Pumpkin zucchini bread is the perfect way to use up any leftover pureed pumpkin and those zucchini from your garden. The chocolate chips add the perfect touch of sweetness.
The seasons changing from summer to fall usually meant two things in my childhood home:
1. There would be lots of zucchini from the garden.
2. My mom would start making zucchini bread.
I’m experiencing the same phenomenon this summer with our abundance of zucchini, so I set out to make some of my mom’s chocolate chip zucchini bread.
I also had intentions to make pumpkin pancakes with some leftover pumpkin puree I had in the fridge, but decided to add it in my batter in place of the oil and this recipe was born!
Step-by-Step Instructions
GREASE two 9×5 loaf pans and preheat oven to 350 degrees.
COMBINE 1 cup white sugar, 1 cup brown sugar, 1 cup pumpkin puree, 3 eggs and 2 teaspoon vanilla until well mixed.
Gently STIR in 2 cups grated zucchini (the amount you’ll get from 2 medium-sized zucchinis) and 1 cup chocolate chips.
In a separate bowl, COMBINE 3 cups flour, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon baking powder, 1 tablespoon cinnamon and 1 teaspoon baking soda, then slowly add to wet ingredients, mixing well as you go.
POUR batter evenly in loaf pans and BAKE for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Recipe Tips and Substitutions
To grate your zucchini you can use a hand grater or a spiralizer. I prefer a food processor with a shredding disc because it’s quick and it keeps the zucchini mess contained.
The original recipe calls for 1 cup of oil. I replaced that with pumpkin for this recipe, but you can try adding in 1/3 cup of oil if you’d like your bread to be moister.
I like to use a hand mixer to combine the sugars and eggs and then a spatula to mix in the zucchini and chocolate chips. You can use the hand mixer again when you add in the dry ingredients, just be sure it’s on a low setting.
More Like This
If you’re looking for more fall recipes, you’ll love these!
- Slow Cooker Sweet Potatoes and Apples
- Pumpkin Pancakes with Pancake Mix
- Simple Crock Pot Hamburger Stew
- Spaghetti with Chili Sauce
- Cinnamon Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Apples
FAQs
When I hear the word bread, I usually think of something savory, but this pumpkin zucchini bread is far from it!
Zucchini bread is a type of sweet quick bread that’s distinguished by the green flecks that show up after baking.
Some zucchini bread recipes are probably only slightly sweet, but I only know a few recipes and they all contain chocolate chips!
I like to serve this bread as a treat after dinner or a snack in the afternoon. My mom would even put some butter on a slice and serve it for breakfast when we were young!
In baking, zucchini is similar to bananas or applesauce: it adds moisture and helps bulk up the batter while providing some nutrition to an otherwise unhealthy piece of bread.
So throw in some zucchini into your baked goods and you’ve got yourself a healthy snack! (I kid.)
Yes!
You don’t need to peel the zucchini for this bread. Just make sure the zucchini is washed and trimmed.
I love the deep green flecks the skin makes in the bread. So pretty!
If your zucchini bread is soggy, it’s likely that your zucchini has retained too much moisture.
I’ve never had that problem with this recipe, but if it happens to you, you can try ringing out the zucchini before adding it to the other ingredients.
Take the shredded zucchini and place it in a tea towel or kitchen towel. Roll it up and twist the ends to ring out excess moisture.
Before removing your zucchini bread from the oven, you can check for doneness by inserting a toothpick or fork into the very center of the bread. If the toothpick or fork comes out clean, then your bread is done. If there is residue, the bread should cook a bit longer.
If you’ve already removed the zucchini bread and it’s undercooked, just pop it back in the oven for a few more minutes.
Start with an additional 5-10 minutes and repeat as necessary.
There are a few reasons why your zucchini bread might by crumbly.
1. Your baking powder and/or baking soda are expired.
2. You removed too much moisture from the zucchini.
3. Your ingredients weren’t measured correctly (used the wrong kind of measuring cup!)
Make sure your baking powder and baking soda are still fresh. If these ingredients are expired, it will affect how much the bread rises. You can test baking soda by pouring a teaspoon or so into hot vinegar and you can test baking powder by adding a little to hot water. If they fizz and bubble, they are still good!
I never ring out my zucchini, but if your bread has come out soggy in the past, this is a step you can take. Just be sure not to remove too much moisture or you’ll have the opposite problem of a dry cake.
Make sure you’re using dry cup measures for dry ingredients and liquid measuring cups for liquids. Dry ingredients are measured using the nested measuring cups that are typically plastic or metal and liquids are best measured in a stand alone glass measuring cup.
You can also try spooning your flour instead of scooping.
Instead of taking your measuring cup and scooping the flour from the container, spoon the flour one spoonful at a time into your dry measuring cup until full. Then, scrape the top of the measuring cup with a knife to level.
Scooped flour from the container measures more than flour that is spooned!
This pumpkin zucchini bread is so good, it won’t last more than a couple days! You can just cover it and store it on the counter.
If you do plan to eat the bread over several days, it can be refrigerated for up to a week.
I hope your family loves this pumpkin zucchini bread recipe! If you make it, be sure to take a picture and tag me on Instagram with @ashcroftfamilytable and use the hashtag #ashcroftfamilytable!
And if you’d like to get a 4-week meal plan featuring my recipes, just enter your email in the form above and you’ll get it straight to your inbox!
Pumpkin Zucchini Bread with Chocolate Chips
Ingredients
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 3 eggs
- 2 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 cups grated zucchini, about 2 medium-sized zucchinis
- 1 cup chocolate chips
- 3 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
Instructions
- Grease two 9×5 loaf pans and preheat oven to 350º.
- Combine sugars, pumpkin, eggs, and vanilla until well mixed.
- Gently stir in grated zucchini and chocolate chips.
- Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl and slowly add to wet ingredients, mixing well as you go.
- Pour batter evenly in loaf pans and bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.