zest and use orange extract in place of vanilla
- Dried cranberries – add 2/3 cup
- Coconut – add 2/3 cup
- Nuts – add 3/4 cup of chopped pecans or walnuts
- Chocolate glaze – Combine 1 cup powdered sugar, 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder, and 2 tbsp milk. Drizzle over cooled loaf.
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Knock-Out Fudgy Gluten-Free Chocolate Zucchini Bread
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups (340 g) grated zucchini about 1 medium
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (117 g) packed brown sugar
- ¼ cup (55 g) oil any preferred
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cup (181 g) all purpose gluten free flour Cup4Cup brand is recommended – see recipe notes for dairy-free
- ⅓ cup (34 g) unsweetened baking cocoa dutch processed preferred
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ cup (128 g) semi-sweet chocolate chips I use mixture of miniature and regular
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325ºF. Grease a 8X4 loaf pan with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Grate the zucchini and lay in a double layer paper towel or dish towel. Squeeze gently to soak up excess water and set aside.2 cups (340 g) grated zucchini
- In a large bowl whisk together the egg, sugar, packed brown sugar, oil, and vanilla extract. Stir in the slightly dried zucchini.1 large egg, ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar, ½ cup (117 g) packed brown sugar, ¼ cup (55 g) oil, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Add the flour, unsweetened cocoa, baking powder, and baking soda. Stir until very well combined, and no flour pockets remain. Then stir in the chocolate chips. Pour into the prepared loaf pan and spread evenly. If desired, sprinkle some additional chocolate chips on top.1 ¼ cup (181 g) all purpose gluten free flour, ⅓ cup (34 g) unsweetened baking cocoa, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ¾ cup (128 g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Bake for 1 hour – 1 hour 5 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Be sure the bread is fully baked or it will sink upon cooling. Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edges and then turn onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Dairy-Free Note
The ingredients in this gluten-free zucchini bread are all dairy-free. However the recommended flour, Cup4Cup, does contain milk powder. King Arthur Measure-for-Measure makes a good runner up. Recipe adapted from moist gluten-free zucchini bread recipe.Nutrition
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The post Knock Out Fudgy Gluten-Free Chocolate Zucchini Bread appeared first on MamaGourmand.