These easy zucchini brownies come out rich and chocolatey and stay moist for days (although they don’t last that long in my house). They’re topped with a quick and easy homemade 1 minute frosting for a perfect dessert!
Every year I end up with tons of zucchini which is great for me because I really love it! It’s perfect grilled on it’s own or breaded to make oven baked zucchini fries but I do think it’s especially good in baking. It just adds so much moisture and it seems that baked items with zucchini are even BETTER the next day!
These brownies are super moist and delicious… and you’d never know they have zucchini in them (nor will your kids)! They are rich and chocolatey and just perfectly delicious! Of course these Zucchini Brownies are great the day they’re made but they’re even better on the second day.
One thing you need to know about this recipe is that when you get the flour/sugar combined… just before you add the zucchini the consistency will seem quite dry. Don’t worry, this is expected. Stir in the zucchini and your batter will moisten and as the batter bakes the zucchini releases moisture keeping these brownies amazing. You’ll want to make sure you don’t squeeze or drain your zucchini, you want all of the moisture in there (and no peeling required either)!
I top this with a 1 Minute Frosting recipe that I’ve been using for years! It works perfectly on any cake or brownie recipe that is contained in a pan and requires just a few ingredients you likely already have on hand!
Items you’ll need for this recipe:
* Vanilla Extract * Zucchini * 9 x 13 pan *
Ingredients
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 egg
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 ½ cups grated zucchini undrained (about one large)
1 Minute Frosting
- ⅓ cup milk
- ⅓ cup butter
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Grease and flour a 9×13 pan.
- Combine oil, sugar, egg and vanilla. In a separate bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder and baking soda. Add the flour mixture to the sugar mixture and stir well. (It will appear quite dry). Gently stir in the zucchini and spread the mixture into your prepared pan.
- Bake 25-30 minutes.
1 Minute Frosting
- While cake is cooling, combine butter, milk and sugar in a small pan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Allow to boil vigorously for 30 seconds. Remove from heat and stir in chocolate chips. Immediately pour over warm brownies. Let cool completely before cutting.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Dessert
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Here are some more recipes you’ll love
Lemon Zucchini Cupcakes
Pumpkin Zucchini Bread with Cream Cheese Glaze
And a couple of zucchini recipes from my friends you’re going to want to check out!
- Zucchini Muffins from Crazy for Crust
- Zucchini Cream Cheese Muffins from Wine & Glue
- Blueberry Banana Zucchini Bread from Averie Cooks
I’m loving this recipe! I have zucchini in the freezer to use up!
love the hidden veggies in this!!!!!
I love recipes like this! Throw zucchini in all the things!
LOL! I’m with you Mandy… zucchini belongs in everything!!
Have you tried freezing these? I want to make them for the weekend but won’t have time or space to do it the day of. Was thinking I’d bake the brownies, cool, then freeze. Then the day I need them I’d thaw them and make the icing. I freeze a lot of baked goods to keep them moist and fresh but wanted to see if anyone tried freezing this recipe…
I haven’t tried freezing them but hopefully someone here has and can let you know how it worked out.
These are great – thanks for the recipe! I added chocolate chips to the brownies and some cream cheese to the frosting. It was a big hit!
These look delicious! Would you have any recommendations for substituting the egg? Can I make it without it? Thanks!
I haven’t tried it without eggs so I can’t say for sure.
Use egg beaters
Oh my I just made them this evening they where absolutely the best brownies ever! Thanks for sharing.
Oh my!! Best brownies ever!! Thank you :)
So glad you enjoyed them! Thank you for stopping by Amanda!
Can I use yellow zucchini on these, and does it need peeled?
Yellow zucchini should work just fine and does not need to be peeled. :)
I just made these and they are awesome. I ran a little short on the zucchini and I was afraid that it would not be moist, but that is NOT the case. Very moist and delicious. I used a peanut butter whipped topping on them instead of the 1 minute frosting and it was a great combination too. Thanks for sharing.
Just made this and while it turned out “okay”, it was somewhat dry. I did peel my zucchini but didn’t drain or squeeze the water out. I also used self-rising flour instead of all-purpose, as that’s all I had in the cabinet. The flavor is good, just that the cake is dry. I also used chocolate can frosting instead of making my own. Will def try again, but would like suggestions as to how to keep it moister next time!
Self rising flour does contain baking powder (and salt) which can definitely alter the texture of these making them more “cake” like and possibly drier.
If you give it another try, there is no need to peel the zucchini and I would recommend regular flour. I’d love to hear how it works out for you!
Thanks! I’ll try it again soon using your recommendations!
This sounds awesome. Do you peel your zucchini before shredding?
I don’t peel it first. :)
Is this made with powdered sugar? I made the frosting with white granulated sugar and it is a little gritty. Tastes good though.
I used granulated sugar and mine seemed to work out well. I do love the idea of trying it with powdered sugar though… I’m going to give that a try!
The granulated sugar should work fine as you heat everything to boiling, that should dissolve the sugar!
These sound really good plus it’s a good way to get some veggies into my kid! Thanks for posting it
Very yummy, however I would define it more as a chocolate cake than a brownie…. notnusre if I did something wrong?
ummmm, these looks TO DIE FOR!
Thank you!!! They are so yummy and moist!! <3
Can’t wait to try these. Just wondering tho instead of the sugar, could I use honey..something with less calories…. I don’t use agave or sugar substitutes so I thought I’d try honey. It works when I make cookies…. And instead of Vegetable Oil I was going to try Coconut Oil..any suggestions? Thanks…
I have never tried it with honey so I can’t say for sure. If you do try it, please let us know how it works out.
Honey can be substituted for sugar. Because it is sweeter than sugar use less about a quarter cup honey for a cup of sugar Also watch the baking time as it may be shorter. Honey easily burns. It should work out okay. It is worth a try
Use plain applesauce in place of the oil, works great
I used Dark Cocoa instead of unsweetened Cocoa, the only thing is it had a minty taste to it. I have no idea as to why that happened. I do not bake often. They were really good and I didn’t mind the minty flavor. What would cause that? Is it the cocoa I used or something else that causes that.
Great recipe! Will be making this again.
Hmmm… I can’t think of anything in this recipe that would give it a minty taste.
Your Zucchini Brownies sound delicious, and I love your One Minute Frosting!
So can I consider these healthy brownies since there is Zucchini in them? haha! These sound delicious. I’ve yet to make a bread or dessert with zucchini but I really want to try it. I will be pinning this!
Emily
It’s totally health food! ;)
Zucchini is awesome in baked goods it keeps them SO moist! I’d love to hear how they work out for you!
These brownies were so flavorful and moist that everyone loved them including me. I’m a 75yr old grandpa and cook and bake for my daughter and 3 grandkids now. My wife passed away 4 years ago.
I’m so glad your family enjoyed these! I”m sure your daughter and grandkids love having you bake for them!
You’re family is blessed to have you. What great memories you are creating for them all!
Yum. Pinning this so I can make it in the summer when I’m drowning in zukes!