You know you’ve been food blogging for a long time when you have well-loved recipes that are almost as old as your teenager! In December, I got lost (on purpose) down a beautiful rabbit hole of my older recipes. The ones I shared when I was still finding my own way and purpose; and the ones that may have brought you here to my little slice of the internet. For those early recipes — and for you — I will always be eternally grateful. SO, I have been working on perfecting and revamping some of the most popular ones. And this Almond Flour Zucchini Bread is one of those recipes!
Paleo Zucchini Bread
This recipe was born during a time when paleo breads were NOT what they are today. We were learning as we went about how to create tender, moist crumb without gluten. So while the ingredients here seem simple, they come together in a rather magical way. The biggest key to this recipe is in the almond flour.
Benefits of almond flour
Almond flour is made exactly the way it sounds, by crushing up almonds. However, just crushing almonds conventionally in your kitchen will yield something much more coarse than a flour. It will give you an almond meal which, while excellent to use for making crackers or as a “breading” for chicken tenders, will not work here.
You want a FINELY ground flour made from blanched almonds for this bread. Blanched almonds have had their skins removed. Back when I wrote this recipe, I had just discovered Wellbee’s almond flour. That was 12 years ago and it is still my favorite almond flour for baking! You can find it here.
If you cannot do almond flour, you can try cashew flour or sunflower seed flour instead. Coconut flour does not work as a direct swap here since it has a much different density than almond flour.
How to grate zucchini
Baking with zucchini is an excellent way to add moisture to baked goods. You want to shred it, of course, by either using a box grater or a food processor with a grating attachment.
But bear in mind, zucchini gives off water while it cooks, so don’t skip the step of wringing it out before mixing it with your other ingredients. Spread it on a clean tea towel and let it sit for 10 minutes. Then, twist the towel into a ball around the zucchini, giving it a squeeze into your sink. This removes the excess moisture and then, you’re ready to use it!
Gluten Free Zucchini Bread
This recipe gets its sweetness from a little bit of honey and a ripe banana. If you don’t care for banana, you can sub in ½ cup of unsweetened applesauce instead, but your bread won’t be as sweet. If you don’t tolerate honey, try maple syrup instead. Nutmeg not your thing? Ground cardamom is delicious its place.
And after making literally thousands of these loaves over the last 10+ years, I can also attest that no has ever, ever complained about a nice pour of chocolate chips into this batter before popping it into the oven.
If this Almond Flour Zucchini Bread is new to you, I hope you enjoy it. And if you’ve made it before, I hope you try it again and maybe even give it your own little spin.
Paleo Bread Recipes
Gluten-Free Pumpkin Bread
Blender Bread
Grain-Free Sandwich Bread
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Watch me make Almond Flour Zucchini Bread on Instagram!
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Almond Flour Zucchini Bread
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 1 loaf or 12 muffins 1x
- Category: Snack
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups blanched almond flour
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- 3 eggs, beaten
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 ripe banana
- 1 cup shredded, unpeeled zucchini
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit.
- Lightly grease an 8 ½-by-4 ½-inch loaf pan and place a piece of parchment on the bottom.
- Spread the grated zucchini out onto a clean towel. Let sit for 10 minutes. Piling the zucchini in the center, twist the towel around the zucchini to form a little ball. Squeeze over the sink, wringing out the excess moisture.
- Combine the dry ingredients in a small bowl.
- Place the eggs, honey, and banana in the bowl of a stand mixer, then beat on medium for 1 minute, until frothy and fully combined. Add the zucchini and beat again to incorporate, about 15 seconds.
- With the mixer running, slowly add the dry ingredients until incorporated.
- Spoon the batter into your loaf pan. You can also use this batter to make muffins using a 12-cup muffin pan lined with paper cups (fill each 2/3 full).
- Bake for 40 minutes until the middle is set and a toothpick comes out clean. Bake muffins for 30 to 35 minutes.
Notes
Substitutions:
Maple syrup instead of honey
Ground cardamom instead of nutmeg
Unsweetened applesauce instead of banana
Cashew flour or sunflower seed flour instead of almond flour
2/07/24
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