Vegan Zucchini Bread

By Yossy Arefi

Published Aug. 26, 2021

Vegan Zucchini Bread
Tara Donne for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Anna Stockwell.
Total Time
1¼ hours, plus cooling
Rating
4(559)
Comments
Read comments

This dairy- and egg-free spin on a cozy classic loaf cake comes together quickly in one bowl without much effort. Be sure to give the grated zucchini a good squeeze to release any excess liquid before you add it into the batter to avoid an overly dense, soggy cake. For a slightly more wholesome loaf, feel free to substitute ½ cup whole-wheat flour for ½ cup all-purpose flour. You can also add a handful of chopped chocolate or nuts, or both. Don’t skip the sugar on top; it gives the finished loaf a wonderful crunchy crust. A note on sugar: Some sugar is processed using animal products and is not considered vegan. If you want to use vegan sugar, look for a brand that is U.S.D.A-certified organic, which ensures animal products are not used.

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Ingredients

Yield:One 8½-by-4½-inch loaf cake
  • Nonstick cooking spray
  • 1cup/200 grams organic light brown sugar
  • ⅔cup/160 milliliters unsweetened oat milk, soy milk or other nondairy milk
  • ½cup/120 milliliters vegetable or other neutral oil
  • 1tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1¼teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • ¾teaspoon kosher salt (Diamond Crystal)
  • 2cups/225 grams coarsely grated zucchini (from 2 medium zucchini), squeezed in a towel to remove excess moisture
  • 2cups/260 grams all-purpose flour
  • 1teaspoon baking powder
  • ½teaspoon baking soda
  • 1tablespoon turbinado sugar
Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Set a rack in the center of the oven and heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8½-by-4½-inch loaf pan with cooking spray and line the bottom and long sides with parchment paper, leaving a little overhang on the sides so that you can easily lift the loaf when it’s baked.

  2. Step 2

    In a large bowl, whisk together the light brown sugar, oat milk, oil, lemon juice, cinnamon and salt. Add the zucchini and stir to combine well.

  3. Step 3

    Add the flour, baking powder and baking soda to the bowl and fold until just combined. Pour the batter into the loaf pan and sprinkle the turbinado sugar over the top.

  4. Step 4

    Bake until golden and puffed and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 50 to 65 minutes.

  5. Step 5

    Cool the cake in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes, then use the parchment to lift the cake out of the pan. Remove the parchment and set the loaf back on the rack to cool completely. Store the cake loosely wrapped at room temperature for up to 3 days.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
559 user ratings
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Comments

Kate

This is easy and delicious! I used 100% whole wheat flour as I like baked goods with a dense chew. It rose beautifully. I cut the sugar in half but put in a generous handful of chopped dates for sweetness and moisture. Added walnuts for crunch, and the zest of a orange as I had it in hand. Will definitely make again.

Ari

Just made this and it turned out fabulously! Similarly to another cook, I decreased the sugar by about 1/4 cup and added the zest of one lemon. I also added 1/2 cup chopped dark chocolate to the batter and pumpkin seeds on the top. It needed a lot longer in the oven than the recipe stated, about 1 hour and 40 minutes. The tricks to avoiding a soggy loaf seem to be aggressively squeezing all of the moisture out of the grated zucchini, and letting the cake cool completely before cutting it.

c

followed recipe as is with one exception - I used 3 oz unsweetened applesause instead of oil. Came out delicious! Will not last 3 days ...

CC

I used mandarin juice instead of lemon because the chocolate I was using was orange chocolate. Also used cake flour because it’s all I had. Otherwise, kept to the recipe! Everyone loved it, even a couple days later.

K

Very good! I added 1/2 tsp each of nutmeg and ground clove to taste more like my mom’s nonvegan zucchini bread. I agree with the comments about the baking time—I baked it for 65 minutes and the bottom was a little too moist. When I make this again I’ll add 5-10 minutes to the bake time.

Jane

Excellent and very easy. Cut the sugar to a little over 1/2 cup. Used a generous 1.5 teaspoons of cinnamon and grated in lemon zest. Sprinkled the top with chopped walnuts. This recipe will be the fate of much of our overabundant zucchini crop this summer.

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