Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Brownies

I once had a chocolate zucchini scone at a cafe and I never tasted anything quite like it. Zucchini brings so much texture into baking without having to add any butter or oil. That’s right – there’s no butter, oil, milk, eggs or honey in this recipe. These healthy chocolate zucchini brownies are one of my favourite recipes when I’m looking for a light chocolatey treat. It literally tastes as satisfying as a brownie that has butter. The question is, why can’t all recipes be this tasty and nutritious?

How to Bake With Zucchini

Zucchini can be used like any other baking ingredients. Zucchini adds a lot of moisture texture and packed with health benefits. However, zucchini is 95% water (1) which can make it a little tricky to bake with. Water from the zucchini accumulates quickly. The amount of water in the batter makes a big difference in cooking time and how evenly your brownies will cook.

There was one time where I made carrot zucchini muffins that just wouldn’t cook on the inside. I left the muffins to bake for over an hour and there was just too much water. Make sure to drain the zucchini after you grate it and your zucchini brownies should turn out very tasty.

Tips for Baking With Zucchini

Do not peel the skin of a zucchini, you don’t need to.
Use medium or small zucchinis, giant zucchinis tend to be more dry.
Freshly grated zucchini must be drained well before adding it to the batter.
If using frozen zucchini, allow it to thaw first before draining. Frozen zucchini tends to have more water, you may even want to go a step further and pat it dry with a few more layers of paper towels.
Add the zucchini at the very end.
For light and fluffy brownies, only mix zucchini until it is combined. Overmixing will release too much gluten.
Let the brownies cool completely before cutting.

How to Grate Zucchini: Use Fine Microplane Grater or Food Processor

To grate the zucchini, use a fine microplane grater or food processor. For this recipe, I used a grater. Make sure to use one with tiny holes, you don’t want to have chunks of zucchini in this brownie.

Best Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Brownies (Vegan-Friendly)

Servings: 12 squares, Prep time: 10 minutes, Cook time: 35 minutes

Final healthy chocolate zucchini brownies on plate

Ingredients

1 1/4 cup oat flour
1/4 + 2 tbsp cup cocoa powder
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar (already reduced)
220g or 1 cup finely grated zucchini, drain out the liquid
1 cup plain greek yogurt (I’m using 2% Liberte)
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips chunks

Directions

Preheat the oven (conventional bake) to 350 degrees.
Line a 9×5 inch baking pan with aluminum foil.
In a large bowl, stir all dry ingredients together -oat flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar.
Grate the zucchini with a fine microplane grater or food processor. Completely drain out all liquids with a cloth or paper towel.
Carefully combine zucchini, greek yogurt and vanilla extract with dry ingredients. This batter can get a little hard to mix, it gets easier once you break apart the zucchini. Only mix until everything is combined.
Stir in some of the chocolate chip chunks, leaving a hand full of chocolate to put on the top.
Pour batter into baking pan, add the rest of the chocolate chips on top.
Bake for 35 minutes. Let the brownies cool for 5 minutes before cutting.