Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Banana Bread (naturally-sweetened!)

Summer zucchini, meet: a fudgy, yet nourishing bread that will have you doing backflips with joy. If you love zucchini bread, banana bread, and chocolate (I mean, who doesn’t?), then this recipe is for you.

Not only is this healthy chocolate zucchini banana bread absolutely beautiful and somewhat reminiscent of chocolate cake, but it’s also naturally sweetened and easy to make dairy-free.

I’ve got easy tips for getting that perfect “marbled” look, too, so no need to be intimidated! Show off those baking skills and share with your loved ones this summer.

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Ingredients in this chocolate zucchini banana bread

This bread uses simple ingredients that you probably already have and bake with. Especially if you’re a regular AK baker! Here are the basics you’ll need:

• Flour: we’re using whole wheat pastry flour (or white whole wheat flour) to keep the bread super fluffy.
• Produce: gotta have both zucchini and banana for the boost of fruits & veggies!
• Sweetener: this bread is naturally sweetened with pure maple syrup and ripe banana.
• Egg: you’ll just need 1 egg in this recipe.
• Coconut oil: for an extra boost of moisture.
• Baking staples: don’t forget the baking soda, salt, and vanilla extract.
• Cocoa powder: for the rich chocolate layer. Feel free to use cacao powder, too!
• Milk: feel free to use any milk you’d like. We like to keep this zucchini banana bread dairy-free by using unsweetened almond milk.
• Chocolate chips: gotta have that melted chocolate in every bite! Use your fav chocolate chips (dairy-free if desired, like these)

Can I use a different flour?

Unfortunately, no, I would not recommend substituting the flour in this chocolate zucchini banana bread, as the ratios would be much different.

Make it vegan

I think this bread would work out well using a flax egg instead of a regular egg! Then be sure to use dairy free chocolate chips as well.

How to get that “marbled” look

The best part about this chocolate zucchini banana bread is the two incredible flavors swirled together. How gorgeous?! Creating marbled bread or muffins can seem intimidating, but I have a couple of tips for “marbling” the bread to perfection:

1. Once you’ve made your two different flavors of batter, spoon half of the regular batter into a prepared loaf pan, and then top it with half of the chocolate batter.
2. Repeat this with the remaining two batters.
3. Swirl the batters together with a knife just a few times – do not overmix! A slight swirl will create that beautiful marbled look once it’s all baked

Hint: check the photos and the full video below to see the marbling in action!

Don’t forget these tips when baking with zucchini

• Use the small side of your grater so that you get little shreds of zucchini. No one will be able to tell there’s a veggie in their brownies!
• Squeeze out your zucchini shreds as much as possible to get all of the excess liquid out.
• Measure the shreds before you squeeze the moisture out.
• Feel free to shred a bunch of zucchini and freeze it for later! Follow my tips and tricks here.

How to store chocolate zucchini banana bread

If it’s not too humid in your home, then I suggest storing this bread on the counter or at room temperature. Make sure it’s nicely wrapped with foil. The bread will get sweeter as the days go on! If it’s humid in your house, store the bread wrapped well or in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.

Freeze it for later

You can also freeze the whole loaf as is, or you can slice it and freeze the individual slices! Just make sure the full loaf is tightly wrapped in plastic and then foil, or the slices are in freezer-friendly bags. To reheat, simply place a slice in the microwave or set it out until completely thawed.

Tools you’ll need

Get all of my go-to kitchen tools here!

More zucchini recipes you’ll love

Get all of our delicious zucchini recipes here!

I hope you love this marbled chocolate zucchini banana bread! If you make it, be sure to leave a comment and a rating so I know how you liked it. Enjoy, xo!

The
Ambitious Kitchen
Cookbook

125 Ridiculously Good For You, Sometimes Indulgent, and Absolutely Never Boring Recipes for Every Meal of the Day

Healthy Marbled Chocolate Zucchini Banana Bread

byby :Monique Volz of AmbitiousKitchen.com

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 10 minutes minutes

ServesServes 12 slices

Healthy marbled chocolate zucchini banana bread naturally sweetened with bananas, pure maple syrup, and chocolate chips for a delicious breakfast or snack! This gorgeous marbled zucchini bread is swirled to perfection with a double chocolate layer and is the perfect combination of your favorite quick breads.

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups (170 grams) whole wheat pastry flour (or white whole wheat flour)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 ¼ cup mashed ripe bananas (about 2 medium ripe bananas)
• ⅓ cup (104 grams) pure maple syrup (or honey)
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 heaping cup shredded zucchini that’s been squeezed of ALL excess moisture with a paper towel
• 2 tablespoons melted and cooled coconut oil
• ⅓ cup (27 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened almond milk
• ¼ cup (45 grams) chocolate chips, plus 2 tablespoons

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Line an 8×4 inch loaf pan with parchment paper.

• Whisk the dry ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together the whole wheat pastry flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

• Mix the wet ingredients: In a large bowl, mix together the mashed banana, pure maple syrup, egg, vanilla extract, shredded zucchini. (We’ll be adding the coconut oil later.)

• Mix the batter: Slowly stir in the dry ingredients with a wooden spoon until smooth, then stir in the melted and cooled coconut oil.

• Divide batter in half; adding half of the batter to a seperate medium bowl. Stir in the cocoa powder, almond milk and ¼ cup chocolate chips into one of the batters, mixing until just combined.

• Swirl and bake: Spoon half of the regular batter into prepared loaf pan, then top with half of the chocolate batter. Repeat with remaining regular batter and chocolate batter. Swirl the batters together with a knife just a few times (do not overdo this or the batters will start to come together and look crazy). Sprinkle remaining chocolate chips on top. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour or until a tester comes out clean or with just a few crumbs attached.

• Cool in the pan on a wire rack for at least 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and place on the wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe Notes

To make vegan: I think this bread would work out well using a flax egg instead of a regular egg! Then be sure to use dairy free chocolate chips as well.
To store: If it’s not too humid in your home, then we suggest storing this bread on the counter at room temperature, nicely wrapped with foil. If it’s humid, store the bread in an airtight container or bag in the fridge for up to 1 week.
To freeze: you can choose to freeze the loaf as is, or you can slice it and freeze the individual slices. Just make sure that it’s tightly wrapped in plastic and then foil. To reheat, simply place a slice in the microwave or set it out until completely thawed.

Nutrition

Serving: 1slice (based on 12)Calories: 155calCarbohydrates: 26gProtein: 4gFat: 5gSaturated Fat: 3gFiber: 4gSugar: 11g

Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats

This post was originally published on August 10th, 2019, and republished on July 12th, 2026 with metric measurements.