With zucchini season in full swing I happened upon a unique recipe using zucchini: Lemon Zucchini Bread from Nancy Creative. The recipe sounded out of this world. Taking zucchini bread, which is great by itself, and marrying it to lemon? Yes! Lemon makes everything better, you know. I took the original recipe and opted to make a dairy-free version using coconut oil and almond milk. I also reduced the sugar in the glaze just because reducing sugar intake always seems like a good idea, don’t you think?
I even have made the recipe vegan a few times, replacing the eggs with chia-eggs. Honestly, I love the vegan version better than the egg-full version. I had an eggless twelve months starting back in the fall of 2012. Now that I will occasionally eat eggs, I can detect eggs in baked goods a mile away. My tastebuds never picked up on it before. It’s so interesting how tastebuds change.
Regardless, this lemon zucchini bread is an amazing, fluffy delight…with or without eggs. This bread works great as a breakfast, as a snack, as a side to a delightful lunch, as a dessert, or however you would like.
The lemon zucchini bread by itself is great. I could eat it all day. In fact I want to, but that might not be such a good idea. It does have some redeeming qualities like coconut oil and vegetables in it, though, right? Be that as it may, when you pair the lemon zucchini bread with the lemon glaze, the clouds part and the rays of sunshine stream forth in victory! Okay. Maybe a little too dramatic, but wow-zah! The lemon glaze gives a sensational zing to the bread that keeps people coming back for more. I have to limit the kids to one piece each or the bread doesn’t even last 24 hours.
I also tried a gluten-free, egg-free, and dairy-free version that was fine by using the gluten-free flour mix from Costco. If you can’t have gluten, it’s the way to go, but I do prefer the whole wheat flour version. You may have to bake the loaf a little longer.
Lemon Zucchini Bread with Lemon Glaze, D-f, Vegan opt. G-f opt.
Ingredients
For the Loaf
- 2 eggs or 2 chia eggs 2 T chia seed with 6 T water
- 2/3 cup evaporated cane juice or sugar
- 1/2 cup coconut oil softened
- 1/2 almond milk or milk of choice
- 1 cup shredded zucchini
- zest of 1 lemon
- 3 T lemon juice
- 2 cups whole wheat flour or g-f flour blend of choice
- 2 t baking powder
- 1/2 t salt
For the Glaze
- 1/3-1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 to 2 T lemon juice
Instructions
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If you are using chia egg, stir water and chia seeds together, and let gel for a few minutes.
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
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Grease a 9"×5" loaf pan.
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Cream sugar and coconut oil in a large mixing bowl.
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Add eggs or "chia eggs" to mixing bowl with milk, zucchini, zest, and lemon juice, and then mix until combined. The coconut oil may clump a bit because of the cooler ingredients, but this is normal and it will melt during baking process.
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In a medium bowl mix flour, baking powder and salt.
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Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients, and mix until just combined.
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Pour batter into loaf pan, and bake 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out of the center clean.
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While loaf is cooling, place powdered sugar in a small bowl, and mix in lemon juice teaspoon by teaspoon until your glaze is pourable.
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Pour glaze on cooled bread loaf.
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Let glaze solidify, slice bread, and devour!
Need other zucchini inspiration?
This may be my favorite bread ever! I made one with blueberries in it too. Thank you so much for this recipe.
Hi Cathy. You are so welcome! It’s my favorite quick bread, too! Blueberries sound like a fantastic addition!
Sonja, this bread looks absolutely divine… so moist! Love how you used the coconut oil and almond milk. So happy you shared this lemon and zucchini action with us at the Show Stopper party this week!
Thanks, Gloria! And you are welcome. Thanks for visiting!
Do you know if Almond Flour will work in place of the GF flour??
Hi Melissa. I haven’t tried this recipe with almond flour. I don’t know the substitutions you’d have to do. I am sorry. I hope you can find something that works, though.
I love the idea of lemon and zucchini together, and perfect match! Featuring your recipe this week on AFW, thanks!
Hi Tessa. Thanks for the feature! We can’t get enough. Have a great week!
Your Lemon Zucchini Bread with Lemon Glaze looks fabulous, we would really enjoy it. Thanks so much for sharing your awesome recipe with Full Plate Thursday and have a great weekend. Come Back Soon! Miz Helen
Visiting from Super Saturday link party. That loaf looks so delicious, I adore lemon and must try baking with courgette sometime soon. I co-host Sweet and Savoury Sunday and would love for you to stop by and share this and other recipes with us. Have a great day!
Thanks for the inspiration! Today’s a perfect day to make a new recipe with my sons. They love lemon, so this is a natural. With all that acid in the batter, I plan to add a little baking soda for extra rise…that should help counteract the heavier GF flour, I hope.
Linda, thanks for sharing your ideas. I’ll have to try adding more baking soda. Hope you all enjoy! S
I followed the recipe exactly and my loaf was extremely oily and heavy.. It smells wonderful but I dabbed all of the oil off of it as I could.. Any suggestions on cutting out half of the coconut oil? Would I need to counteract with anything? Never made a sweet zucchini loaf before..
Hi Stephanie. What kind of flour did you use? If you cut some of the oil out, you shouldn’t need to add anything else. Sometimes the recipe just needs the coconut oil reduced. Thanks for sharing, and I hope that helps!
I used half ghee and half coconut oil and cut it by maybe a teaspoon. Mine was divine – not too oily at all. Did have to lengthen cooking time by about ten min. My daughter said she felt it was a little too soft/dense for her, but I eat gluten free all the time and she doesn’t. I loved the texture. i used homemade cashew milk for mine, gluten-free flour, and “chia eggs”. LOVE THIS RECIPE. Might play with it some more.
Hi Leslie. Sounds like you have some great substitutions! So glad you love the recipe! Thank you so much for sharing how you’ve modified it. I’m about to get my hands on some zucchini and make it soon again. I LOVE the lemon!!
What a gorgeous loaf! It looks amazing!
Obsession! We are addicted! Thanks, Serena!