Coconut Chocolate Zucchini Bread

My husband loves to eat little zucchini and won’t touch the big ones that I wait a bit too long to pick, so I’ve been baking zucchini bread for the last few months. There have been lots of great zucchini recipes posted this summer and I tried many of them. I was especially attracted to the recipes that didn’t use as much oil. Maria from Two Peas and Their Pod posted a delicious, healthy version with cranberries, whole wheat flour and applesauce to replace some of the oil.

Sara from Our Best Bites posted a chocolate zucchini bread that she described as “so light and moist and chocolaty that it’s pretty much cake in a loaf pan.” Declaring it “the one.”  How could I not try “the one.”

I love her version too. I loved it so much in fact that I made five different versions of it. Her original Chocolate Chocolate Chip with cinnamon topping, Chocolate Chocolate Chip without cinnamon (my kids favorite), her Spiced Zucchini Bread with a hint of orange, Orange Cherry Zucchini Bread with orange oil and cardamom, and my favorite version, inspired by Hilda’s guest post on Jamie’s blog Life’s a Feast, Coconut Chocolate Zucchini Bread.

Fortunately, I have lots of nice neighbors who were happy to have a loaf of homemade zucchini bread no matter what the flavor. If you still have zucchini in your garden, gives this one a try!

Coconut Chocolate Zucchini Bread
Recipe adapted from Our Best Bites

2 cups flour (I used whole wheat pastry flour)
1/2 t. salt
1 1/2 t. baking soda
6 T. unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup canola oil
1 C. sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
2 t. vanilla
1/2 cup sour cream
3 c. grated zucchini
3/4 cup mini chocolate chips
1/2 cup shredded coconut

Topping:
1/3 cup shredded coconut
1/3 cup mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 2 loaf pans and set aside.

Combine flour, salt, baking soda, and cocoa powder in a bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.

Beat eggs, oil, sugars, and vanilla for about 30 seconds. Add sour cream and beat to combine. Mix in zucchini and coconut.

Add dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Divide batter between 2 pans. Sprinkle coconut and chocolate chips on top of batter in pans. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. (I used 4 mini loaf pans and baked them for about 35 minutes.)

Rest on a cooling rack for at least 10 minutes before you remove it from the pan. Be careful not to burn yourself on the hot chocolate chips when removing it from the pan!