Top 14 Zucchini Breads and Cakes

Written by
Diana Rattray
Southern-cuisine expert and cookbook author Diana Rattray has created more than 5,000 recipes articles in her 20 years as a food writer.
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Diana Rattray
Updated 06/16/20
Zucchini Bread including zucchini, banana and walnuts as ingredients
Westend61 / Getty Images

Zucchini makes a fabulous side dish vegetable, and it's a great addition to soups, stews, pasta sauces, and roasted vegetable medleys. Sweet zucchini bread and cakes are very popular as well. Shredded zucchini keeps the quick bread, cakes, and muffins moist while the flecks of green peel add color and texture. For even more color, you could combine finely shredded carrots with the shredded zucchini.

If you have an abundance of zucchini, consider shredding it and storing one-cup portions in small freezer bags. You can make zucchini bread, cakes, muffins, and cookies any time of the year.

Enjoy these delicious and popular zucchini bread and zucchini cake recipes, including zucchini bread with nuts, easy zucchini cake, zucchini muffins, and more.

  • 01 of 14

    Orange-Cranberry Zucchini Bread

    Orange-Cranberry Zucchini Bread

    The Spruce / Diana Rattray

    This flavorful zucchini bread is super moist, and it has excellent texture. Sour cream, dried cranberries, orange zest, and chopped nuts make it extra special.

  • 02 of 14

    Spiced Whole Wheat Zucchini Bread

    Whole Wheat Zucchini Bread

    The Spruce / Diana Rattray

    This wheat zucchini bread has extra texture and fiber from the whole wheat flour, and applesauce makes it moist and flavorful. This recipe makes one loaf of zucchini bread.

  • 03 of 14

    Classic Zucchini Bread

    Classic zuchinni bread

    The Spruce

    This recipe makes two loaves of spiced zucchini nut bread. Enjoy one loaf now and freeze the other one for later!

  • 04 of 14

    Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread

    Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread
    The Spruce Eats / Kristina Vanni

    In between cake and bread, this moist chocolate chip zucchini bread is delightful served for brunch, dessert, or as a sweet snack. It's easy to make and keeps well in an airtight container.

    Continue to 5 of 14 below.
  • 05 of 14

    Cheesy Zucchini Bread

    Cheesy Zucchini Bread

    The Spruce Eats / Pete Scherer​ 

    Cornbread gets a delicious summer squash twist with this cheesy zucchini bread recipe. Dehydrated and shredded zucchini, cornmeal, buttermilk, sharp cheddar cheese, garlic, and rosemary create a flavorful, savory bread. Serve it for breakfast, dinner, at a barbecue, or as a tasty snack.

  • 06 of 14

    Easy Chocolate Zucchini Cake

    Easy Chocolate Zucchini Cake

    The Spruce / Diana Rattray

    A cake mix makes this zucchini cake a snap to prepare. Shredded zucchini makes the cake moist, while chocolate chips and walnuts add flavor and texture.

  • 07 of 14

    Easy Zucchini Carrot Cake

    Zucchini Carrot Cake

    The Spruce / Diana Rattray

    A carrot cake mix makes this moist and delicious zucchini carrot cake a quick and easy preparation. Frost this cake with cream cheese icing or sift powdered sugar over it.

  • 08 of 14

    Zucchini Oatmeal Cake

    Zucchini Cake

    James Baigrie / Photolibrary / Getty Images

    This is a dense, moist, flavorful cake, and it's delicious with a cream cheese glaze. Bake this in a 10 or 12-cup Bundt cake pan or a 9x13x2-inch pan.

    Continue to 9 of 14 below.
  • 09 of 14

    Zucchini Muffins

    Zucchini Muffins

    The Spruce / Dorling Kindersley

    These moist zucchini muffins include shredded carrots, spices, and optional chopped nuts.

  • 10 of 14

    Lemon Zucchini Bread

    Lemon Zucchini Bread
    Elaine Lemm

    Tender and perfectly sweet lemon zucchini bread is perfect with tea or coffee. Fresh lemon zest and juice are added to the batter, and a lemon syrup is soaked into the bread for more flavor and moisture.

  • 11 of 14

    Chocolate Zucchini Cake

    Chocolate zucchini cake

    Randy Mayor / Photolibrary / Getty Images

     This zucchini cake is made from scratch with buttermilk and vegetable oil. A light dusting of confectioners' sugar is all you need to top the cake, but feel free to add a basic vanilla cake glaze.

  • 12 of 14

    Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread

    Double Chocolate Zucchini Cake

     Elaine Lemm

    This oh-so-chocolatey zucchini bread is good for brunch, a sweet snack, or a light dessert. With cocoa and chocolate chips in the batter, it'll satisfy any chocolate lover.

    Continue to 13 of 14 below.
  • 13 of 14

    Zucchini Cookies

    Zucchini cookies

    Sheri L Giblin / Getty Images

     These zucchini drop cookies are flavored with lemon zest, and they're finished with a lemon glaze. Feel free to change the flavoring to 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and add some chocolate chips to the cookies.

  • 14 of 14

    Barb's Zucchini Cake

    Zucchini Cake

    The Spruce / Diana Rattray

     Barb's zucchini cake is a one-layer rectangular cake. The cake would be fabulous with a cream cheese frosting or vanilla glaze. Or even easier, sift confectioners' sugar over the cooled cake.