Flavorful espresso powder takes this banana zucchini bread to the next level! Incredibly soft with a subtle espresso flavor and the perfect use for extra zucchini.
You heard it here first: this is officially the only zucchini bread recipe you need in your life.
With flavorful espresso, bananas, and the option of chocolate chips, it’s not too fancy, but it’s also not your average zucchini bread either.
Let’s just say one thick slice of this goodness leads to many, many more.
Also, just consider the fact that you never have to choose between banana bread and zucchini bread again! It’s a game-changer.
So with that fact in mind, it might not be such a bad idea to double this recipe so you have two loaves on standby. Trust me, you’ll want it.
This Banana Zucchini Bread features…
- A perfectly soft interior bursting with banana flavor and gooey chocolate.
- A subtle espresso flavor from a double dose of espresso powder in the bread and brewed espresso brushed on top of the loaf.
- Only minutes to make and easy to make a double batch for freezing a loaf.
Making the Banana Zucchini Bread
(scroll down to the bottom of post for the full recipe)
Ingredients You Will Need
- Zucchini
- Bananas
- Espresso powder
- Unsalted butter
- Light brown sugar
- Granulated sugar
- Egg
- Greek yogurt
- Vanilla extract
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Semisweet chocolate chips
How to Prepare Zucchini
You will need about 1 medium zucchini for this bread. Shred the zucchini using either a food processor or the large holes on a box grater.
Note: there’s no need to squeeze the moisture out of the zucchini like some recipes call for. You want all that moisture going into your bread!
Tips for Perfect Zucchini Bread
- Whisk espresso powder into warm melted butter – this helps dissolve the espresso powder a bit before adding it to the batter.
- Use ripe bananas – ripe bananas are essential here. You will need three medium ripe bananas mashed well for this recipe.
- Measure flour correctly – we use the spoon-and-level technique for measuring flour as this will prevent over-measuring. Use a spoon to scoop flour into the measuring cup, then level with the back of a knife.
- Gently fold batter – use a light hand when mixing batter and gently fold so as not to overmix.
- Bake bread in parchment paper-lined pan – this makes it much easier (and less messy) to remove bread from pan.
- Test bread with toothpick – your bread is done when a toothpick comes out clean from the center (be careful not to mistake a melted chocolate chip for batter!)
- Brush warm bread with brewed espresso – this adds one last little touch of coffee flavor.
- Cool bread completely – don’t rush this process – you want the bread completely cooled before removing from the pan and cutting into slices.
Recipe Variations
This bread is a blank canvas for many other variations…
- Try a different add-in – try chopped nuts, dried cranberries, white chocolate, or a fresh fruit such as blueberries.
- Add some spice – a dash of cinnamon, nutmeg, or cloves adds a lovely spiced element to this bread.
- Skip the coffee – not a fan of coffee? You can easily leave it out and this bread will still be fantastic.
Storing and Freezing Bread
This bread can be stored in a sealed container on the counter for up to 2 days. You can prolong the life of the bread by refrigerating it (up to 5 days total) but we would recommend reheating bread 15-20 seconds in the microwave before serving.
For freezing bread, allow to cool completely, then wrap well and freeze up to 2 months. If possible, we recommend freezing bread on the same day it was made to preserve freshness.
This zucchini bread really does have it all! The texture is picture-perfect soft from the banana and shredded zucchini, perfectly laced with brown sugary espresso flavor, and an absolute treat if you choose to involve chocolate.
Taste testers described this bread as being “the best bread they’ve ever had” and we definitely think you’ll agree!
Save this recipe using the ‘save to recipe box’ button below. If you make it, please let us know! Leave a comment + star rating below, or take a photo and tag it on Instagram with #wholeandheavenlyoven.
More quick breads you should be baking up next!
Espresso Banana Zucchini Bread
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Ingredients
- 1/3 cup warm melted unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon instant espresso powder
- 3 medium ripe bananas, mashed
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- 1/3 cup Greek yogurt
- 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1-1/2 cups shredded zucchini (shredded on large holes of box grater)
- 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips (optional)
- 1 tablespoon brewed espresso
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Line a 9×5 loaf pan with parchment paper or lightly grease.
- In a medium bowl, whisk espresso powder into warm melted butter. Mix in mashed banana, sugars, egg, yogurt, and vanilla until smooth.
- In a separate medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Gently fold flour mixture into liquid until batter is just combined. Fold in zucchini and chocolate chips if using.
- Scrape batter into prepared pan and smooth top. Bake bread at 350F 55-60 minutes until a toothpick inserted in center of bread comes out clean. Remove bread from oven and immediately brush top with brewed espresso.
- Allow bread to cool completely in pan on a wire cooling rack. Once cooled, remove from pan and slice. Enjoy!
Tab Musci says
This Espresso Banana Zucchini Bread was a true game changer! The flavor was so amazing and the bread is moist. The only modification that was made in the ingredients was the chocolate chips. I replaced them with dark chocolate which offers less sweetness to my liking. I brought them in to the office and everyone loved it. I like that it’s not super sweet and the fact that I can taste the bananas and the espresso. The next time I will add some nuts into the mix. This recipe is a keeper!!! Thank you so much. I can’t wait to try other recipes.
Sarah says
That’s fantastic to hear!! Thanks so much for reporting back with your results. 🙂