Cinnamon Swirl Zucchini Bread combines the moist texture of zucchini bread with a crumbly cinnamon coffee cake. It’s easy to mix in just a few minutes, then it’s topped off with a spiced glaze for a heavenly treat!
Why this Bread Works
This is a seriously scrumptious zucchini bread recipe.
I added a ribbon of cinnamon filling inside and a crumbly topping to make this bread taste extra decadent. The extra sweetness, flavor, and texture work really well together.
Here are a few more reasons why you’ll love it,
- Perfect for brunch or dessert. It looks lovely once it’s glazed and sliced, making it the perfect choice for breakfast, brunch, or dessert.
- Quick and simple. Since it doesn’t require a stand mixer or electric beaters, it’s a breeze to mix by hand. The simple ingredient list makes it easy to whip up last-minute, especially if you have a ton of zucchini from your garden!
- Enough for now and later. This recipe makes two loaves, so you can eat one now and freeze one for later if you like– or freeze both!
Stock up on farmer’s market zucchini so you can give our zucchini brownies a try next. Or give these crowd favorite zucchini banana bars a whirl soon.
Ingredient Notes
- Zucchini – Grated zucchini adds moisture, healthy fiber, and a little color to this sweet bread. Use our guide on how to shred zucchini.
- All-Purpose Flour – Provides the basic structure for the bread, giving it a light but sturdy texture.
- Granulated Sugar – Sweetens the bread and helps it stay hydrated after baking.
- Cinnamon – Adds a warm spiced flavor to the bread, cinnamon swirl, and sweet glaze.
- Unsalted Butter – Melted butter makes this bread easy to mix and adds tons of rich flavor. If you use salted butter, be sure to cut the amount of salt in the recipe in half.
- Milk – Adds moisture and richness to the bread.
- Eggs – Binds the ingredients together and adds richness and moisture.
- Baking Powder & Baking Soda – Both help the dough rise for a lighter crumb. Avoid substituting one for the other!
- Salt – Balances the sweetness and enhances all the flavors.
- Light Brown Sugar – Adds flavor, sweetness, and soft texture to the cinnamon swirl.
- Powdered Sugar – Creates the base for a quick, pourable cinnamon glaze.
Easy Instructions
- Mix the batter. In a large bowl, mix all the bread ingredients together and stir until combined.
- Mix the swirl. In a small bowl, blend the cinnamon swirl ingredients together. Set aside.
- Combine. Pour the batter evenly into the prepared pans. Sprinkle with half the cinnamon swirl, then top with the remaining batter. Finish with the remaining cinnamon swirl mixture.
- Bake. Bake for 60 minutes at 350°F. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then remove from the pan to cool completely.
- Glaze. Whisk the glaze ingredients together until smooth, then drizzle over the bread.
Tips and Tricks
- Don’t worry about peeling the zucchini. There’s no need to peel it unless you’re trying to hide the green color from wary children!
- Add beaten eggs to improve the texture. Lighten up the bread’s texture a little by beating the eggs lightly with a whisk before adding them to the bread dough mixture.
- Test for doneness with a toothpick. Make sure the cake is baked all the way through by inserting a toothpick or paring knife into the center. It should come out clean.
- Let the bread cool before glazing it. Try to be patient and wait until the cake has mostly cooled to drizzle the glaze over the top. If it’s too warm, the glaze can melt into the cake.
Serving Suggestions
Cinnamon Swirl Zucchini Bread was almost made to go along with a coffee drink. Try your morning cup with some of my Homemade Cinnamon Coffee Creamer for a delightful pair. Or for a coffee shop-type treat, try it with a glass of foamy Dalgona Coffee.
As I mentioned before, this sweet bread is also a top-notch choice for a brunch spread. Pre-slice it and lay it out on the table next to a classic Ham & Cheese Quiche or an easy Breakfast Casserole and dig in!
Recipe FAQs
Nope! You can add the shredded zucchini as it is. This makes the bread taste exceptionally moist and soft.
To store it at room temperature, wrap the cooled bread in foil or plastic wrap. Expect it to last up to 5 days.
To freeze it, first, wrap the fully-cooled bread in aluminum foil. Then slide it into an airtight freezer bag and freeze it for up to 3 months. To thaw it, take it out a day before and let it thaw in the refrigerator without removing the wrapping.
The glaze can be left out if you only want the crumble on top. However, a generous drizzle of glaze does add visual appeal and extra flavor!
More Bread Recipes
- Pumpkin Zucchini Bread
- Blueberry Zucchini Bread
- Sour Cream Banana Bread
- Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread
- Pumpkin Bread
- Starbucks Lemon Loaf Recipe
- Cranberry Orange Bread
Cinnamon Swirl Zucchini Bread
Ingredients
FOR THE BREAD:
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups shredded zucchini
- ⅔ cup unsalted butter melted
- 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
- ½ cup milk
- 4 large eggs
For the cinnamon swirl:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup light brown sugar packed
- 1 cup unsalted butter melted
- 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
FOR THE GLAZE:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 Tablespoons milk
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line bottom only of two 9-inch loaf pans with parchment paper or spray with baking spray. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix all ingredients for bread, stirring to completely combined.
- In a separate, small bowl, combine cinnamon swirl ingredients until fully blended. Set aside.
- Pour half the batter evenly into the greased pans. Then add half the cinnamon swirl. Top with remaining batter, and then the remaining cinnamon swirl.
- Bake for 60 minutes, until completely cooked. Allow to cool for 10 minutes in pan, remove from pan and cool completely.
- For glaze, whisk together powdered sugar with milk and cinnamon until smooth. Drizzle over bread. Enjoy!
Notes
- Store: Keep bread wrapped in foil or plastic wrap at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- Freeze: Wrap cooled bread in foil, then slide into an airtight freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months.
- Zucchini: no need to peel the zucchini first, unless you’re trying to hide the green from children, ha!
- Test for doneness with a toothpick. Make sure the cake is baked all the way through by inserting a toothpick or paring knife into the center. It should come out clean.
- Let the bread cool before glazing it. Try to be patient and wait until the cake has mostly cooled to drizzle the glaze over the top. If it’s too warm, the glaze can melt into the cake.
- Add beaten eggs to improve the texture. Lighten up the bread’s texture a little by beating the eggs lightly with a whisk before adding them to the bread dough mixture.
Love this recipe! I followed the directions exactly and the two loaves turned out great! I will definitely make this again.
I love this recipe! Thank you so much! Made loaves to share and received so many compliments!! Wouldn’t change a thing! Came out perfect!!!!
Love to hear it!
Just got done making two loaves. I glazed one the other I will cut in half and freeze I was worried that they would come out dry as I removed the excess water from a rather overgrown zucchini but to my surprise it was still moist. I’m giving this a 👍
I did not drain the zucchini and mine turned out VERY dry. I’ve never had dry zucchini bread. Will not make this again.
same! The sad part, I made 6 loaves (each a separate batch)… I am so very disappointed.
The large zucchini are very dry, whereas a small zucchini (the kind you find at a grocery store) contain more moisture. Could be you used an extra large garden variety?
Can I use wheat flour instead of all purpose flour?
I used an all purpose gf flour using the same measurements as in the recipe. I did halve the ingredients because I only wanted one loaf. Also, my gf flour blend already has a xanthan gum in it. It came out great. My daughter, who has celiac disease, loved it too!
Oops! I meant to reply to Karen.
DO you know what the gluten free ratio would be?
I accidentally and ironically replied to Megan’s post when I meant to reply to yours. Please see above:/
Please, where is the list of ingredients?
I’ve scrolled to the bottom.
I’m on an android phone. I’ve used Chrome & edge.
And Pinterest.
If you’re using an ad blocker, you may not be able to see the recipe. Otherwise, when you click on the recipe post, click “jump to recipe” and it will scroll directly to the printable recipe card.
Thanks for the reply on the squeezing of the zucchini. I had already made it by the time you responded and I did squeeze the liquid from the fresh zucchini. The batter was really dry (my mistake… lol) so I added a bit more melted butter and milk. The bread turned out pretty dense, but was still quite tasty. Next time I won’t squeeze the liquid and I’m betting it will be even better. (also I halved the recipe because I only wanted to make one loaf. I don’t think by doing that it would have made the batter too dry, right?… just me and zucchini mistake?)
Can I use yellow squash instead for the cinnamon swirl zucchini bread?
I plan on making this with yellow squash today. Have you tried making it that way?
If using fresh zucchini, do you still have to squeeze all the liquid like you do if using frozen, shredded zucchini? Thanks.
No, most of the time fresh zucchini is just fine without excess moisture!
Can’t wait to try this recipe. Can I freeze a loaf? Thanks!
Made this and was worried because the batter was sooooo thick but, turned out amazing. I did not find that it needed the glaze so, I didn’t make it. 1st loaf was gone before it was even cooled.
Not sure what I did, but although the flavor is just perfect, it seemed a bit dry? But that’s what butter or cream cheese is for! 😉 Have the chocolate chip bread in oven now! 🙂
Really delicious! I did just as recipe was wrote. I’ll be making a lot of this, thank you!
I agree….I initially said in my review that I made the recipe exactly as written. Actually, I used softened butter and not melted butter for both the inside and topping. It makes a significant difference. The top especially will be crunchy instead of soft and gooey which we liked so much better. I served this softened butter version to guests last evening and they couldn’t stop raving about it.
I made this 2 days ago and my husband and I are addicted. I actually got two more zucchini’s from my nieces’s garden to make some more loaves and freeze. Followed your recipe exactly. You created a winner!!
Followed recipe as written and had perfect results. The whole family approved. Will make again.
I made this bread and it was wonderful. I thought the batter was a little dry so I added 1/2 cup of unsweetened applesauce for added moisture. This bread is very tasty. Thank you for the recipe!
love new zucchini recipes!!
Especially the one who made the bread into cupcakes!!
Are you sure the amounts for the swirl are correct. Mine was not crumbly and when cooked and cooled was almost like hard toffee.
Your beginning explanation says parchment and spray. The directions say parchment or spray. I did just the parchment. Hope i can get it out of the pan! Coolong now. If I have to eat with a spoon, I will. Smells wonderful.
The cinnamon “Swirl”placed on the top of the bread Did not melt at all. When the bread was done it is like hard rocks on the top. The cinnamon swirl I placed in the middle of the bread melted fine. I am almost tempted to cut the top of the bread off. What did I do wrong here?
Hmmm, that’s very odd….