Healthy Lemon Zucchini Bread that is super moist, lemon-y, sweet and so soft. It will blow your mind! Great for dessert and healthy enough for breakfast or snack.
No refined sugar, no flour, no oil. Just 5 simple ingredients. It is a summer must have like my zucchini muffins and zucchini brownies.
Lemon Zucchini Bread
This lemon zucchini bread is one of my favorite recipes I ever created on ifoodreal in 7 years! It is absolutely the best!
And you know how whole wheat goods do taste more hearty and heavy?! This gluten free lemon zucchini bread tastes like the most indulgent sugar loaded and white flour counterpart. Just it’s not.
- Soft
- Sweet
- Moist
- Bursting with lemon flavor
- Bright yellow and even with tiny bit crusty edges.
- It melts in your mouth.
And it’s so easy to make and everyone absolutely loves it! Kids too. Bread disappears within 12 hours in our house.
Ingredients for Lemon Zucchini Bread
Friends, 5 simple ingredients you probably have in your pantry right now. Plus basic baking supplies.
- Eggs
- Zucchini
- Lemon
- Maple syrup or honey
- Almond flour
I do not really count baking powder, baking soda, salt and vanilla extract as main ingredients because it’s a given and everyone has those on hand.
Feel free to add 1/2 cup blueberries or 1 tbsp of poppy seeds to the batter.
What Is Almond Flour?
In case you are new to the whole almond flour craze or are wondering if you can use any other flour.
Almond flour is finely ground blanched almonds. Its nutrition is the same as of nuts basically – low carbs, high fiber and high fats. All those are healthy and good for us. Just like nuts.
Almond flour does not contain gluten like wheat. And also almond meal is different from almond flour. It is ground up almonds with skin on.
So, you have to use almond flour for this lemon zucchini bread recipe.
What I love about baking with almond flour is how light and yet full I feel after eating almond flour goods. I do not have gluten sensitivity but I can definitely tell wheat is more heavy on my stomach. And probably many of us can relate.
More Almond Flour Recipes to Try
- Almond flour muffins
- Almond flour pancakes
- Almond flour cookies
- Almond flour banana bread
- Almond flour waffles
How to Grate Lemon and Zucchini
Lemon: Pick a large juicy lemon or 2 small ones. Make sure to zest it first before cutting in half and squeezing the lemon juice out. Your life will be so much easier during those 3 minutes. Zesting “empty” lemon halves is no joke.:) I like to use this zester and this squeezer. My husband loves this glass lemon juicer for his morning lemon water.
Zucchini: Grate on medium side of grater. This way small vegetable pieces will distribute more evenly throughout the batter. Do not squeeze.
How To Make Gluten Free Lemon Zucchini Bread
- Prep your lemon and zucchini: Zest and juice lemon, grate zucchini.
- Combine in a large bowl: Eggs, lemon zest + juice, maple syrup, vanilla extract, baking powder+soda and salt.
- Whisk the mixture well and until foamy – don’t worry, it’s fine.
- Add grated zucchini and almond flour and gently mix with spatula until well combined. Batter should be thick regular muffin batter consistency.
- Bake for 50 minutes in 350 degrees F pre-heated oven.
Tip: I know it will be extremely hard to resist slicing lemon zucchini bread right away. But please let it cool 20 minutes and then cut with serrated knife. This almond flour bread will not fall apart on you.
And about the baking dish. This bread will not stick and should slide right out of your baking dish if you spray it with cooking spray. You do not have to use parchment paper but I included that recommendation just in case. I recently bought this ceramic non-stick loaf pan and I adore it. The colour, easiness to clean and how things just pop out of it.
I just can’t believe how perfect this lemon zucchini bread is an all terms.
Can I Use Other Flour?
Unfortunately not. Almond flour is essentially finely ground blanched almonds. Any wheat flour contains gluten which makes it rise and absorb liquid differently than any other flour.
Overall, in baking you have to follow the recipe exactly 99% of times.
How to Store Lemon Zucchini Bread
Haha, I feel like I’m biased to give you advice on how to store this lemon zucchini bread. Just because it is gone within 12 hours in my house every time I bake it. I give warnings to everyone “2 slices per person”. Seriously it is almost a fight.
So, all I can tell you is cover with a kitchen towel and keep on a counter for a few days. You can bake 2 loaves and freeze one for up to 3 months in a sealed Ziploc bag. To thaw, just leave on a counter for 3-4 hours.
More Healthy Quick Bread Recipes
- Healthy banana bread
- Healthy zucchini bread
- Healthy pumpkin bread
- Healthy chocolate bread
- Healthy apple bread
- Healthy chocolate zucchini bread
Lemon Zucchini Bread {No Oil, Flour or Sugar}
Healthy Lemon Zucchini Bread that is super moist, lemon-y, sweet and so soft. It will blow your mind! Great for dessert and healthy enough for breakfast or snack.
- Prep Time: 8 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Total Time: 58 minutes
- Yield: 10 slices 1x
- Category: Muffins and Quick Bread
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: North American
Ingredients
- 3 eggs, large
- 1 large lemon, zest and juice of
- 1/2 cup maple syrup or honey
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup shredded zucchini, not squeezed
- 3 1/3 cups almond flour
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, line 9 x 5 loaf pan with unbleached parchment paper and spray with cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, add eggs, lemon zest and juice (zest first before squeezing juice), maple syrup, baking powder, baking soda, vanilla extract and salt. Whisk until combined. Mixture will be foamy.
- Add zucchini and almond flour (don’t forget to skim the top of measuring cup with a knife) . Mix gently with spatula to combine.
- Pour batter into previously prepared loaf pan and bake for 50 minutes or until the toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Remove bread from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack to cool off for 10 minutes. Holding onto the flaps of parchment paper remove bread from a loaf pan and let it cool off completely before slicing with sharp serrated knife.
Store: Store covered in a cool dry place for up to 5 days. Freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
Notes
Almond flour does not contain gluten like wheat. Nor it is thirsty like coconut flour. All flours differ. You have to use almond flour in this recipe.
Feel free to add 1/2 cup blueberries or 1 tbsp of poppy seeds to the batter.
And about the baking dish. This bread will not stick and should slide right out of your baking dish if you spray it with cooking spray. You do not have to use parchment paper but I included that recommendation just in case.
Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star rating in the comments.
Love. Love. Love this recipe! I add more lemon because it is one of my favourite flavours in baking. I don’t eat sugar or anything sweet I reduce the amount of honey. This loaf can be found in my kitchen almost every week;)
Thank you from another Vancouver Island foodie😉
★★★★★
You are so welcome Deborah. Love that this zucchini bread recipe is on regular rotation at your house!
Hi! Really curious as to if a granulated natural sweetener, like erythritol, would work here. Thanks in advance 🙂
I haven’t tried. It might or you might have to sub for lost liquid from maple syrup – applesauce or yogurt.
Very moist. I added 1/2 cup blueberries but would have liked to add more for a little more sweetness. For my taste I would enjoy more lemon flavor- should I add more lemon juice or zest for that?
★★★★
A bit more zest should do the trick!
Gave it 5 stars without even baking it. That’s how sure I am. This one is next on my list. Just made the banana one. It’s cooling so don’t know how it tastes, but it smells delicious! I’m a newbie when it comes to gluten-free baking. I really miss wheat flour. 😕 but am thankful for all the gf recipes to try. 🙂
★★★★★
Delicious!!!
Do you think I could use oat flour instead of almond flour?
Thank you in advance for your answer!
★★★★★
Sorry but no. 2 different animals. 🙂
This recipe is amazing! You weren’t lying about “2 slices per person”!! I am very excited to have this in my recipe book now! Thank you for a family favorite recipe. 🙂
★★★★★
Hi Gabriella! I am so happy to hear my lemon zucchini bread is now a family favourite 🙂
Thank you thank you…. first I have been looking for bread options for my blood type. I shared this recipe and almond flour banana bread with my fb Eating right for your Blood type O group. This one is my favourite. This is a hit. We have specific foods we can eat. The response is 🤩. Everyone can’t wait to try. I’ve loved them. They are delicious! I love your site. This site is extremely helpful to eating right for us O blood types. Thank you thank you
★★★★★
You’re welcome Victoria!
Why’s this good for type O blood types? I’m O+.
★★★★★
Love this recipe especially with the lemon! Really lovely and easy to make.
★★★★★
This is to die for, I had to adjust the cooking time dramatically. I baked it for approx 30-35min
★★★★★
Glad you liked the zucchini bread. Every oven bakes things differently. Otherwise, not sure why you had to adjust the cooking time.
Hi! Excited to try this! I’m imagining it would throw things off, as it would be somewhat more absorbent than almond flour, but any chance that brown rice flour could work, do you think?
Hi Claire. You are imagining it right. 🙂 Completely 2 different “animals”. Sorry but nothing I can do.
The perfect compliment to my cup
of coffee:)) Just the right amount of sweetness, not too sweet. I wasn’t sure whether to make the recipe with maple syrup or honey, so I used a quarter cup of each. I love thats it’s dairy and gluten free! My kids loved it too!
Next time I will be sure to add more lemon zest to achieve that intense lemon flavor. This is my first time zesting a lemon and I wasn’t sure how much of the skin to zest. Next time, I will do the whole lemon but it was still delicious 😋
★★★★★
So glad that you and your family enjoyed this recipe Shameen! And yes, it’s perfect with a cup of coffee.
Cooking lemon zucchini bread now … can’t wait to taste it
For inexperienced bakers like me it would be super helpful if you could share a picture of what your zest and zucchini looks like before adding to mixture. My zest is coming out like mush- my lemon might be too ripe and I’m not sure if my zucchini pieces are too large (my grater only has one size). I am in the middle of making this so will just continue and see how it turns out. Just a suggestion!
Thank you for your suggestion. It is great and I will do next time. Your bread should be fine. Even if I showed size of my grated zucchini you have only one size anyways. Should work!:)
Pleasantly surprised. Very moist, however I should’ve cooked it a wee bit longer than the 50min. Will make again 😋
★★★★
Sometimes you have to adjust baking times for your individual oven. Next time it will be perfect 🙂
Wished I could give this more stars because it is that good and it blew my mind as you said it would, the most amazing bread I have ever had and I love bread! My hubby who is finicky about changing up recipes loves as much and the fact it is super healthy no gluten is a big plus for both of us! Sharing your recipes with our family and looking ford to many more. Thank you so much!!
★★★★★
You are very welcome Michelle! Made my day hearing how much this zucchini bread blew your mind hehe
I made this recipe as muffins (per suggestion of my 5-year-old) since we don’t have the loaf pan. They came out great! Perfect proportions, not too sweet, not too sour. We added the poppy seeds and also replaced one of the eggs with chia seeds. My 4 and 5 year olds both loved the muffins. Great simple recipe, with bonus of kids eating some nuts and veggies for once 🙂 Thanks!
Hi Nadia! It is so awesome to hear that your kiddos loved this recipe 🙂
Hi Olena! I just made it! It’s everything you said it is. It satisfies my picky eater (9 year old). He’d avoid zucchini with a ten foot pole. It’s easy, fast and a great healthy alternative to the poppyseed lemon loaf sold at the national doughnut retailer. The crust is the part of this treat that my children prefer. I’ll try baking the batter in muffin top style, since they prefer the top. It’s a great recipe!
★★★★★
Wonderful recipe that I will share with family and friends! I’m an inexperienced baker and first time zucchini bread eater. I found the instructions very easy to follow and the results were great!
★★★★★
Yay! Keep on baking Angel!
Delicious flavor. I’m not sure what I did wrong but it almost turned out too moist. I followed the recipe to a T and divided the batter into 3 mini loaf pans so that I could freeze a few. The top is perfect and has a great sweet crust, but the bread that was in the pan almost seems not fully cooked. I popped them back in for another 10 min and the top just for crispier. Thoughts on why the rest wouldn’t crust up or bake all the way? It’s good, and I’m sure it’s cooked all the way, but is too moist. Thanks!
I am not sure. I also never made it in mini loaf pans. You can try to squeeze zucchini next time – maybe yours contained too much water, maybe they differ.
It was so easy to make. I absolutely loved the lemony flavor. I used two summer squash and it made it taste like cake. Great recipe!
★★★★★
Just as promised! Sweet and tasty. Used recipe as it is directed. Wished I would have had poppy seeds. Would have made it perfect. Love it.
★★★★★
Poppy seeds next time you make it 🙂
Can I make an adjustment in the recipe if I accidentally squeezed out the liquid from the zucchini prior to finalizing which recipe I wanted to try? I’m not a baker so I don’t want to experiment.
Yes you can add 1/4 cup milk. Should work!:)
These receipes sound so good. Problem is there is no amounts for each ingredient. I can guess using other similar receipes, but for new cooks – they would not have a clue. In future shares, please put the amounts for each incredient. I plan to get Almond Flour soon and try some of these. Thanks
Hi Mary Ann! Each recipe has a recipe card that lists complete ingredients, amounts and instructions. You just have to scroll through the blog post to get to it. There is also a “jump to the recipe” button at the top of the post that will take you there! Hope that helps!
Absolutely delicious. I didn’t change a thing and it came out perfectly. Thank you for this amazing cake recipe!
★★★★★
Thanks for the positive review Maida!
Delicious ?!!!!!!! Thanks for the recipe!
★★★
You are welcome Inna!
Can I make 12 muffins with this? (More portable than a slice of cake.)
Sure. Shorter cook time though. Start with 25 mins.
Divinely delicious!!! Second time round… doubling the recipe for more loaves NYUM!
★★★★★
That’s so great! It sounds like you have a new favorite, Jacqui!
I can’t wait to make this bread. It’s so nice to find gluten free recipes that actually sound good. I feel like I may be able to bake once in a while and have people that don’t have celiac enjoy them. Thank you
Please let me know how it turns out. Everyone will love this bread!!! Even Italians haha
Wonderful! Made into muffins and added poppy and hemp seeds! Thanks!
★★★★★
Thank you for your wonderful review, Roy!!!
Delicious and simple to make.
★★★★★
Thanks for wonderful review, Barney.
Delicious!!! Will add poppy seeds or hemp seeds next time.
★★★★★
Yum. Poppy seeds would be top notch!
I’ve made this several times and love it with poppy seeds. I divide mine into 12 muffins and bake for 22 minutes.
Sounds delicious!
I am so excited to try this recipe – I love your almond flour banana muffins!! Can I make the lemon zucchini bread with less sweetener, say 1/3 cup honey or maple syrup instead of 1/2 cup, or will that throw everything off? Thanks!
Should be fine!
Hi,
I love the look of your recipe and am hoping to make it as soon as I get your reply– I’ve been craving some of healthy comfort food recently!
Does your cake have a really sharp lemony flavour, as I often find lemon cakes a bit lacklustre, but love the flavour… If you think it would work I was going to double (or even triple!) the lemon content? BUT the main reason I’m messaging you is that I have a nut sensitivity, do you think I could substitute half of the almond flour with any other gluten free flours? I definitely have coconut, tapioca and maybe buckwheat flours in my pantry, so please let me know which.
Thank you for your lovely recipe, hope to hear back from you soon!
Ella 🙂
It has prominent lemon flavor. I think everyone has their own intensity scale haha. I can definitely taste lemon.
Coconut flour won’t work 100%. I have not tried other substitutes. Almond and other GF flours are completely different. I personally don’t think it will work. Simply because AF doesn’t soak up liquid like dry buckwheat flour.
I tried your healthy lemon zucchini bread ?and boy ! It turned out awesome on my first baking attempt ?I am so happy ?as i have alz been so skeptic about perfect baking so I followed your recipe to- to. Your recipe is a winner ? ? will definitely try other recipes
Fantastic! Glad you enjoyed the recipe, Tamalika!
Unbelievably amazing and so delish
★★★★★
That is so amazing to hear! Glad you enjoyed my recipe, Pam!
The best muffins I have ever eaten!!! Doing triple dose this time. I did add poppy seeds and it turned out super yummy!
★★★★★
Yes, classic lemon and poppy seeds. That is so amazing to hear! Glad you enjoyed my recipe, Anna!
Wow! Delicious. I’m going through a break up, perfect baking distraction! I added a 1/4 cup of semi-sweet mini chocolate chips.
★★★★★
That is so amazing to hear! Glad you enjoyed my recipe, Emily! And sorry to hear about the break up.
I apologize for my typo. I mean I will put blueberries in next time.Sorry?
★★★★★
We love this zucchini bread! Next time I bake it I will but blueberries in it. It is delicious. I baked mine in 4 mini [email protected]
★★★★★
Fantastic! Glad everyone enjoyed the recipe, Jo!
Your recipes are fantastic. Thanks for including the nutritional content.
Made my day, Dee! So happy to hear! xoxo
If I want to make these into muffins, how long should I bake them?
For 20ish mins.
Terrific
★★★★★
Fantastic! Glad you enjoyed the recipe, Joyce!
I made this today because I had a bag of almond flour in my pantry that I didn’t know what to do with. We have a cabin and when people come to visit they bring all kinds of things and leave them behind. Every now and then I have to figure out ways to use things that I don’t usually buy. So, the almond flour was a challenge and am I ever glad I found this recipe! We love it!! Thank you..
★★★★★
That is so amazing to hear! Glad you enjoyed my recipe, Anne! Try my almond flour banana muffins. Super popular recipe and you can use up a bag and freeze them.
Absolutely delicious! I used almond meal instead of almond flour and it still turned out fine. My 3yo son refuses most foods but demolished this – so did I…
★★★★★
Good to know about almond meal. Thanks for sharing! Yes this bread is my fave!
This is amazing!
I used Suger Free maple syrup and added 2 scoops of Lady Boss protein powder. I also had squeezed the liquid out of the zucchini so I added about 2tbsp of Swoon sugar free simple syrup back into it to replace the moisture. One mistake I made was I used 3 1/2 cups of almond flour instead of 3 1/3 cups but it didn’t seem to make a big difference. I definitely will make this again 🙂
★★★★★
Oops! I JUST did the same thing. Used 3.5 not 3.33 cups almond flour. It’s still in the oven. Hope it turns out okay…
Question: Does anyone know the best way to store for the week? Was thinking a plastic baggie in the fridge. It’s just me; no family to have it all gone in 12 hours. Thanks!
It is very moist. I would refrigerate it in some container with ventilation. Not sure if it doesn’t get too soggy or moldy by day 7. You can freeze slices, it thaws fast.
So simple to make and sooo delicious!!!
★★★★★
Yay! So happy to hear!
Can i use hazelnut “flour” instead of almond flour?
I think so. It is a nut so kind of same.
Can i use orange instead of limon?
Yes! Yum!!!
Excellent recipe! I used agave instead of maple syrup.
★★★★★
Fantastic! Glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Did you use the same amount of agave as maple?
Yes you would substitute the same amount.
Im wondering if i can use coconut sugar instead of the maple sugar. I am soo excited to make this!
Unfortunately not. You have to use liquid sweetener like maple syrup or honey.
I followed the recipe exactly but I think maybe when the blueberries cooked all the juice settled at the bottom of the cake because it’s super moist/mushy at the bottom… Any suggestions?
Yes. Use a bit less blueberries. And toss them in a bit of almond flour before adding to batter. It will make sure they won’t sink. Check out my breakfast cake how I do it.
Hi! I am going to make this tonight!! Can you use coconut flour instead of almond? Trying to use what I have here… thanks
No because coconut flour is “thirsty”. Has to be almond flour.
Could I substitute flax eggs or applesauce (sweetened or unsweetened) for the eggs? Thank you.
Mary
Hm no because eggs need to hold almond flour together.
Can Egg Beaters be used instead of eggs? I have to watch my cholesterol.
I would say 99% yes but I haven’t tried.
I just tried the recipe with egg beaters. They worked fine. I LOVE this recipe. Yummmmm
Can I add any blueberries to this?
Yes! Up to 2 cups.
Great balance: This bread was enjoyed by my brother who shuns sweets and my daughter who adores them!
★★★★★
Can I substitute whole wheat flour for the almond flour? My husband is allergic to nuts but this recipe sounds amazing!
Unfortunately not. They act completely different and would need different amount of liquid etc.
How much lemon zest & lemon juice needs to be used? No measurements were given in recipe.
1 large lemon.
I made this for a group meeting and none left. Delicious!!
★★★★★
Can you use pureed zucchini in this recipe?
Hmmm not sure.Never tried.
Can’t stop making it. So moist and satisfying that urge for a baked goodie. Been off refined sugar for 4 months now. Lost 38#’s in 1st 3 mo. Plus my diabetes for 1st time in 18 years is under control w/A1C 5-7. . Ty JESUS
★★★★★
So happy for you! Keep it up and be healthy. Glad you enjoyed the recipe.:)
Is 305 calories for one slice? Isnt it high?
Yes, 1 slice. Nuts are high in good calories and fats. Calories are provided for info purposes. We are not a diet site and do not count calories. We encourage to eat whole and real foods.
YUM! I made this today. It was delicious. I have a chopper that I put the zucchini in (equivalent of grating it) and beaters for the eggs etc, making it quick and easy. I’m definitely going to do this again. Thanks.
★★★★★
Yay. Awesome. That works.
Made this on a whim bc I had everything on hand – wow!! I was surprised at how good this is for such healthy ingredients. Will for sure make again and be visiting this site often for other recipes.
★★★★★
So happy to hear, Tricia!
Oh, man, I could go for this right now. Have to buy almond flour. Olena, what do you think of using flax or chia eggs for this beauty?
★★★★★
No sorry I don’t think so. Almond flour really needs a good binder like eggs.
It’s in the oven! Will post a picture later. Used 1/2 cup frozen wild blueberries from Trader Joe but didn’t read your tip about dredging them in flour first. I’ll be back!
★★★★★
Sounds good. You can’t attach picture on the website but on Instagram for sure tag me #ifoodreal
Made it the second time last night. Used 2 lemons (zest & juice) and 50/50 maple syrup and honey. Even though toothpick clean after 50 minutes, I left it in the turned-off open oven for about 1/2 hour. Cake, as good as it was the first try, is even better! Next time it’ll be all honey since I ran out of maple syrup. Just read that you said up to 2C of blueberries, so I’ll up that next time from 1/2C to at least 1C. The experiment is on!
★★★★★
Yay! You are on fire this hot summer month with your baking.:)
Hello, I would love to bake this bread but I am a diabetic and maple syrup/honey sends my blood glucose levels very high. Is there a low carbohydrate alternative to maple syrup and honey? I was thinking of using an equivalent amount of melted butter and adding sweetener it, do you think this would work? Or unsweetened apple sauce would have a lot less carbohydrate?
I love your recipes, thank you, Ellie
★★★★★
Hi Ellie. Butter wouldn’t work. I think you can use plain yogurt or applesauce with a bit of sweetener. Or there is sweetened applesauce. Should be fine.:) Let me know how it goes.
Ellie try making a pitted date purée for your sweetener. I used it in the Almond Flour Banana Bread. Ratio was 1;2. It turned out fine. It was sweet enough. But I wanted sweeter. Next time I will add a little more purée. I used the following date recipe https://detoxinista.com/make-date-paste-healthy-sugar-substitute/
Delicious! I made this recipe as muffins and they turned out perfectly!
★★★★★
Yay! Yes, totally acceptable. You should try my almond flour banana muffins.
Very easy to make and was delicious! I’ll be making it again!
Super easy to make and was delicious! Will be making it again!
So easy! I just loved it!❤Congrats!
★★★★★
So happy to hear!