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These zucchini brownies are a sneaky way to hide some veggies in your chocolate dessert! Rich, fudgy, and naturally flourless, no one will know!
Love zucchini desserts? Try my healthy zucchini muffins, healthy chocolate zucchini bread, and chocolate zucchini cake.
My family find it amusing when zucchini are in season because besides zucchini fries, I tend to use this veggie for desserts. While they are always fans of them, my zucchini brownie is their absolute favorite…and mine too!
Table of Contents
Why I love this recipe
- They are healthier. These brownies don’t use any flour or refined sugar, so even without the zucchini, they are already a healthier dessert!
- Quick and easy to make. From prep the plate, this entire dessert bakes up in just 25 minutes.
- You can make it diet-friendly. Not only are these brownies naturally gluten-free, but you can adapt them to other diets out there with just a few tweaks.
- Fudgy and rich. Most importantly, zucchini brownies tick all the right boxes when it comes to it’s taste and texture!
★★★★★ REVIEW
“I give it a 10 on a scale of 1 to 10.” – Glenna
Ingredients needed
- Almond butter. I like to make my own, but any no-stir almond butter works well.
- Maple syrup. This liquid sweetener helps keep the middle of the brownies fudgy and balances out the sweetness. Honey and agave nectar also work.
- Brown sugar OR coconut sugar. Either of these sugars works. Go for coconut sugar if you want these brownies to be healthier. Of course, white sugar will also work.
- Eggs. room temperature.
- Vanilla extract. A must for any good chocolate dessert.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder. 100% Dutch processed and sifted. For a richer chocolate flavor, I sometimes use dark cocoa powder.
- Salt. A pinch of sea salt will transform the flavor and texture.
- Baking powder. Leavening agent to give the brownies some rise and stability.
- Zucchini. Finely shredded zucchini with the moisture removed. I like to use a box grater for perfect shreds.
- Dark chocolate chips. Optional, but who doesn’t love brownies with pools of chocolate throughout?
How to make zucchini brownies
I’ve included step-by-step photos below to make this recipe easy to follow at home. For the full printable recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step 1- make the batter. Mix the almond butter, maple syrup, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract in a large bowl. Mix through the cocoa and baking powder, then stir through the zucchini and chocolate chips.
Step 2- bake the brownies. Transfer the mixture into a lined square pan and reserve some chocolate chips to place on top. Bake the brownies for 22-25 minutes or until a skewer comes out mostly clean.
Arman’s recipe tips
- Do not over-bake the brownies; they will continue to cook as they cool down.
- Always reserve a handful of chocolate chips for topping the brownies with, as that guarantees tons of chocolate in every bite!
- Make sure to use good-quality cocoa powder for the richest chocolate flavor.
- Don’t overmix the batter, as it can make your brownies tough and dry. Mix the wet and dry ingredients until combined, then gently fold the shredded zucchini and chocolate.
Dietary swaps and variations
These brownies are super forgiving, so you can easily adapt them to other diets or change up their texture by adding nuts, frosting, and more:
- Skip the eggs. Make them eggless by replacing the eggs with one of these egg substitutes.
- Cut the carbs. For low carb zucchini brownies, swap the maple syrup my keto maple syrup and use a brown sugar substitute.
- Change up the flavor. Add mix-ins like walnuts, coconut flakes, or even white chocolate chips.
- Replace the nut butter. Substitute the almond butter for peanut butter, cashew butter, or a nut-free alternative like tahini.
- Frost it! Add some frosting, like a chocolate frosting or a healthy frosting.
Storage instructions
To store: Leftover brownies can be stored in the refrigerator, covered, for up to two weeks.
To freeze: Place the cooled baked brownies in an airtight container and store them in the freezer for up to six months.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can use frozen zucchini for this recipe. Thaw the zucchini completely and squeeze out any excess moisture before using them.
More brownie recipes to try
- Keto brownies
- Healthy brownies
- Vegan brownies
- Almond flour brownies
- Coconut flour brownies
- Nutella brownies
Zucchini Brownies
Ingredients
- 1 cup almond butter
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/2 cup brown sugar or coconut sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 medium zucchini grated
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F. Line an 8 x 8-inch pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the almond butter, maple syrup, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract. Add in the cocoa powder and baking powder. Fold through the zucchini and chocolate chips.
- Transfer your brownie batter to the lined pan and bake for 25-27 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out just clean from the center.
- Allow brownies to cool in the pan completely before slicing and serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Originally published April 2019, updated June 2023, and republished April 2024
Wow definitely need to try!
My medium zucchinis are quite different than my neighbor’s medium zucchinis. About how many cups, grated, are your medium zucchinis? Or by weight would be helpful please. 🙂
One cup is plenty 🙂
Can I use regular butter instead of almond butter?
Has to be a nut or seed butter!
How much zucchini? I have a very large zucchini and don’t know how much (in cup size) would be the equivalent of a medium zucchini. Thanks!
1/2 cup is usually fine, but I can sometimes get away with a full cup!
When you say shredded zucchini, moisture removed, do you mean towel squeezed?
Yes, or just by hand is fine too!
My daughter liked these but I found that they were moist but lacked sweetness.
Can you give some guidance as to about how big a medium zucchini is? Or about how many cups of shredded zucchini it should measure out to? Your idea of a medium zucchini and mine might be totally different.
About one scant cup 🙂
best cookie bars I’ve ever made!
Stellar!!
(Gotta admit, I was skeptical, but it worked perfectly! Delicious!)
You’re batting 1000 in my book!
Thank you, Arman!!
I give it a 10 on the scale of 1 to 10.
Best flourless brownies I’ve had!
Can I sub Monkfruit sweetener? Or Swerve brown sugar?
You could, but it will be grainy 🙂
Chocolate and fudgy. Yum. I couldn’t taste the zucchini. I added chopped walnuts and the brownies held together beautifully. I processed my zucchini in the mini food chopper until it was like a paste and then drained it through a fine mesh sieve. These brownies satisfied my sweet craving. I made them so I could enjoy a sweet and everyone ended up enjoying them.
can we substitute your real brown sugar 1:1 with briwn swerve? or is there a special conversion needed? and same question for switching your real maple syrup for low-carb maple substitute?
How much zucchini does this equate to? I have frozen shredded zucchini so I’m looking for an approximate measurement. Thanks!
approx. 1 cup .
Spectacular just as is! Will make again and again!
Hi! These look delicious! I have a garden with HUGE zucchini to eat up. Do you have an approx weight of the zucchini that you used or a cup measurement of grated zucchini that you used for these? My zucchinis have passed the medium stage!!!
What did I do wrong? These came out super dry. The only change I made was using 1/2 cup coconut flour & 1/2 cup almond flour. When I combined the dry & liquid ingredients, it became the consistency of a tootsie roll and was nearly impossible to fold in the zucchini & chocolate chips. Help!
Because there is no coconut flour in this recipe.
Why are people adding any flour….I don’t see any flour (almond or otherwise) in the recipe??? I’ve re-read it many times…..am I not seeing the whole recipe?? I don’t see it in any directions either??
Self rising flour 🙂
I loved the texture of these brownies, I didn’t have chocolate chips and they were still fudgy and delicious. However, I think I will cut back on the sweetener next time as I found them a bit too sweet for me. I wonder how these would taste with a teaspoon on instant coffee mixed in? I might try that too.
I made mine by using chia seeds instead of flax eggs . It turned out so good. Taste so good and yummy.
Thank you so much for great recipe.
Thank you for the feedback, Ash!
I tried it with oat flour. And it tasted fabulous.
Thank you so so much for the recipe!
You are so welcome!
These sound very good! I cannot see the zucchini shreds in the brownie pictures, though, do they just become a mush in the batter? I do not want to see the shreds when I cut it and eat it, so should I alter the recipe and blend the zucchini? Thanks.
Shredding it finely and you won’t notice the zucchini at all 🙂
Hi! Thanks for sharing! I am wondering if I can just use oil or butter to replace almond butter?
How did you remove the excess moisture in zucchini?
Squeeze it out using a paper towel.
These are really good! Will make these again but I will cut way back on the cocoa powder. To strong for my taste. That’s personal though. I also used regular butter. 🙂
I can’t eat almonds, do you have a recommendation for another gluten-free flour to use?
Not that I’ve tried- You could experiment with something else and see!
I just came across your zucchini brownies sound yummy. I was wondering can you use cacao chocolate.
I haven’t tried, but feel free to experiment and see.
Oh my gosh these look so amazing and I cannot WAIT to make these over the weekend! Thank you!!!
How did you remove the excess moisture in zucchine?
Hi! I squeeze it out in a paper towel 🙂
Can I substitute honey or maple syrup for the sugar and if so how much would I use.
I have made These several times with maple syrup
I used an 8×8 pan and they came out great. If you baked these in a loaf pan it would come out like bread.
Thanks, Theresa that was an error in the post, it has been amended.
you bake these in a bread loaf pan not a square pan?