brown butter frosted zucchini bread
Ally and I picked up the prettiest zucchini at the market this weekend, and my first thought was zucchini bread.
I love this time of year when the market is overflowing with produce and you come home with things you didn’t necessarily have a plan for. A few zucchini on the counter felt like the perfect excuse to bake something.
I wanted to make a really good, classic zucchini bread, but give it a little Jenny Cookies spin. The bread itself is incredibly moist, with brown sugar, cinnamon and just a touch of nutmeg. But the part that really makes it is the brown butter frosting on top.
It’s rich and nutty with those little browned butter flecks throughout, and I added just a tiny sprinkle of flaky sea salt at the end. It takes a simple loaf of zucchini bread and makes it feel extra special.
If you have zucchini sitting on your counter from the garden, farmers market or grocery store, this is what I’d make with it.
Why You’ll Love This Zucchini Bread
This recipe is:
And you don’t need to squeeze the moisture out of the zucchini. In fact, don’t! That extra moisture helps give this bread its soft, tender texture.
Brown Butter Frosted Zucchini Bread Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Zucchini Bread:
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1/2 cup vegetable or avocado oil
- 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups finely shredded zucchini not squeezed dry
For the Brown Butter Frosting:
- 6 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2-3 tablespoons heavy cream
- Pinch of kosher salt if needed
- Flaky sea salt optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan and line it with parchment paper, leaving enough parchment hanging over the sides to easily lift the bread from the pan after baking.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, kosher salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, brown sugar, granulated sugar and vanilla until smooth and well combined.
- Fold the freshly shredded zucchini into the wet ingredients.
- Don’t squeeze the zucchini dry. The natural moisture in the zucchini helps create an incredibly soft and moist loaf.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and gently fold everything together just until you can no longer see streaks of flour.
- Be careful not to overmix. Overmixing quick breads can make them dense instead of soft and tender.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top.
- Bake for 55–65 minutes, or until the center is set and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs.
- If the top begins to brown too much before the center is finished baking, loosely cover the loaf with foil for the remainder of the baking time.
- Allow the bread to cool in the pan for about 15 minutes before lifting it out and transferring it to a cooling rack.
- Let the zucchini bread cool completely before adding the frosting.
Notes
Nutrition
my fall baking supplies:
How to Make Brown Butter Frosting
Brown butter sounds fancy, but it’s incredibly simple to make, and it adds so much flavor to this frosting.
Add the butter to a small saucepan over medium heat. Allow it to melt, then continue cooking while stirring or gently swirling the pan.
The butter will begin to foam. Keep watching it closely. You’ll eventually see little golden-brown flecks forming at the bottom of the pan and notice a rich, nutty aroma.
As soon as the butter turns amber and smells toasted, remove it from the heat. Brown butter can go from perfect to burnt quickly, so don’t walk away from the stove!
Pour the brown butter into a mixing bowl, making sure to scrape all of those flavorful browned bits from the pan.
Let the butter cool for about 10–15 minutes.
Whisk in the powdered sugar and vanilla. Add the heavy cream one tablespoon at a time until the frosting is smooth and thick but spreadable.
Once the zucchini bread is completely cool, spread the brown butter frosting over the top. I like to let a little frosting naturally fall over the edges.
For a sweet-and-salty finish, add a very light sprinkle of flaky sea salt.
Slice and enjoy!
FAQ
How to Store Zucchini Bread
Because this loaf is frosted, store it covered in an airtight container.
It can sit at room temperature for about a day. For longer storage, keep it in the refrigerator and let individual slices come closer to room temperature before serving for the softest texture.
Unfrosted zucchini bread can also be wrapped tightly and frozen for later.
Tips for the Best Zucchini Bread
Don’t overmix your batter. Fold everything together only until the flour disappears.
Don’t squeeze your zucchini. We want that moisture in the bread.
Measure your flour correctly. Too much flour is one of the easiest ways to end up with dry zucchini bread. Spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level it rather than packing it into the cup.
Let the bread cool completely before frosting. If the loaf is still warm, the brown butter frosting will melt.
Watch your brown butter closely. Once it begins to brown, it moves quickly.
The Perfect Way to Use Fresh Zucchini
I’m already glad those market zucchini made their way into our basket because this loaf turned out exactly how I wanted it: soft, moist, lightly spiced and just a little unexpected with that brown butter frosting.
It’s the kind of recipe I’ll make again whenever zucchini season rolls around. And if you have enough zucchini, make two loaves. Keep one and wrap the other up for a friend!
If you make this, let me know! I always love hearing from you.
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