This whole wheat chocolate chip zucchini bread is made with olive oil and sweetened with honey.
Yesterday, Ben came home after twelve days in Kenya for work and it is soooo good to have him home! He makes this trip almost every year, but this time, we didn’t have as many opportunities to talk over the phone, so it feels like there’s so much for us to catch up on. However, he went to “lie down” and promptly fell asleep at 7:00PM last night, an hour after getting home, haha.
I’m hoping he will recover from jet lag quickly because we are heading to Seattle on Friday evening for a Labor Day weekend vacation with his family. We’ve been so excited about this trip, which will be our last little hurrah of the summer, my first time in the Pacific Northwest, and… my birthday weekend!
Labor Day weekend always feels like the end of the summer for me (even though I know it isn’t technically), so I’ve been reflecting on the last couple months. Summer has flown by for me, but it’s been a blast and I’m really grateful. We made an effort to take advantage of every moment of the season this year with little weekend trips and lots of time outside whenever possible. I’ve learned to appreciate the summer more and more because I know it’s just a matter of time before the long, gloomy, and often brutal Chicago winter sets in again.
But this summer has also been significant for me because of this blog and the opportunity to share my recipes with you all! I’ve followed food blogs for years, ever since I first discovered them in high school. But even as I look back over the past couple months, it is still surreal to me that I am now a “food blogger”. I never thought I would take the leap! So if you’re reading this, thank you for following along! It’s been an incredibly fun journey thus far.
Now, about this whole wheat chocolate chip zucchini bread. Since Ben and I tend to have pretty hectic schedules, I like to meal prep as much as I can to get us ready for the week. In addition to lunches we can take on the go, I always try to bake some healthy snack and quick breakfast options. Recently, we’ve really been enjoying zucchini bread for breakfast. A slice of this also totally fits the bill when I’m raiding the kitchen for a mid-afternoon snack!
You probably know by now that I love (need?) to put chocolate chips in everything, but otherwise, I aimed for healthy with this recipe. It’s all about the balance, I say! In addition to using whole wheat flour, I replaced the vegetable oil you typically find in zucchini bread with olive oil. And instead of refined sugars, honey is what gives it a little sweetness.
At the moment, I’ve got one last summer zucchini from my mom’s backyard garden in my fridge and I’m thinking I’ll make another loaf of this whole wheat chocolate chip zucchini bread to freeze for when we get home from vacation. I hope you have something fun planned for your Labor Day weekend as well! Here’s to enjoying every minute of these last days of summer!
Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread
This whole wheat chocolate chip zucchini bread is made with olive oil and sweetened with honey.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 1/2 cup grated zucchini, pressed dry with a paper towel
- 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan with cooking spray. If desired, you can also line the pan with parchment paper for easy removal.
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Whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt) in a medium-size bowl. Set aside.
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In another medium-sized bowl, beat together the egg, honey, olive oil, and vanilla.
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Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, pour the wet ingredients into the dry, and mix until combined.
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Fold in the grated zucchini and chocolate chips.
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Pour batter into prepared loaf pan. Press a few extra chocolate chips on top.
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Bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean.
7 comments
This recipe sounds delicious – I’m always looking for new and interesting quick breads, and love to try ones with whole wheat flour. Your site is beautiful, by the way. Hope you enjoyed Seattle!
Yay! You should give this one a try. I like to balance out all my indulgent cakes with some healthy baking sometimes, so this bread feels a little more guilt-free to me. And thank you so much!
I just made this and it is delicious!! I turned them into mini muffins to make them easier to freeze and serve to my toddler. They only needed to bake for about 20 minutes so I got to enjoy it sooner. 🙂 Also, my husband who is often less than excited about my “healthy baking” was none the wiser. Thank you Haley! I’ll be making these again for sure.
So glad they were such a hit, Lauren! What a great idea to turn them into muffins. 🙂
This bread is absolutely delicious!! I can’t believe how such simple and healthy ingredients make such a delicious bread. I seriously woke up every morning craving a slice 🙂 And I brought two loaves on a camping trip with several friends and everyone loved it. Thank you Haley!
Yay, I’m glad you loved it, Joyce! So glad you got to share the love with friends on your camping trip too (even if you didn’t necessarily want to share ;))!
This is one of the best chicken recipes ever. It’s very tasteful and beautiful to play. Thanks for the recipe.