Cranberry Zucchini Bread with Walnuts

5 from 2 votes

This cranberry zucchini bread with walnuts is incredibly delicious, easy to make, and packed with nuts, chocolate chips, cranberries. It's the perfect way to use up zucchini that makes bread recipes super moist, and this zucchini bread recipe stays fresh for ages to enjoy a slice for breakfast or lunch throughout the week.

Cranberry Zucchini Bread with Walnuts featured

⭐ Why this recipe works

Zucchini bread with chocolate chips and walnuts is an easy and delicious way to use up summer squash. This sweet bread is perfect for breakfast, lunch, or dessert! Chocolate and zucchini are a match made in heaven in this tasty bread.

The nutty zucchini bread takes over 1-hour to make using quality ingredients like chocolate chips, shredded zucchini, walnuts, cranberries, and some festive spices. This chocolate chip zucchini bread recipe is so moist and full of flavor that you'll want to make it again and again!

Adding zucchini to the batter makes the bread super moist, and the leavening agents of baking soda and baking powder help the bread rise.

Any home cook can easily make this delicious recipe using essential kitchen equipment and pantry ingredients. And it's perfect for any occasion, whether you have friends over for coffee or going to a picnic and potlucks!

This zucchini bread recipe is also very versatile - you can add orange for a tasty orange zucchini bread, different nuts, or a variety of dried fruits. So feel free to experiment and make this chocolate zucchini bread your own!

🍽 Key Ingredients

The chocolate, nutty & cranberries zucchini bread uses high-quality ingredients that help the bread stay fresh for longer.

Flour mixture - Use a combination of all-purpose flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon. The baking powder and soda are the leavening agents that help the bread rise.

Zucchini - Buy fresh zucchini and shred it yourself - this ensures that your bread will be moist.

Dried fruit - Dried cranberries add a lovely sweetness.

Nuts - Walnuts give the bread a lovely crunch.

Wet ingredients - Use eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar. The eggs help bind the ingredients together, while the oil and sugar add moisture.

Chocolate - Use good quality chocolate for the chocolate chips.

Substitutions

Cranberries

This recipe uses cranberries, but you could also add raisins or dates.

Walnuts

You could substitute the walnuts for almonds, brazil nuts, or pistachios.

Flour

For a nuttier texture, you can use wheat flour instead of the all-purpose flour.

🔪 How to make

This is the best zucchini bread with walnuts you will ever try, and you can make it with my easy-to-follow steps and helpful top tips. It takes over an hour, and most of the work is done by the electric mixer.

Preparations

Use a grater to shred the zucchini in a bowl.
Coarsely chop the whole walnuts.

Cooking instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (170 degrees Celsius) and grease a 9x5x3" loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.
Use an electric mixer to blend the oil, eggs, and sugar together in a large bowl, then add the vanilla and beat to combine.
In a medium bowl, sift and combine the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet and use the electric mixer to blend the mixture until combined.
Use a wooden spoon to stir in the grated zucchini, walnuts, cranberries, and add chocolate chips.
Pour the mixture into your prepared loaf pan and bake for about 50 - 60 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Allow the zucchini and walnut bread to cool for about 15 minutes in the pan, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

💭 Cooking tips

Shred the zucchini

I have one tip for making this bread: shred the zucchini using the large holes on a box grater. This will help prevent the zucchini from adding too much moisture to the batter.

Don't overmix the batter

Another important tip is to not overmix the batter. Once the wet ingredients are combined with the dry, mix in the zucchini and chocolate just until everything is incorporated - you don't want to develop too much gluten, which will make for a tough bread.

Don't use a food processor

Combining the ingredients in a food processor may be quicker, but it will also overwork the batter.

📖 Recipe Variations

This zucchini bread with walnuts is delicious as it is, but there are a few ways you could mix things up.

Orange zucchini bread

Swap the chocolate chips and walnuts for the zest and juice of 2 oranges to give the zucchini bread a lovely festive flavor, and use 2 teaspoons of cinnamon instead of 1.

Zucchini bread with streusel topping

Make a streusel topping by combining equal parts flour, sugar, and butter (half a cup). Mix in a teaspoon of cinnamon to taste, then sprinkle it over the top of the bread before baking.

Chocolate chip zucchini muffins

Simply divide the batter evenly among 12 greased muffin cups to make muffins. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

🥗 What to serve with

A slice of zucchini bread with walnuts is perfect in the morning with a coffee or toasted with melted butter and maple syrup for a quick sweet snack.

If you want to get really fancy, serve it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of chocolate sauce.

Zucchini bread is packed with chocolate, fruits, and nuts - and therefore is quite filling on its own - and is best served on its own without the need for other dishes.

However, if you want to serve it as part of a larger meal, it goes great with pancakes like my easy aunt jemima pancake recipe.

🙋 Frequently Asked Questions

Why does my zucchini bread sink in the middle?

There are a few reasons why zucchini bread may sink in the middle. One reason could be that the batter was mixed too vigorously. Another reason could be that the baking powder or soda was old and not as effective. Lastly, opening the oven door while it's baking can cause sinking.

Do you need to peel the zucchini?

Nope! There's no need to peel the zucchini. The skin is actually relatively thin and will soften during baking.

🧊 Storage

Zucchini bread is excellent for storing at room temperature, refrigerated, and frozen once it has cooled completely.

Room temperature - zucchini bread will stay fresh at room temperature for 4 days. Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap or aluminum foil, and place it in a cupboard away from direct sunlight.

Fridge - Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap or aluminum foil, and it will stay fresh for up to a week refrigerated.

Freezer - Wrap it tightly in freezer-safe wrapping or place it in a freezer container, and it will stay good for up to three months. Thaw it overnight in the fridge when you're ready to eat it.

🍳 Related Recipes

If you like my cranberry zucchini bread with walnuts recipe then you must try one my delicious recipes with zucchini as a main ingredient.

Looking for easy baking recipes? Check out my collection of fun things to bake.

👪 Serving size

This zucchini bread with walnuts recipe will give you approximately 10 servings, with 1 slice being 1 serving. You can scale this recipe up or down to cater to how many people you need to feed.

Zucchini bread is a great way to use extra zucchini from your garden. This recipe is easy to follow and yields delicious results. Whether you enjoy it with nuts, dried fruits, and chocolate or some additions, this zucchini bread is sure to please. Enjoy!

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