Glazed Lemon Zucchini Bread — This EASY, no-mixer homemade quick bread combines tangy lemon flavor with tender zucchini which keeps it so incredibly soft, tender, and moist! Topped with a simple lemon glaze, this bread is not overly sweet. It’s PERFECT for breakfast, brunch, as a snack, or as a lighter summer dessert!
Table of Contents
Zucchini Bread … with Lemon!
Whether you have an abundance of garden zucchini to use or have just picked up some from the local farmer’s market or on sale at the supermarket, this lemon zucchini bread recipe is one spectacular loaf of bread that shouldn’t be missed.
Zucchini is one of my favorite ingredients to use in baked goods. It adds moisture, color, a tiny bit of texture, and keeps baked goods so soft, while also being a great way to sneak in some veggies!
This recipe yields a light and tender loaf that has a moist crumb thanks to the added benefit of having shredded zucchini in the batter. It’s lightly sweetened and bursting with lemon flavor from using both lemon juice and zest.
Topped with the perfect amount of lemon glaze, this fluffy bread will be your new favorite breakfast or brunch treat alongside a cup of coffee, as an afternoon snack, or make it as an easy dessert – especially in the spring and summer months when zucchini is in season.
Does Zucchini Bread Taste Like Zucchini?
If you’re like me, you’ve got at least one person in your family who “doesn’t like zucchini”. However, because zucchini is so mild in flavor you truly can’t even taste it!
While you can still see the little green flecks in the loaf, if your picky eaters close their eyes, they will not even know it’s there.
Ingredients in Lemon Zucchini Bread
Like most quick breads this easy recipe is simple to make with a few minutes of prep time and a total time of just over 1 hour when you take into account cooling time.
Using only a few fresh ingredients and pantry staples, here is what you need to get started:
- Grated zucchini
- Bread flour
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Baking soda
- Granulated sugar
- Lemon zest
- Vegetable oil or canola oil
- Eggs + Egg Yolks
- Fresh Lemon juice
- Pure vanilla extract
- Powdered sugar
Note: All ingredients amounts are listed in the recipe card section when you keep scrolling down.
How to Make Zucchini Lemon Bread
Grab a mixing bowl and a 5×9-inch loaf pan, this lemony zucchini bread comes together and is ready to bake in only 15 minutes of prep time! You don’t even need to peel the zucchini skin.
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350°F and spray a loaf pan with baking spray.
Step 2: In a medium-sized mixing bowl combine dry ingredients.
Step 3: In a separate large bowl whisk together sugar and lemon zest.
Step 4: Add the vegetable oil, eggs, lemon juice, and vanilla to the sugar mixture stirring after each addition to combine.
Step 5: Gently fold in the zucchini to the wet ingredients.
How to Prepare Zucchini for Quick Breads
I always grate my zucchini by hand on the coarsest blade of a box grater. It literally takes one minute to do and is super easy.
Ensuring the grated zucchini is well drained is important because during the baking process, the zucchini will release its natural water and juices which could contribute to your loaf not setting up properly.
Therefore, after I grate the zucchini I place it in wad of high quality paper towels that won’t rip (or in a clean dish towel that you don’t care if it gets a bit stained greenly tinged) and then squeeze tightly to wring out the water.
You don’t need to wring it out like crazy to be “dry as a bone” but just give it a good few good squeezes and you’ll be fine!
Step 6: Add the dry ingredients to the zucchini mixture and stir until just combined.
Step 7: Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes.
Step 8: Remove the oven and place on a wire rack to cool completely (30 minutes to 1 hr) before adding a glaze drizzle on top.
Step 9: For the glaze, simply combine all ingredients, whisk well, and glaze the bread after it’s completely cooled.
Can Poppy Seeds Be Added?
If you’re a poppy seed fan, and want to transform your loaf into a lemon zucchini poppy seed bread, it’s so easy!
Simply stir in 1 to 2 tablespoons poppy seeds into the batter at the very end before you turn it out into the pan. Start with 1 tablespoon, see how it looks, then add more to taste.
No other adjustments are needed.
White chocolate chips (or regular chocolate chips) are also a nice addition. I would go start with 2/3 cup, see how it looks, and add more if desired.
If you want to use warming spices in this loaf, cinnamon and nutmeg are great. And you can even add a couple teaspoons vanilla extract or another favorite extract like lemon extract depending on what flavor profile you’re going for.
Storing Leftover Glazed Zucchini Lemon Bread
Keep your extra bread in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
It’s such a fabulous quickbread recipe that I doubt it will last long. For this reason, I doubt you’ll need to keep it in the fridge. One reason I don’t like to store most baked goods in the fridge is that it dries them out and therefore changes the texture.
However, if you know you’re not going to consume it in the first few days, and need longer storage, place it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5-7 days.
You can reheat it very lightly and gently in the toaster or microwave if desired.
Note that if you glaze the whole loaf bread, it will become more moist and could become a bit soggy if many days pass before you eat it all. One way to avoid this is to not glaze the entire loaf. Or just eat it faster!
Can I Freeze It?
Most quick breads and breads in generally freeze quite well and this one is no exception!
To freeze your homemade zucchini bread with lemon, cool completely, skip the glaze then wrap it in aluminum foil and then a large ziptop plastic freezer bag (or in plastic wrap) prevent freezer burn. Store it in the freezer for up to 3 months.
You can freeze a whole loaf or just a slice of fresh zucchini bread.
Tips for the Best Lemon Zucchini Bread
Zucchini: As I mentioned above, it needs to be grated and then wrung out. Don’t slice it or chop it. This is a time where a box grater is your friend. I hate dirtying a food processor for this quick and easy job. But if you want to, you can use the grating attachment on your food processor.
Avoid overmixing: Once the flour mixture is added to the recipe, make sure to only mix until just combined. Overmixing can cause the gluten to overdevelop, resulting in a crumbly loaf.
Line loaf pan with parchment paper: Line your 9×5 inch loaf pan with parchment paper to easily remove it from the pan after baking.
Oven temp: To prevent your bread from sinking in the middle when it cools, make sure your oven is preheated to 350F before placing your bread into the oven to bake.
Prevent Over-Browning: If your loaf looks like it’s getting too browned on the outside too quickly into the baking process, after about 25-30 minutes, loosely drape a sheet of foil over the top of the pan, otherwise known as tenting your pan. Another trick it to rotate your pan halfway through baking because ovens tend to over-brown the side of the loaf that’s nearest to the back oven wall.
Baking Time: Any time one is baking with bananas, fresh berries, or zucchini, baking time can and will vary based on your exact and unique ingredients, oven variances, climate variances, different pans, and so forth.
Always bake until done, whatever that means for you. Even if it takes 55-60 minutes because you had some really moist zucchini but the recommended baking time guideline is 45 minutes, well you need to bake it until it’s done and that just may be 55-60 minutes. Always watch your item, and not the clock.
Recipe FAQs
Yes and No.
The recipe calls for both bread flour and all-purpose flour. While I recommend using the combination of flours as instructed for best results, you may just use additional all-purpose flour instead of bread flour.
The reason I call for two flours is that bread flour specifically creates a tender crumb and adds a softer bounce to the loaf than using solely all-purpose.
If you buy a bag of bread flour and want to put it to use, I suggest making my Easy Sourdough Bread, Chocolate Chip and Chunk Cookies, the infamous New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies, or these family favorite Oatmeal Raisin Rolls.
I only use King Arthur Bread Flour and King Arthur All-Purpose Flour in any recipe that calls for flour.
You can experiment with gluten free flour that’s intended for baking if you’re so inclined to keep this loaf gluten free.
There is no need to peel your zucchini! Zucchini skin is thin and softens during the baking process. The skin does not affect the texture and you won’t even notice it.
Plus a little extra fiber is always a bonus!
The only time you may want to consider removing the zucchini seeds is if you are using an extra large garden zucchini.
Just scoop out the seeds from the larger-sized summer zucchini to prevent a bitter taste and then proceed with the recipe.
However, for most people with most zucchini, this isn’t a necessary step.
Similar to both Zucchini Banana Bread and Banana Bread, it is soft, moist, and has a tender crumb.
The sweet silky lemon glaze adds extra fresh lemon flavor, but also a lightly creamy texture which is a great balance with the bread. 
Of course! That is a great idea to have one now and one for later or to share with a friend.
Just double the ingredients and bake the bread in two 5×9-inch loaf pans.
Baking time will likely increase by 5 to 10 minutes, but please read my Tips again about watching your item and not the clock in determining doneness.
While the glaze is optional, it adds another layer of citrus lemon flavor and is the icing on the “cake”!
It really elevates this from a “quick bread” to a lemon zucchini cake and makes it perfectly acceptable for breakfast, brunch, or even dessert.
Yes! For muffins, pour the batter into a greased or lined muffin tin. Bake at 350ºF for approximately 18 mins. You’ll yield about 15-18 muffins.
These Banana Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffins are a favorite if you would rather not have the lemon.
Banana bread and zucchini bread are notorious for this. It’s because the internal temperature of your bread was not quite high enough or hot enough to fully set the loaf. Upon cooling, it will fall.
Ensure against this by baking long enough!
Once you pull it out of the oven and 15 minutes later you notice it’s falling, you can’t put it back in the oven!
Not only will it NOT correct the cosmetic issue of a fallen loaf, but the loaf is likely still unsafe to eat with the raw eggs in it that have NOT been fully and thoroughly cooked, and you will need to throw the bread out.
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Lemon Zucchini Bread
Ingredients
Bread
- 2 cups grated zucchini, loosely laid in measuring cup (not peeled, well wrung and moisture squeezed)
- 1 ½ cup bread flour
- ⅓ cup all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- ½ cup canola or vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs
- 2 yolks, from large eggs, discard whites or save for another use
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Lemon Glaze
- ⅔ cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted if lumpy
- Zest from one lemon, with a bit reserved for garnishing
- 1 to 2 tablespoons lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and spray a 9×5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray (optionally create a sling with a sheet of parchment paper for easier removal); set aside.
- Bread – Grate the zucchini by hand on the coarsest blade of a box grater (I see no reason to dirty a food processor fitted with the grating attachment for such a simple job, although it's an option). Then, place the zucchini in a wad or bunch of high quality paper towels that won't rip (or in a clean dish towel that you don't care if it gets stained a bit green), and squeeze well to wring out the moisture from the zucchini. It doesn't have to be bone dry, but it should be wrung out. If in doubt, grate a bit more zucchini than you think you will need rather than less. Now let the zucchini just sit in the paper towel wad or dish towel while you move on with the next steps.
- To a large mixing bowl, add the bread flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and whisk to combine; set aside. Tip – I like using a mixture of bread and all-purpose flours for the perfect crumb texture and a softer bounce in the bread, although if you don't have bread flour, you can use solely AP flour. If you need ideas and ways to use the extra flour, read the blog post for recipe links and ideas.
- To a separate medium bowl, add the sugar, lemon zest, and whisk to combine for about 1 minute to allow the oil from the lemon to infuse the sugar.
- Add the oil and whisk to combine.
- Add the eggs, the yolks (Tip – use the egg whites in an omelette or make the Best White Cake), and whisk to combine.
- Add the lemon juice, vanilla, and whisk to combine.
- Add 2 cups of zucchini (loosely measured, not packed into the measuring cup), and stir to combine.
- Add the dry flour mixture to the wet ingredients, and stir to just combine; don't overmix or you will over-develop the gluten which causes a more dry and more crumbly final texture.
- Turn the batter out into the prepared baking pan, and bake for about 45 minutes, or until done. Please see Baking Tips below!
- Allow the baked bread to cool for about 10 minutes in the baking pan, or until it's cool enough to handle, before turning out on a wire rack to cool completely.
- Glaze – After the bread has cooled completely (at least 30 minutes, possibly longer depending on climate), make the glaze by whisking together all ingredients. Tips – Sift your confectioners' sugar if it's at all lumpy. It takes left time to sift the sugar than to later on try to whisk out lumps! For a thicker glaze, don't add as much lemon juice and for a thinner glaze, add a bit more.
- If desired, garnish the glazed loaf with a bit of reserved lemon zest, slice, and serve.
- Storage – Extra bread will keep airtight at room temp for up to 3 days, or in the fridge for up to 5-7 days. I don't like storing quick breads in the fridge because it dries them out, so I don't recommend it unless you know for sure you won't consume it in the first 3 days or so. Unglazed bread will keep airitght in the freezer for up to 4 months. Wrap completely cooled bread tightly in foil and place in an extra large ziptop plastic bag intended for freezer storage.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Just a quick question …do you measure the 2 cups of zucchini before or after squeezing out the moisture? Thanks, can’t wait to make this.
Squeeze out the moisture, then measure out 2 cups. Loosely lay it in the measuring cup, not packed in. It’s a flexible enough recipe in this aspect so if it’s slightly over/under 2 cups it’ll still be fine.