Zucchini Yogurt Quick Bread
Zucchini is one of those wonderfully versatile summer vegetables that can find its way into everything from pasta and salads to fritters, soups, and side dishes. Still, when the garden is producing zucchini faster than you can use it, there comes a point when even the biggest zucchini lover begins looking for new ways to enjoy it. Thankfully, I have chickens who are always more than happy to take care of any extra zucchini we cannot use!
Knowing that we had family coming to visit, I spent much of the early part of July baking treats that I could tuck into the freezer. I love having homemade muffins, cakes, and quick breads on hand when we have guests, especially since they can be pulled from the freezer at a moment’s notice for breakfast or an afternoon snack.
With plenty of zucchini available, I used part of my harvest to bake a batch of muffins along with several loaves of this Zucchini Yogurt Loaf. It turned out to be one of the biggest hits with the grandkids, including those who normally claim they do not like vegetables. Of course, once zucchini is finely grated and baked into a tender loaf, no one seems to mind that there is a vegetable hiding inside!
The combination of grated zucchini and yogurt gives this quick bread an exceptionally moist, tender crumb without making it heavy. Chopped nuts add a pleasant bit of crunch and texture, while the loaf itself is only lightly sweet, which is exactly how I prefer quick breads. It is delicious served simply as is, although a light spread of butter is never a bad idea.
One of the things I like best about this loaf is how well it freezes. During our family visit, I would take a loaf from the freezer first thing in the morning and leave it on the counter to thaw. More often than not, it had completely disappeared before lunchtime. That is always a pretty good indication that a recipe is worth making again!
If your garden is overflowing with zucchini this summer, this easy loaf is a delicious way to put some of it to good use. Bake an extra loaf or two while you are at it and freeze them for later—you will be very happy to have them waiting when you need a quick breakfast, snack, or simple treat to serve with coffee.
Buon Appetito!
Deborah Mele
Zucchini Yogurt Quick Bread
Ingredients
- 2 Cups Light Farro (Spelt) Flour
- 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
- 3/4 Cup Sugar
- 2 Large Eggs At Room Temperature
- 1/2 Cup Olive Oil
- 1/2 Cup Fat Free Greek Yogurt
- 1/2 Cup Chopped Walnuts
- 1 Cup Grated Zucchini
Topping:
- 1/2 Cup Finely Chopped Walnuts
- 1/3 Cup Sugar
- 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and lightly grease and flour a 9 X 5 inch loaf pan.
- In one bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and soda, and salt.
- In another bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs, oil, and yogurt.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients and stir just until mixed.
- Fold in the walnuts and zucchini.
- In a small bowl, stir together the chopped nuts, sugar, and cinnamon, and sprinkle over the loaf.
- Bake for about 1 hour, or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool for 10 minutes then remove from the pan and continue to cool on a wire rack.
Can I replace the spelt flour with regular white flour without making any other changes to the recipe?
Should be fine.
Buon Giorno Deborah,
I have a question regarding the walnuts that are to added into the batter; how much? Those should be folded into the batter along with the zucchini correct?
Grazie Mille,
Rosetta
Rosetta, sorry about that. I had edited the recipe as soon as it went up but for some reason the edits didn’t stick.
I cut the sugar down to a third of a cup and omitted the topping as when I followed the recipe the first time it was too sweet for me . Husband is diabetic.