Chocolate Zucchini Brownies are fudgy, rich and indulgent. These flourless brownies are super most and incredibly easy to make. Oven baked to perfection these chocolate chip zucchini brownies are a make them and you are going to see what I am saying brownie 😍.
Recipes like the Coco Pop Crackles, Golden Syrup Cornflake Cakes and the Microwave Chocolate Fudge are sweet treats to get know and love.
Give them a dollop of the Easy Chocolate Icing to complete the picture😉👍.
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🤍 Recipe Highlights
I have summarised everything that you will come to know and love (LOVE ❤) about the recipe in the points below:
- Kid friendly: everyone from little kids to big ones will enjoy these brownies. It is a great way to add extra veggies in if you have some who are not super keen to eat them in other forms.
- Simple ingredients: you will be able to get all of the ingredients needed to make these brownies from your local grocery store. They are year round available ingredients that are easy to get your hands on. You might already have some of what is needed in the pantry!
- With or without frosting: these zucchini brownies are delicious on their own. Or you can take it up a notch and frost them with chocolate icing sugar.
- Zucchini lovers: if you have a savory, not sweet tooth, check out the Gluten Free Zucchini Slice, Zucchini Parmesan Bread, Zucchini Parmesan Muffins, Zucchini Slice or the Zucchini Slice Muffins. They are sure to tick a few boxes!
- Easy: this is an easy recipe that involves straight forward steps. It is not quick and easy as the cooking time for the zucchini brownies is 1 hour and 10 minutes, but the recipe itself is super easy 😉👌
- Versatile: these chocolate chip zucchini brownies work for morning tea, a lunch box treat, afternoon tea, sweet treat, dessert or bake sale goods. They are very versatile and lend themselves to a multitude of serving ideas.
🥗 Ingredients
The photo below is to show you everything you need to make the recipe. Please refer to the printable recipe card for specific ingredient measurements as well as detailed instructions.
As you can see the recipe calls for:
- Vanilla essence: vanilla essence or vanilla extract. We use this to add flavor to the brownie batter.
- Brown sugar: soft and rich, we use this sugar to add a touch of sweetness to the brownie batter.
- Eggs: free range is always best. We need 3 eggs and medium to large is the recommended size.
- Cocoa powder: this is a rich soft powder that is commonly used in baked goods.
- Butter: unsalted butter is recommended for the recipe. We melt this in the microwave before adding it to the brownie mixture.
- Chocolate chips: we wouldn't be making chocolate chip zucchini brownies without these guys 😂.
- Almond meal: this is made from blanched almonds which have had the skin removed. The almonds are then milled into almond flour.
- Zucchini: we use the food processor to shred (grate) the zucchini. Once done, we measure it so that we use 2 cups in the recipe (not more or less).
Tasty Tip: I like to provide you with a number of substitutions and variations giving you an array of options when making my recipes. If in doubt of any of the above ingredients, or wanting alternatives, read this section (further below) before jumping into the instructions on how to make the recipe which are coming next 😉👌.
🍳 Instructions
Here are the step by step instructions to make the zucchini brownies recipe. We start by shredding the zucchini.
- Shred the zucchini (Photo 1)
- Add the almond meal to a bowl (Photo 2)
- Add the brown sugar (Photo 3)
- Add the cocoa powder (Photo 4)
👩🍳 How to Make Chocolate Zucchini Brownies
Start to make the brownies by using a food processor to shred the zucchini. Once done, measure 2 cups of it and then discard the rest.
You can also use this time to line a baking tray with parchment paper and preheat the oven so that it is ready to go once the mix is together.
Next start on the brownie batter by adding the almond meal to a large mixing bowl. Then add the brown sugar and cocoa powder and use a wooden spoon to stir to combine.
- Stir to combine (Photo 5)
- Whisk the eggs (Photo 6)
- Add the shredded zucchini (Photo 7)
- Add the whisked eggs (Photo 8)
🍫 Chocolate Chip Zucchini Brownies
Next crack the eggs into a small jug and use a fork to gently whisk like you see me doing in the photo above.
Once done add the shredded zucchini to the batter and then pour the whisked eggs over the top.
- Add the vanilla essence (Photo 9)
- Then add the melted butter (Photo 10
- Add the chocolate chips (Photo 11)
- Stir to combine (Photo 12)
Next add the vanilla essence to the batter and use the microwave to melt the butter.
Then pour the melted butter into the bowl, followed by the chocolate chips and once done gently stir to combine.
- Transfer the wet brownie mix into the pan (Photo 13)
Then transfer the brownie mixture into the lined pan like you see in the photo above.
Once done, place the brownies into the oven on the middle shelf. Bake the brownies for one hour (uncovered), then use oven mitts to remove the baking dish, place it on a heatproof surface and cover it with tin foil.
Then place the brownies back into the oven and bake (covered) for a further 10 minutes.
- Oven bake the brownies (Photo 14)
You can use the toothpick trick to test the brownies to ensure that they are done.
This involves piercing the top of the baked brownie surface with a toothpick and seeing that there is no wet batter on the toothpick when it comes out.
There might be melted chocolate if you pushed the toothpick through a chocolate chip however and we do want the texture to be moist. So some marks are good on the toothpick 😉👍.
🍽 Serving Suggestions
You have lots of choices when it comes to serving the brownies. Up to you if you want to make the chocolate icing which is super quick and comes together effortlessly in the food processor.
You can see how that will look with me drizzling it over the brownies in the photo below.
Or heat the brownies for 1 minute in the microwave until they are warmed through and then pair them with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Then they become dessert chocolate brownies 😉👌! Chocolate lovers, this one is for you.
👍 How to Guide
How to Store
Store leftover brownies in a sealed, airtight container in the fridge. They will last 4-5 days.
How to Freeze
Allow the brownies to fully cool before portioning into zip lock plastic bags. Push to remove the air then seal and stack the brownies in the freezer to whip out as needed.
Thaw and reheat prior to consuming (optional).
How to Reheat
Place the leftover brownies onto a plate and cover with cling wrap. Heat on high in the microwave for 1-2 minutes until warmed through.
😉 Substitutions and Variations
Here are my sub ins and outs that you might be thinking about as you read the post and I will tell you if I think they will work or why they won't:
- You can use milk chocolate chips or dark chocolate chips (equivalent amount).
- You can add a little bit less of the shredded zucchini, but not more. We need the ratio of wet and dry ingredients to be accurate so 2 cups of shredded zucchini is plenty 😉👌.
💡 Tasty Tips
Here are my top tips and tricks that I want to share with you so that you master the recipe from the get go:
- If you don't have a food processor you can use a hand held or box grater to shred the zucchini.
- We need to avoid over melting the butter in the microwave. So use 30 second increments until it is melted, but not split. Also give it a stir with a teaspoon before pouring it into the batter.
- Line the baking tray with parchment paper (baking paper) and give the 4 corners where there is a little gap in the overlap of the paper a spray so that the corners of the brownies won't stick.
- As tempting as it is to dive right in to fresh hot brownies, it is best to let them cool before using a knife to cut them into portions. You can place the cooked brownies into the fridge to speed up this cooling process.
- When slicing the brownies, use a sharp knife and clean it with a chux cloth in between cuts. This will help you to get sharp, clean edges.
🤓 Frequently Asked Questions
Can zucchini be added to chocolate brownies?
Yes. Zucchini is an excellent ingredient to add to chocolate brownies. It is important however, to measure the amount as the zucchini has a high moisture content and we don't want to make the brownies so moist that they don't cook properly.
What not to do when making brownies?
When making brownies it is important to measure all of the ingredients completely before adding them to the mix. We also want to ensure that the brownies are going into a preheated (warm) not cold oven.
What are the 5 ingredients for chocolate brownies?
Brown sugar, eggs, flour, cocoa powder and butter are the 5 key ingredients needed to make chocolate brownies.
😍 More Easy Chocolate Recipes
Where would we be without sweet treats to brighten our days and nights! Here are some more options that I hope you will love:
- Chocolate Caramel Slice
- Marshmallow Chocolates
- Caramel Fudge
- Rocky Road Chocolate
- No Bake Chocolate Cake
- Dark Chocolate Rocky Road
- Chocolate Orange Fudge
- Dark Chocolate Bark
- Chocolate Covered Pears
- Mint Aero Fudge
It is time to get our zucchini brownies on my friend! You can also find all of my chocolate recipes in the one spot.
Adrianne
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📖 Recipe
Chocolate Zucchini Brownies
Ingredients
- 2 cups grated zucchini Note 1
- 1 cup almond meal Note 2
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 3 eggs gently whisked
- ½ cup cocoa powder
- 113 grams/1 stick butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla essence Note 3
- 250 grams/1 cup dark chocolate chips Note 4
To Serve (optional):
- chocolate frosting
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to: 180°C / 350-375°F / Gas Mark 4-5
- Cake tin: line a 20 cm x 20 cm (8 x 8 inches) square cake tin with greaseproof paper. Note 5
- Zucchini: cut the base and tip off each zucchini and then use a food processor to shred (or grate) them and once shredded measure 2 cups of it.
- Brownie batter: add the almond meal, brown sugar and cocoa powder to a medium sized mixing bowl and stir to combine.
- Eggs: crack the eggs into a small jug and use a fork to gently whisk them.
- Shredded zucchini: add the shredded zucchini to the brownie batter.
- Eggs and vanilla: pour the whisked eggs into the bowl, followed by the vanilla and melted butter.
- Chocolate chips: next add chocolate chips and stir to combine.
- Slice tray: transfer the wet brownie batter into the lined sliced tray.
- Oven bake: bake the brownies for 1 hour uncovered, then use oven mitts to remove, cover with aluminium foil and bake for a further 10 minutes.
- To serve: remove the cooked brownies from the oven and let cool. Once cooled, pull the baking paper from 2 sides to lift the brownies up and out of the baking tray and place them onto a chopping board. Use a sharp knife to cut the brownies into portions and clean the knife using a wet chux in between cuts. Note 6
Notes
- Note 1 - Zucchini: we need to measure the zucchini after grating it and add only the specified amount. The amount that we need is 2 cups. If you use 3 medium zucchini you will have enough and discard any more than the 2 cups. We don't need to squeeze the water out of the zucchini like some non brownie zucchini recipes. We want the moisture from the vegetable to help to create moist brownies.
- Note 2 - Almond meal: you can use either almond meal or almond flour, both will work perfectly!
- Note 3 - Vanilla essence: you can use either vanilla essence or vanilla extract. For a recipe like this, the much cheaper imitation (synthetic) version is totally fine to use 😉👍.
- Note 4 - Chocolate chips: I use dark chocolate chips, you can use dark or light, whichever is your preference.
- Note 5 - Brownie pan: the cake tin I use when making this recipe is square. It measures 20cm x 20 cm which is approx 8 x 8 inches. Spray a little cooking oil into your slice tray on the corners, and then use 2 pieces of overlapping baking paper to line.
- Note 6 - Individual brownies: allow the brownies to fully cool once you have removed them from the oven. Then grab the edges of the baking paper from 2 sides and lift them up and out of the baking tin. Next take a sharp knife and clean wet chux and cut the brownies into portions. Use the chux to clean the knife in between cuts to get clean, sharp edges.
Nutrition
Recipe published in May 2020, updated in October 2023 with new photos and minor recipe changes to incorporate feedback from readers about ingredient measurements across countries 😉👌).
Lynne says
Please list ingredient measurement in cups, teaspoons, tablespoons or ounces for those of us on that standard of measures. I don't want to guess at these and ruin a recipe or waste ingredients. Thanks
Adrianne says
Hi Lynne, thanks for your feedback. This is something I currently do with my newest recipes and I am going back and updating old ones like this. I will however, be updating the full recipe so that it is easy for my readers to see this from the get go and make the recipe accordingly. Thank-you!