Lemon Zucchini Bread is the perfect twist on traditional zucchini bread with a light citrus taste throughout and topped with a sweet lemon glaze!
Lemon zucchini bread is a delicious sweet bread you will want to make all summer long! Instead of traditional zucchini bread you’ll love the light and refreshing lemon taste this bread has!
Ingredients Needed
This is a quick overview of the dry ingredients and wet ingredients you’ll need for this Lemon Zucchini Bread recipe. Specific measurements and full recipe instructions are in the printable recipe card below.
- all purpose flour
- baking powder
- salt
- large eggs
- canola oil
- white sugar
- buttermilk
- lemon juice
- lemon zest
- grated zucchini
- powdered sugar
- half and half
This is the best lemon zucchini bread because it is so sweet and moist. Zucchini bread is known for being moist, thanks to the zucchini. You do not want to squeeze or dry the shredded zucchini, because you want to keep all that moisture in there to keep the sweet bread moist. Also because we use canola oil instead of butter that keeps the bread moist.
The sweet tangy lemon glaze on top ties it all together. It’s made with powdered sugar, fresh lemon juice and half and half. That makes it lemony, and a little bit creamy and so so good. With under an hour of baking time this bread has a fresh lemon flavor and you can even add poppy seeds for a little pop too.
Gardening Tips for Zucchini
How is your garden growing? My garden is doing alright this year, I have tomatoes, herbs, peppers, cucumbers, eggplant (its my first time — I love the little purple flower), and zucchini. I always plant zucchini, then I feel like my garden is a success because zucchini always grows well, really, really well.
I have to watch the zucchini daily because there will be a little tiny zucchini one day and the next there is this gigantic zucchini – it grows so fast I have no idea how! Zucchini likes to hide too, they hide under the leaves and under the stems; maybe they don’t like to be picked. If you happen to plant zucchini like I do and the plant has gotten a little carried away, making and baking zucchini bread is a prefect use of that over sized zucchini. The other awesome thing about zucchini bread is there are so many options, regular zucchini bread, double chocolate zucchini bread and now lemon zucchini bread. Enjoy your choices. And if you need something savory to make with your zucchini, then you’ll also love this zucchini lasagna or parmesan zucchini spears if you need something savory!
Tips and Tricks
- Try adding fresh lemon zest on top if you really want to have the lemon pop with each bite
- Wrap the bread in aluminum foil and give it your neighbors (or put it in a separate bowl and cover with aluminum foil to keep the glaze from sticking)
- Summer zucchini is usually abundant- find a good deal on bulk fresh zucchini (or ask your neighbors!)
- You can swap out buttermilk for sour cream or greek yogurt
Frequently Asked Questions
Should you squeeze water out of zucchini for bread?
The wet ingredients in this recipe, especially the zucchini, help make the bread moist. If your zucchini is exceptionally wet, it will not hurt to drain it slightly before mixing it in. A great way to dry it is by patting it gently with a paper towel before mixing it in a large bowl with the other ingredients.
Do you peel zucchini before grating for bread?
No, you do not peel the zucchini before grating it for bread. It will cook into the bread when it bakes so there is no need add an extra strep by peeling beforehand. Because it is not needed, this recipe is a great addition for backyard gardener recipes.
Why is my zucchini bread raw in the middle?
High moisture content or undercooking your bread can cause the middle of the bread to be raw. Also, allow the bread to cool down on a wire rack or on a cooling rack in order for it to finish cooking after it is removed from the oven since it will continue to cook the middle afterwards for a bit.
Can I use vegetable oil instead of canola oil?
Yes, vegetable oil can be used instead of canola oil for recipes, including this one. This easy recipe allows you to swap some ingredients with others in order to make best use of your zucchini for a perfect way to take all that quick-growing squash and make a delicious lemon bread with it.
This recipe can be made with green zucchini or yellow squash! You can also swap out the canola oil for vegetable oil if you need to. This quick bread recipe is delicious and can be stored by covering it with plastic wrap or in an airtight container.
Looking for more zucchini recipes?
- Zucchini Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Zucchini Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Zucchini Brownies with Frosting
- Zucchini Bread with Pineapple
- Zucchini Muffins
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Lemon Zucchini Bread
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 2 TBS lemon juice
- zest 1 lemon
- 1 cup zucchini (grated)
For the Lemon Glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- juice 1 lemon
- 1 to 2 TBSP half and half (as needed to thin glaze)
Equipment
- Large Mixing Bowl
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Flour and grease 1 9x5 loaf pan
- In a large bowl, blend together flour, baking powder and salt
- In another bowl, beat 2 eggs well
- Add to the eggs the oil and sugar and blend together well
- Add the buttermilk, lemon juice, and lemon zest and blend together well
- Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and fold together until everything is well blended, but don't over-mix
- Fold the zucchini into the prepared batter until evenly throughout.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan, pat down the pan with a couple of soft thumps to your counter top to evenly distribute the batter.
- Place in your oven and bake for 40 to 45 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. (Check at 35 minutes to make sure you don't over bake)
- Cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then remove to a wire cooling rack to finish cooling
For the Glaze:
- In a bowl, mix the powdered sugar, 1 TBS lemon juice, and 1 TBS half and half.
- Mix together with a fork until all the sugar is thoroughly mixed and glaze is thin enough to spread, but not too runny.
- Add more half and half, or lemon juice as needed to thin the glaze. Or add a little more powdered sugar as needed to thicken.
- Drizzle the glaze over the cooled loaf. (I like to drizzle with my cake on a cooling rack with foil or a cookie sheet underneath. This way the glaze won't gather on the sides, and will drip off without getting all over the place)
- Let set, then slice and serve
Recipe originally published on August 4, 2014. Photos updated on July 2, 2018.
What is your favorite type of zucchini bread?
GET READY TO MAKE THIS SWEET BREAD WITH THESE KITCHEN TOOLS:
You might also like these other zucchini recipes:
Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread
Nikki says
Hi there!
Is there a way to swap the sugar for a healthier alternative? Maple syrup or honey?
Aimee says
I haven’t tested that in baking much, so I’m not sure – you could skip the glaze, and that’s cutting out 1 cup of sugar.
Janice says
Saw your recipe on Pinterest going to try it today.
Would like to know if I can use vegetable oil or even unsweetened apple sauce to replace canola oil?
This looks so good!
Thank you
Aimee says
Vegetable oil should work interchangably with canola oil, anytime 🙂 I haven’t tried it with apple sauce though, I’d recommend cutting the oil in half and subbing applesauce for the other half, but not completely replacing the oil with applesauce. Let me know if you try it!