Ultra moist, Cheesy Zucchini Bread that’s out-of-this-world delicious!! With a hint of garlic flavour and plenty of cheesy pops, this is a zucchini bread that’s so tasty and moist it can be eaten plain – though a pat of butter never hurts!
Cheesy Zucchini Bread
I want to tell you that this is a special recipe I made for Australia Day, which is today, Friday 26th January 2018. Being that as I started writing this post, it dawned on me that this Cheesy Zucchini Bread is green and gold which are our national colours.
But alas, I must confess, it is by sheer co-incidence that I happen to be sharing a green and gold recipe on Australia Day. Though actually, regular readers will probably point out that the odds of me sharing something gold on a Friday (the colour of so many things cheesy / creamy / buttery / cakey) are actually quite high.
And being that I do make an attempt to take nice photos despite how yellow (or brown) my foods are, I inevitably add a little sprinkle of some kind of greenage – parsley or the like – in an effort to break up all that yellowness.
So actually, the chances of me sharing something gold and green were quite high, Australia Day or not. 😂
All this is a round about way of saying that even though I didn’t make this especially, isn’t it nice that this Zucchini Bread looks in the spirit of Australia Day??
Quick and easy Zucchini Bread
The zucchini in this quick bread (aptly named as such because it’s made without yeast, so it’s quick to make), serves a double purpose. Subtle zucchini flavour plus it makes this bread incredibly moist.
Actually, it serves a triple purpose. Because it’s hidden veggies!!! I use 2 jam packed cups of shredded zucchini (2 medium-large ones). It looks like an enormous mound when you first grate it and you’ll probably be doubting me, but have faith. Once it’s salted then squeezed of excess liquid, it looks like a much more respectable amount. 🙂
I like to layer slices of cheese in the zucchini bread so you can actually see it, plus you get better pops of cheesy flavour compared to just stirring through grated cheese which seems to dissipate into nothingness. The mystery of the disappearing cheese…
Plus, I think it looks good too. 🙂 Inside and the top – it’s almost inevitable that some of the cheese will burst through the surface.
And I especially love how you get strings of cheese in some of the slices. It looks and tastes so good!!!
I promised moist and moist you shall get. You do NOT need butter to scoff down a slice of this zucchini bread, and in fact, if you slather too much butter on, as I did when I was shooting the video, it weighs down the bread and makes it too soggy.
True story. Never had that problem with a quick bread before.
I think this recipe is ideal for muffins too, because that’s essentially what quick breads are – muffins baked in loaf pans.
Happy weekend! Baking plans on your agenda?? Remember – this is in the spirit of Australia Day! – Nagi xx
More zucchini recipes
Healthy Cream of Vegetable Soup (Zucchinis are the secret ingredient for ultra low cal creamy white soup!)
Zucchini Tian (French Rice Bake)
More quick bread recipes
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
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Cheesy Zucchini Bread
Ingredients
Zucchini and Cheese:
- 2 cups grated zucchini , packed (2 medium zucchinis, 380g / 13 oz grated)
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 8 slices Swiss cheese (200g / 6.5 oz) (Note 1)
Wet Ingredients:
- 1 1/4 cups / 315 ml milk (any, I use low fat)
- 1/4 cup / 45 g melted butter , unsalted
- 2 tbsp canola oil (or vegetable or other neutral flavoured oil)
- 2 eggs
- 2 small garlic cloves , crushed
- 1 tsp white vinegar
Dry Ingredients:
- 2 1/4 cups / 335g plain / all purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder (Note 2)
- 1/2 tsp baking soda (bi-carb) (Note 2)
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
- Use a standard box grater to grate the zucchini. Measure out 2 cups, place in bowl, sprinkle with salt, use fingers to disperse. Leave for 20 minutes.
- Squeeze handfuls to remove excess water and place zucchini in a bowl. Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 180°C / 350°F (all oven types).
- Butter and line a loaf pan (Note 3)
- Place Dry ingredients in a bowl. Whisk to combine.
- Place Wet Ingredients in a bowl. Whisk to combine.
- Make a well in the centre of the Dry ingredients. Pour in Wet. Mix quickly until flour is incorporated (Note 4).
- Quickly stir through zucchini.
- Spread 1/3 of the batter in the loaf pan. Top with 4 slices of cheese.
- Spread with batter, top with 4 slices of cheese, then finish with remaining batter. Smooth top.
- Bake for 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- Optional: Brush top with a bit of melted butter.
- Cool in the pan for 10 minutes then transfer to rack to cool. Cool for at least 20 minutes before slicing.
- Store in a container (Note 5 for humid weather warning!)
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
Let’s mark Australia Day 2018 as the day I discovered that stick on tattoos work on dog fur…. oh the possibilities!
Like all your recipes, this one didn’t disappoint. It turned out perfectly. I didn’t have cheese slices, so I used block Colby cheese and worked out well. Added chopped up spring onions. Definitely will make again. Serving it tonight with home made vegetable soup.
I’m happy to report that I’ve tried this recipe with GF flour and it turned out delicious 🙂
Do you reckon you could make this into small bread rolls/pull apart buns?
Made this today because our zucchini plant is going abso bonko, didn’t have plain white vinegar so subbed with Lea & Perrins and topped the loaf with some dregs of grated parmesan I had lying about and it is DELICIOUS. So moist and scoffable and is amazing pan fried in a dab of butter the next day as a base for Eggs Benedict!
Once again I’m saved by RTE! I didn’t know what to do with all this zucchini! I’ve made rissoles and fritters and I just pulled two loaves of this zucchini bread out of the oven and tomorrow I’ll make the baked zucchini and the creamy zucchini corn pasta. I don’t know what I’d do without Nagi and her amazing collection of delicious recipes. The neighbors are thankful, too!
Divine! My new favourite bread to enjoy with a steaming bowl of soup this Winter. I’ll admit I was lazy and didn’t salt the grated zucchini, simply squeezed out as much liquid as my hands could manage. Also didn’t have cheese slices on hand, so I substituted a generous sprinkling of grated tasty cheese throughout the layers. The flavours are subtle but delicious, and this recipe makes a substantial, tall loaf. This bread will be on repeat all Winter long. Thanks Nagi x
Added in some Parmesan, used Swiss cheese, enjoyed enormous popularity with my family. Made the whole house smell delicious as it baked. A very flexible recipe. Now on high rotation. Served with soup. Highly recommended. Hats off once more to Nagi.
This is a wonderful recipe that made the house smell like cheese heaven. I sneaked in Parmesan and I’m sure it would take a lot of extra tasty additions. Served it with soup tonight but next week I’m thinking a casserole would suit it. Highly recommended. Fast, easy, no fail and delicious.
Making now.
I buy Swiss in a block so I grated it. I like a little heat so I may add just a pinch of cayenne. I’ll keep everyone updated.
Just made this yesterday and thought it turned out deliciously moist and cheesy. Didn’t have Swiss, so used up some sliced provolone and cheddar. I’d like to add that I made sure to really squeeze out the spinach. Cheesecloth really does the trick! And I may have baked it an extra 5 minutes.
I made this and it was great! Used slices of normal cheese and grated some throughout and added veggies. Does anyone know if I can use self raising flour to make again? I’m out of bicarb
Scrumptious, and thank you so much for notes section in this recipe and others, so very helpful!
Firstly, apologies in advance for the long comment BUT I think there will be at least one person who will appreciate it (besides Nagi) and that is all that matters =)
I’ve made this loaf several times in the last few years and each time, I’ve been happy and tweaked little things. Over the weekend, I made two loaves on consecutive days and I’m finally ready to share some notes that may be useful to those who are on a similar path to me.
Nagi has the best recipes and some are better than others when modifying to be healthier. This is one of them. I have never used plain flour when she calls for it. I always use spelt flour (either white or wholemeal – or a mix at times). On the weekend I used a gluten free flour mix (from another cook) and it worked out great. I didn’t have to adjust the cooking time for either but the GF loaf could have been left in for another 5 mins. It doesn’t matter if you’re reheating in the oven though.
I have used full fat cow’s milk and on this occasion, I used Nutty Bruce’s almond milk and it worked fine.
I used EVOO instead of vegetable oil and never use vegetable oil.
I have used tasty cheese but my favourite combo is goat’s cheese and greek feta.
I have used garlic in the past but taking a break so a little garlic powder was fine.
Sometimes I like to add the contents of lamb liver capsules for an extra nutrient boost (which has no taste in the loaf).
I top the loaf with a seed mix and hemp seeds. A hit with my preschool aged daughter and toddler niece. Such a great lunchbox addition and freezes well.
Thank you Nagi for a wonderful recipe that really works well with tweaking it
I have cooked this three or four times now and this is the best cheese-first bread I have ever made. It’s hard to wait for it to cool before getting stuck in.
So, so good! I added in some herbs, very finely diced red capsicum and feta. Used tasty cheese cut into slices and it worked a dream.
Just made this a second time, currently baking in the oven. Absolute hit with anyone who tastes it. My dog scoffed down 2 slices last time I made it, and he refuses to eat veg. I grate more zucchini and let it drain a bit longer, plus I add 2 teaspoons of herb and garlic seasoning to the mix. I wonder if this recipe would work with grated sweet potato? This recipe is a keeper!
I added a little grated carrot and grated Parmesan as well and made these into muffins! Delicious!!
I made this recipe exactly as described and it was delicious. However, I found it had a very slight metallic taste, which I presume was either the baking powder or bicarb soda. We had it last night with a vege soup and some more tonight with a French onion beef casserole. A lovely versatile bread.
Made this for the fist time today. It’s really great flavor and I love the cheese ‘ribbons’ that run through it but mine turned our very crumbly – basically have to eat it with a fork. It’s done all the way through. What did I do wrong?
Nagi your recipes are great never fail always great results