Zesty Olive Oil Zucchini Bread

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This zesty olive oil zucchini bread is healthy, vibrant, and perfectly moist. With warming spices, rich olive oil, and a bright pop of orange zest, this loaf is just the recipe you need around the holidays!!

Anytime I’m at a bakery, I’m usually going for a thick slice of zucchini bread, banana bread, pumpkin bread… give me ALL the loafs. I love the warming spices and moist texture of sweet breads, especially when they’re accompanied by a warm cup of tea on a cold day.

While I love a good bakery zucchini bread, I’ve found that most are packed with added sugars, saturated fats, and refined flours. That’s when my recipe-creator hat came on. I was determined to make a zucchini bread that is just as moist, decadent, and delicious as my favorite bakery slice but made healthier. Let me just say, ditch the bakery slice because this zucchini bread recipe is about to change the game.

Zesty, Bold, Delicious

There are a few key ingredients that make this zucchini bread different than the rest and give it that zesty, bold, and truly delicious flavor.

Olive oil

I used extra virgin olive oil in place of butter or vegetable oil to give this loaf a moist and rich consistency without overpowering the other flavors. The olive oil brings out the bold and bright flavors of orange zest and spices, making it the perfect oil to use. And isn’t it just great that olive oil also happens to be healthy? Using olive oil in place of other oils or butter greatly reduces the amount of saturated fat and replaces it with heart-healthy unsaturated fats.

Orange zest

How many times have you seen recipes that use lemon zest? Probably a lot more than you’ve seen use orange zest. For this recipe, I decided to use orange zest instead of lemon to add just the right amount of tang and brightness without adding too much acidity.

We use the zest of a whole orange to brighten and lighten this loaf. Orange zest compliments the zucchini and warming spices like cinnamon and nutmeg and makes this loaf stand out in a crowd.

Spices

In this recipe, I used ground cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger.

These spices work together to add a beautiful depth of flavor. Zucchini breads can be boring and flavorless if you don’t add the right blend of spices and flavors but you’re in for a treat this time around because this recipe is anything but boring. From the rich olive oil to the tangy lemon zest and bold spices, this loaf is packed with all of my favorite holiday flavors.

Add-ons

Last but not least are the dried cranberries and walnuts that are folded into the batter in this zucchini bread recipe. Not only do they add a pop of color, these ingredients give this recipe an added dimension of texture to compliment this moist loaf.

A Healthier Twist

Healthy fats, natural sweeteners, and whole wheat flours are the name of the game in this healthier version on the classic zucchini bread.

Forget the 2 cups of sugar and 1 cup of vegetable oil because it turns out you can make a zucchini bread that has just the right amount of moisture and sweetness without all these ingredients that are only going to contribute to inflammation and stress in the body.

In this recipe, I used a 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil, 2/3 cup of pure maple syrup, and 1/4 cup of unsweetened apple sauce to get the right ratio of rich flavor and just the right amount of sweetness.

If you’ve never baked with olive oil, trust me and you’ll see how good it turns out without overpowering the sweetness of this loaf.

For this recipe, I substituted all purpose flour for whole wheat flour to add fiber from whole grains. You won’t even notice the healthier swap though! In fact, the whole wheat flour adds more flavor and consistency to this bread.

Shredded zucchini is the real star of this recipe, and gives this loaf an added dose of fiber and great source of vitamin C, potassium, and magnesium. The key is to squeeze the shredded zucchini of excess water to get just the right amount of moisture.

The Ingredients

• Grated Zucchini
• Olive Oil
• Maple Syrup
• Eggs
• Apple Sauce
• Vanilla Extract
• Whole Wheat Flour
• Baking Powder and Baking Soda
• Spices: cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger,
• Salt
• Orange Zest
• Cranberries
• Walnuts

Shredding Zucchini

The key to getting a moist zucchini bread without making it soggy is to squeeze your shredded zucchini of excess moisture using a thin towel or cheese cloth. Zucchini has a lot of water which is why it’s important to squeeze as much of it out as you can.

First shred about 2 zucchinis with the skin using a box grater. Then, wrap it in a thin towel or cheese cloth and squeeze out the water over a sink before measuring out 1 and 1/2 cups of zucchini.

Serving and Storing

This olive oil zucchini bread is delicious on its own, warmed up, or dunked in milk or tea. The great thing about this loaf is that it is sweet enough for dessert but healthy enough to eat at breakfast and power your morning!

This loaf keeps well for about 3 days at room temperature and in the fridge for 5-7 days. This loaf can also be frozen and keeps well in the freezer for three months. Just make sure to cut slices before freezing!

I hope you get to give this recipe a try because it might just be my best recipe yet! Moist, light, tangy, bold, what’s more to love 🙂

Liked this recipe? Check out some of my other healthy snack and dessert recipes to satisfy your sweet tooth!

• Apple Cinnamon Scones
• Beet Hummus with Whipped Goat Cheese Swirl
• Garlicky White Bean and Basil Dip
• Healthy Carrot Cake Smoothie
• Lemon Turmeric Blueberry Breakfast Loaf

If you gave this recipe a try and enjoyed it, I would love it if you could leave a star rating and comment on this post! This helps my site to gain visibility and gives me a chance to grow my blog 🙂

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Sending warm thoughts your way.

Love,

Sip & Scone