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This Healthy Zucchini Bread with Applesauce recipe is only 111 calories per serving! Made with applesauce and honey, this incredibly moist zucchini bread is also low sugar and low fat. The perfect healthy breakfast or snack!
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Check out my Low Calorie Banana Bread and my Air Fryer Indian Fry Bread for more delicious bread recipes!
A healthy zucchini bread recipe that is low-calorie, low-fat, and low-sugar? Yes, please. This DELICIOUS and healthy zucchini bread recipe with applesauce is a great way to sneak vegetables into something sweet.
Zucchini bread is a popular quick bread, especially in the summertime and early fall when gardens are exploding with zucchinis. The fresh zucchini makes this bread rich and moist. It's the perfect veggie-loaded breakfast, snack, and even dessert, but before we dive into the recipe, let's talk about zucchini.
Zucchini, also called courgette, are long, narrow, vibrant green squash that grows like crazy in the summer and early fall. They're best harvested while immature so the rind is soft and palatable. Its sweet and nutty flesh and high water content are great for adding moisture to quick bread and cakes.
How Many Calories are in Zucchini?
- Small Zucchini (6" to 8") - 20 calories
- Medium Zucchini (8" to 10") - 33 calories
- Large Zucchini (10" to 12") - 54 calories
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- This bread is a quick bread that only takes about an hour to make!
- A slice of zucchini bread is perfect for breakfast, snack, and even dessert.
- Makes two loaves. Enjoy one now and freeze one for later.
- No oil or butter, so it is lower in calories than traditional zucchini bread recipes.
- Low sugar. The applesauce and honey sweeten the bread perfectly, so there is no refined sugar necessary.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- All-Purpose Flour: The most versatile of the flour options. It's great for making chewy, fluffy quick bread.
- Baking Powder: Acts as a leavening agent. When activated it creates bubbles in bread causing it to rise and become soft and fluffy.
- Baking Soda: Neutralizes acidic ingredients and causes quick bread to rise.
- Salt: Enhances the flavor of the other ingredients.
- Skim Milk: Moistens the batter and activates the gluten without adding any fat or sugar.
- Egg White: Also acts as a leavening agent. As the bread bakes, air bubbles rise to create a tender, soft and crumbly zucchini bread.
- Applesauce: Adds moisture and density to the consistency and adds natural sweetness.
- Pure Honey: A great way to sweeten food so you don't have to add granulated sugar.
- Zucchini (grated): The sneaky ingredient in this delicious bread that gives each slice a burst of veggies but also makes quick bread and cakes super moist and delicious.
Step-By-Step Instructions
Step 1: Preheat oven and prepare bread pans.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray two 9" x 5" bread pans with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
Step 2: Combine dry ingredients.
In a large mixing bowl, add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix well to combine.
Step 3: Combine wet ingredients.
In another large mixing bowl, add milk, egg white, applesauce, honey, and grated zucchini. Mix well to combine.
Step 4: Mix batter.
Gradually add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients while stirring. Continue stirring until a sticky batter forms.
Step 5: Bake.
Divide batter between the two bread pants in even layers. Bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the bread comes out mostly clean.
Step 6: Cool and slice.
Let zucchini bread loaves cool completely before slicing each loaf into nine 1" slices. Enjoy!
NOTE: You can print the FULL recipe with all ingredients & detailed instructions below!
Recipe Tips
There's no need to peel zucchini for zucchini bread. Zucchini are harvested young so their rinds are soft and tender. Not to mention, that's where most of the nutrients are!
For a more hands-off approach, you can grate the zucchini in a food processor instead of with a box grater.
There's also no need to squeeze out the moisture from the zucchini. In fact, that moisture is necessary to make moist and luscious bread.
The toothpick trick is a fool-proof way to ensure your zucchini bread is baked to perfection. When a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out mostly clean, it's done!
Variations & Mix-Ins
Try these yummy ingredients to mix into your low calorie zucchini bread:
- Add extract: enhance the flavor by adding a teaspoon of vanilla, hazelnut, or almond extract.
- Mix in some spice: try mixing in warming spices like nutmeg, cinnamon, cardamom, or pumpkin pie spice.
- Try adding some crunch: Mix in walnuts, pecans, almonds, or dried fruit for some texture.
- Add chocolate: and last but certainly, not least make CHOCOLATE CHIP ZUCCHINI BREAD!
Storing & Freezing
Storing: Let zucchini bread cool completely and then wrap in plastic wrap and store in an airtight container to keep in the refrigerator for 7 to 10 days.
Freezing: Wrapped in plastic and stored in an airtight container, zucchini bread will maintain its quality for 60 to 90 days in the freezer.
Recipe FAQ‘s
No, you do not need to peel zucchini to make zucchini bread. Simply wash the vegetable thoroughly and then grate using a food processor or box grater.
No, the water content in zucchini is exactly why it's a great vegetable to add to quick bread and cakes to add moisture.
There are 111 calories per slice of low-calorie zucchini bread.
You sure can. The flavor and texture of yellow summer squash and zucchini are similar enough that the two can be used interchangeably in this recipe.
Traditional zucchini bread recipes usually have a lot of oil and refined sugar to keep them moist and sweet. In this healthy version of zucchini bread I use applesauce and honey to add moisture and sweetness to the bread.
More Low-Calorie Baked Treats
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Healthy Zucchini Bread With Applesauce
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- ½ cup skim milk
- 1 egg white beaten
- ½ cup applesauce
- ½ cup pure honey
- 2 ½ cups grated zucchini
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray two bread pans with nonstick baking spray, set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- In a separate large mixing bowl, combine the milk, egg white, applesauce, honey and zucchini.
- Gradually mix the wet ingredients and the dry ingredients together. Pour batter into the bread pans and bake for 1 hour.
- Let cool and slice each loaf into 9 slices.
Notes
- There’s no need to peel zucchini for zucchini bread. Zucchini are harvested young so their rinds are soft and tender. Not to mention, that’s where most of the nutrients are!
- For a more hands-off approach, you can grate the zucchini in a food processor instead of with a box grater.
- There’s also no need to squeeze out the moisture from the zucchini. In fact, that moisture is necessary to make moist and luscious bread.
- The toothpick trick is a fool-proof way to ensure your zucchini bread is baked to perfection. When a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out mostly clean, it’s done!
- Storing: Let zucchini bread cool completely and then wrap in plastic wrap and store in an airtight container to keep in the refrigerator for 7 to 10 days.
- Freezing: Wrapped in plastic and stored in an airtight container, zucchini bread will maintain its quality for 60 to 90 days in the freezer.
Nutrition
All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
Shashi
Im not a banana bread person but I LOVE a zucchini loaf and SO LOVE that these are refined-sugar free!
Beth
Definitely mine and my hubby's favorite! So delicious and so yummy! Can't wait to make this again soon!
Shadi Hasanzadenemati
Thank you for the recipe, it was absolutely delicious and we all loved it!
Traci
Easy enough and love the use of applesauce. Great hack! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Betty
sounds awesome going to make it now Thank you
Lindsay
I made this recipe on the weekend. Swapped maple syrup for the honey, added some grated apple to the zucchini (1 cup to 1.5 cups zucchini) and added freshly toasted and ground cardamom. I think it is super yummy. Thanks for the recipe.
Lynn Keller
I made this recipe two days ago and will be making it again today -- just in time for Christmas. The result was phenomenal! Great tasting zucchini bread! Not too sweet. Very moist. Easy to prepare. Excellent flavor. Instead of honey, I used maple syrup. I used unsweetened apple sauce. I also used the entire egg. And I also added 1/4 cup chopped walnuts. Great recipe! Thanks.