Double Chocolate Zucchini (& Spinach!) Bread
Look at this chocolatey, tender, delicious beauty!
Let me tell you, one of my favorite games to play with my food is: What additional veggies can I hide here? Spinach, surprisingly to some people, is one of my go-tos. Tacos? Yep. Spaghetti sauce? You bet. It just blends so well, while also often acting as a flavor sponge. So much so, that sometimes I don’t hide it, I throw it in as is to amp up the flavor of a dish - like in my Easy Mediterranean Quiche.
When it comes to baking, I less often see vegetables incorporated. I remember a long time ago seeing Jessica Seinfeld on The Ellen Degeneres Show talking about her cookbook where she hid vegetables in her bakes so much so that her family actually now prefers them that way. I thought it was fascinating but hadn’t tried that experiment (in a sweet) until now.
Originally, I was testing this recipe to be a brownie but after the first bake I realized it would make a rather delicious loaf, so here we are (and I was 100% correct)! Isn’t recipe testing amazing that way?
Now I will be the first to admit that plain ‘ol zucchini bread (heaven forbid nasty banana bread) has never been my favorite but you know what I do love? Chocolate cake. This zucchini AND spinach bread is like a moist, tender, chocolatey cake in loaf form, sweet (but slightly less so) while being able to keep its hold in a slice. It’s almostttt a bread but not quite (which, let’s be honest, is most zucchini breads). There is also the barest hint of spice, which comes from the cinnamon and adds the extra flavor boost you didn’t know you needed. Kind of like Mexican hot chocolate cookies, but not.
It’s absolutely delicious and, fun fact, 9-10-year-old approved - because my niece/nephew ate it without knowing what was inside and RAVED about it, and then I had the absolute joy of telling them there were 2 cups of vegetables inside. Gosh, I love being an aunt.
Yields: 8 slices
Equipment
Mixing Bowls
Measuring Cups
Measuring Spoons
Spatula
Whisk
9”x5” loaf pan
Parchment paper
Wire rack
Grater
Food Processor (or really sharp knife)
Ingredients
¾ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup brown sugar
⅓ cup canola oil
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup grated zucchini (approx. one medium zucchini)
1 cup finely chopped fresh spinach (about 4-5 good handfuls)
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup all-purpose flour
¾ tsp baking soda
½ tsp baking powder
¾ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp salt
⅓ cup chocolate chips, plus 1-2 tbsp extra for topping
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350°F; grease a 9”x5” loaf pan and line it with parchment paper
Grate your zucchini over a clean kitchen towel and squeeze out all the excess moisture. Squeeze until no more liquid releases. This step is very important, as too much moisture will stop your cake from rising properly! Set aside while you prep your other ingredients
In a food processor, finely chop your spinach. You want it to blend right in with the batter
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together your sugar and oil, then add in your eggs and vanilla and whisk until smooth
Use a spatula to fold in your dried-out zucchini and finely chopped spinach, until combined
In a separate bowl, sift together the cocoa powder, flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, stirring until only a few streaks of the dry ingredients remain, before adding in ⅓ cup of chocolate chips. Stir everything until just combined. Do not overmix at this stage!
Pour your batter into your prepared loaf pan, spread evenly as needed, and top with a few more chocolate chips. Bake for 40 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (note that because there are chocolate chips in the batter, you will likely have some melted chocolate on the toothpick)
Remove from the oven and let the loaf cool in the pan for 10 minutes before carefully removing and cooling completely on a wire rack (at least 30 minutes)
Enjoy!
Notes
I know people tend to ignore the “sift your dry ingredients” part of the instructions but I would (and do) recommend you sift your dry ingredients for this recipe. Whether you sift them into their own bowl or over the wet mixture, this will ensure you don’t get random bits of flour, etc. and that you don’t overmix your batter
I use Ghiradelli Dutch-processed cocoa powder. As it is a key flavor in this recipe, I would highly recommend a quality cocoa powder!
It is essential that you finely chop your spinach. I threw mine into a food processor (mini or large work great) but if you don’t have one of those, a very sharp knife will work. You don’t want to bite into obvious spinach bits so having it finely minced ensures it will simply “disappear” into the batter
Another key step is straining out your zucchini. This loaf is moist enough without that excess water and too much of it could prevent your bread from rising. Squeeze until only a few droplets are coming through your cloth.
If you don’t have a kitchen towel for squeezing out your zucchini, paper towel will work! I’d recommend layering 2-3 sheets before squeezing as zucchini is very juicy and will tear through one pretty quickly (literally).
Don’t overwork your batter, this is a more bread-like loaf cake so it’s dense enough
If you love this recipe please leave a comment below and tag @accentgolden in your post on social!
