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Sunday, September 1, 2013

ABC - Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread

When I selected this recipe for Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread a few months ago, I anticipated my garden producing more zucchini than we could possibly eat and share. Unfortunately, the weather this year has been a bit off, and our zucchini plants didn't react to it too well. The only ones that survived were those that produced yellow squash. I briefly considered using them but then I thought, having yellow specks in the chocolate bread might look weird. The green specks sort of blend in. Luckily, I found some zucchini at the store that was locally grown , so that's what I went with. I've had zucchini bread before, with the usual spices, but I had never combined it with chocolate until now :o) This was another winner by King Arthur Flour.

Double chocolate zucchini muffins and mini loaves!



If you'd like to join the ABC bakers in their monthly baking adventures, please go to the ABC blog for more information.

Why make 1 big loaf when you can make muffins and mini loaves that are easy to eat and share? That all sounds practical but the real reason I went that route was even more practical. When I baked these, it was an extremely hot day. Having the oven on for 60-70 minutes to bake 1 loaf was a bit much.


I used one zucchini which was about 10 oz in weight and called it a day (I didn't measure it by volume). I had one snafu. I measured the chocolate chips and said them aside. I remember thinking, don't forget to add them to the batter later. And that's exactly what happened. After I divided the batter into their respective baking pans, I noticed the chocolate chips. I sprinkled a little bit into each baking pans and used the good old (clean) index finger to mix it in :o) This was especially easy since the batter was a bit runny, however it baked up beautifully. I took the muffins out after ~20 minutes and baked the mini loaves for about 30 minutes.


Look at that beautiful and moist interior. Bon appetit!

Final thoughts/tips:

  • I loved these. I ate one slightly warm with the chocolate chips still melty and gooey. They were incredibly chocolaty and moist. The texture is between a fluffy cupcake and a dense muffin. As for the zucchini, I couldn't detect any zucchini taste in them.
  • Hubby liked them but wasn't crazy about them. He's not a big chocolate fan so they were a bit too chocolaty for him. He gave them an 8 out of 10 rating.
  • I froze the leftover and took some to work to share. They tasted just as good as the day I baked them. I preferred mine slightly warm so I nuked it for about 10 seconds. Yum!
  • If you'd like to make this recipe too, you can find the recipe HERE and step-by-step photos HERE.
  • Don't forget to check out what the other ABC bakers thought of this recipe.

24 comments:

  1. Oh Hanaa, I wish I had remembered this was our September's challenge.... we celebrated our irthdays yesterday and of course I baked a cocolate cake and we had creamy zucchini soup for dinner! I could have made this and be a good Abc girl while feeding the guests! :-D
    They look wonderful, especially like the loaf.

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    1. Oh no. That would have been perfect! Oh well. If you're up to it, you could always bake it in the next week or so. I'm sure your boys would love it :o)

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  2. Your mini loaves are very cute and the crumb looks wonderfully moist. My family and I also loved this bread warm with gooey chocolate chips.
    Thanks for the great pick this month Hanaâ.

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    1. Thanks Zosia. To me there's nothing better than gooey pieces of chocolate in warm bread. Mmmmm... :o)

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  3. Hello Hanaa yours look really nice and it looks like you made double the recipe too / they are very cute/ moist and delicious.

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    1. Thanks Rosa. Actually, I didn't double the recipe. I have mini loaf pans and one recipe yielded 2 mini loaves and 6 muffins.

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  4. Replies
    1. Yes, please do. You won't be sorry :o) Don't forget to add a link to your post on the ABC blog.

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  5. These look very good. I don't think I'd mind if there would have been yellow zucchini speck in your cake (I think I would have use them).

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    1. Thanks Lien. I guess the yellow specks would not even have been visible. I'll try it next year (we already ate all the yellow squash) :o)

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  6. I'm not at home right now, but enjoying the pouring rain in Portland/ME, so plan to bake this for the weekend. I like your idea of muffins or mini breads versus one big loaf, and yours look really nice and moist.
    I baked bread with zucchini, and it just gives it a nice, moist consistency, but doesn't impart any flavor.

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    1. This recipe is perfect for baking on a rainy day. You will love it! I'm looking forward to your post.

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  7. Every time I see a new post for these, I want them! I might have to make them again sooner than I'd thought. After all, there's lots of zucchini to be had right now!

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    1. I know, I feel the same way. I have one mini loaf in the freezer and when that's gone, I just might have to bake it again. It was so easy to make too.

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  8. Your muffins and loaves are so perfect Hanaa! What a shame that your home grown zucchini didn't work out. I used one home grown and one store bought. Lovely.

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    1. Thanks Karen. It's unfortunate but luckily there's plenty of good local produce available everywhere.

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  9. I think a lot of us went with muffins!! Yours look great. Just a question though......why are these categorised as bread and not as cupcakes??

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    1. Yes, muffins are perfect for serving and sharing!! They're categorized as "bread" because they are "quick breads" which means you don't need yeast (it uses baking powder and/or baking soda). I believe something is only called a cupcake if it has frosting on top. If anyone has any thoughts on this, please feel free to chime in.

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    2. I looked it up: cupcakes are just 1-portion cakes, and any regular cake batter can be used, so they are often denser than muffins. Frosting is optional.

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  10. Hi Hanna,
    Your muffins look great! I baked them into a loaf, it is not very pretty and so darn delicious! The family loves it, the whole loaf was gone in two days! Thanks for a great pick!

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    1. Thanks Joyce. These were a big hit for me and my coworkers too. As for the Nov/Dec picks and 2014, stay tuned. I'm working on it :o) Thanks for your enthusiasm about ABC!!

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  11. Great bake! I loved this recipe too! Nice pick Hanna!

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  12. Looks just delish--keep up the good work! Yes, the great news about adding zucchini is that the baked good stays moist.

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  13. Yummy !!! Making it right now :-) . I hope it'll turn out OK. Yours tasted and looks fantastic.

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