Chocolate Zucchini Loaf Cake Recipe (2024)

Last week I asked about substituting fat-free Greek yogurt for some of the oil. I figured it out and it was perfect - instead of 6oz of oil I used 2oz oil and 3oz of yogurt. Delicious, and eliminated 2/3 of the oil. Super moist and chocolatey.

Perfect in a 9 inch round cake pan, baked 60 minutes. Moist and so delicious. The only change I made was the addition of a sprinkling of chopped pecans on the top along with the coarse brown sugar and chocolate chips. This cake will have thousands of 5 star reviews very shortly!

I have tried many zucchini breads and cakes, but was always bothered by their oiliness. I have now made this one twice substituting the 3/4 cup oil with 1/2 cup buttermilk and 1/4 cup either oil or melted butter or combination of the two ( to equal 1/4 cup). Found that hint on the King Arthur baking site. It really works well.

My husband and I are not going to have a chance to see how this cake “only gets better with age” because it’s going to be gone in no time. Made it exactly as directed. EXCELLENT.

The two terms are basically interchangeable for home bakers across the U.S., largely because the most readily-available chocolate chips in grocery stores don't have a standard baseline across brands for how to differentiate. For most home baking-type recipes (in other words, not food-science-leaning and not "bake like a pro chef"), I read "bittersweet" and "semisweet" simply to mean "not milk chocolate."

This is the best chocolate zucchini loaf I've had! I subbed in dark brown sugar because that's what I had and reduced the amount to a cup. The only other change was about 3/4 teaspoon of cinnamon. Delicious!

So very good! I also like that the zucchini doesn’t have to be drained. I used bittersweet chunky chips and I made these as muffins. It made 15 regular muffins and I baked them at 350 for 30 minutes.

Super simple, I love not having to drain the zucchini. @Tina I subbed in dutch cocoa powder, turned out great, no issues.Basically, tasted like a chocolate cake with some zucchini bits, so I can pretend it’s healthy.

Tasty recipe, I reduced the sugar to 1 cup and it was very nice and chocolaty but I would follow what others said and add nuts, coconut, and/or warm spices (cardamon, nutmeg, allspice) for more texture and dimension. The zucchini adds moisture and some texture but mostly disappears into the bread.

Fabulous recipe! I used a 9" springform and followed the directions with the only deviation being chopped dark chocolate instead of chips. Moist and decadent with a touch of healthy from the zuc.

I have been baking and cooking for 53 years. I have many chocolate zucchini cake recipes. This recipe has replaced all of them! Self control will be a problem. My next batch will be baked in smaller loaves. One word of caution...your cake will only be as good as the chocolate and the vanilla extract that you use. (I used canola oil.)

I've used yellow or crookneck squash many times in place of green zucchini in baking - always works well!

So great, I am making again. I used a combo of grapeseed and olive oil, this time canola. TIP: err on the side of underbaking.

Used self -rising flour and kahlua in place of vanilla . Because that’s what i had at the lake house. Otherwise made as instructed. Delicious!!

Any problem if I use dutch cocoa powder instead of natural? Thanks-

I mis-wrote the timing on the cupcakes I made with this recipe. I baked them for 25 minutes, not 45! My apologies.

I substituted 1/2 cup of the oil with buttermilk, and added 1 tablespoon of espresso powder. The whole recipe comes together so quickly and nicely! Made 20 cupcake-sized for a bake sale; baked for approximately 45 minutes. Received raves from friends and neighbors!

I made the cake according to the recipe, but it overflowed the loaf pan while baking and made a mess! Any idea what happened??

What an amazing chocolate cake!!! I reduced the sugar to one cup and increased the zucchini to three cups. Baked in an Angel food pan. Much better the next day. Amazing!

Really good recipe, have made it a couple times. The first time it was a bit bland, and I recommend replacing some of the oil (1/2 cup) with buttermilk, which improves the flavor and makes it less greasy. 1 1/4 cups sugar was enough. It was ready in 55 minutes.

My bread exploded out of the pan and dripped all over. It seemed like a lot of batter when I put it in but I did not see that coming. Why would that happen?

Followed the directions as is and it was delicious. Will absolutely make again. Moist, good sweetness level, varied textures.

When using the loaf pan, I would maybe take out a bit before the 75 min mark. The ends are a little tough.

Sub 3 oz of yogurt 1/2 cup maple syrup 1/cup brown sugar

I used Hershey’s Special Dark, no light brown sugar so subbed dark brown, 1/2 c grape seed oil and 1/4 c plain 2% kefir, and Trader Joe’s 72% chocolate chips and the rest as written. No overflow in my 9.25 x 5.25 loaf pan. Baked for 73 minutes. Cake was very chocolaty and moist. Tasted like a rich, decadent brownie. I was baking for friends but next time, I’ll add some walnuts. Excellent.

Substituted chopped walnuts for chocolate chips and mistakenly used 1 cup cocoa powder so added 2 tablespoons melted butter. Sprinkled a tiny bit of confectionary sugar on top. YUMMM

We are not using highly refined oils and seed oils these days. Please suggest alternatives like avocado oil or ghee or coconut oil.

Subbed apple sauce (1/2c) and reg olive oil (1/4) for the oil - worked well.

GOD! I love this recipe. So easy and so quick.

This recipe turns out perfect. It’s nearly brownie like but not quite. Always a hit. It’s simple, and quick, which I love for a last minute dessert for guests and usually have the ingredients on hand. I do add a pinch of Cayenne Pepper and about a tablespoon of cinnamon to the recipe and it turns into a fall time treat.