Blueberry Zucchini Bread With Lemon Glaze

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The sweet Maine blueberry and zucchini bread join forces to create the most delicious quick bread recipe! Topped with a sweet lemon glaze, this easy blueberry zucchini bread recipe is going to be your favorite treat this summer!

If you’ve ever planted zucchini before, then you know it grows fast! And when that time of year rolls around and I’ve got zucchini taking over my countertop, making this sweet lemon and blueberry zucchini bread with lemon icing is my go-to recipe.

To create this recipe, I used America’s Test Kitchen’s “Zucchini Bread” recipe as a base.  The original recipe has the best proportions and ingredients of any zucchini bread recipe I’ve used over the years. I just made some zesty adjustments for this zucchini bread with blueberries version, omitting any of the cinnamon and spices you normally see (like in my Zucchini Banana Bread Recipe), and adding lots of lemon. 

The results were fresh and delicious! So if you’re looking for a fun Maine spin on classic zucchini bread, try this version!

And while you’re at it, try my delicious Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Bread, and my Crispy Air Fryer Zucchini Chips!

Why You’ll Love This Blueberry Lemon Zucchini Bread Recipe

• You don’t need to break out any mixers, the whole recipe can be made by hand.
• This is a 1 loaf zucchini bread recipe. Perfect for if you don’t have the freezer or counter space for 2 loaves.
• This delicious zucchini bread is the perfect solution for the times you have too much zucchini and need to use it up!
• This zucchini bread is also a great way to sneak in some extra veggies for the kids!

How To Make A Blueberry Zucchini Bread With Lemon Icing

Makes 1 9×5″ Loaf

Adapted from America’s Test Kitchen’s “Zucchini Bread” recipe.

The Ingredients You’ll Need:

• Shredded Zucchini- no peeling required but do scoop out the seeds.
• All Purpose Flour
• Baking Powder and Baking Soda
• Coarse Kosher salt
• Lemon zest (zest of two small lemons)
• Unsalted Butter – Melted butter is used for this recipe.
• White Sugar – The sugar will be divided for sweetening the bread and extracting the excess moisture from the zucchini.f
• Large Eggs
• Greek Yogurt– I’ve used whole milk or 2% fat. Sour cream can be substituted.
• Fresh Lemon Juice + Lemon Zest
• Vanilla Extract
• Blueberries -Frozen or fresh blueberries work for this quick bread 
• Powdered Sugar

Hint: The whole recipe uses about 3 small lemons or 2 large.

Instructions For Making the Bread:

Step 1:

Preheat oven to 375° and grease a 9×5″ loaf pan with cooking spray.

Toss the shredded zucchini with 2 tablespoons of the sugar. Add the zucchini to a colander set over a bowl and drain for 30 minutes.

Step 2:

Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, lemon zest, and salt in a medium sized bowl and set aside.

Step 3:

In another bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together the melted butter, yogurt, eggs, remaining 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons of sugar, vanilla, and lemon juice until combined.

Once the zucchini is done draining for 30 minutes, use some paper towels, and press as much additional water out as possible. I ended up with 1/2 cup of water removed.

Add the drained zucchini to the yogurt mixture.

Step 4:

Add the blueberries to the dry ingredients and give a quick toss to coat.

Hint: This will keep the blueberries from sinking to the bottom of the loaf.

Step 5:

Fold the zucchini mixture into the dry ingredients gently as to not mash up the blueberries. 

Continue folding in the wet ingredients until there are no more visible flour streaks.

Step 6:

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. FYI the batter will be very thick.

Bake at 375° for 60-70 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean in the center.

After baking, allow the zucchini bread to cool for one hour before removing it from the pan and setting it on a wire rack.

Step 7:

Make the glaze by combining the lemon zest and powdered sugar in a small bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice and stir.

The glaze should be thick, but still pour off a spoon. If the glaze is too thick, add a little bit of lemon juice to thin it out.

Pour the prepared glaze over the cooling zucchini bread and let cool completely.

Serve and enjoy!

Should I Peel The Zucchini Before Grating It?

Nope!

The skin is so thin and so tender, that you do not need to peel it before grating it.

Leaving the skin on also adds nice little green flecks throughout the bread.

Substitutions

• Blueberries- Frozen or fresh blueberries work for this recipe
• Lemon- If you’re not a lemon fan, swap the juice and zest for orange or lime
• Greek Yogurt- Sour cream can be swapped or just plain non-Greek yogurt can be used.

Draining Zucchini

Zucchini is an extremely watery vegetable, so by draining the grated zucchini before we mix it into the bread ensures that it will bake through and won’t sink in the middle or get soggy.

We use a little sugar to help draw out the excess water in the zucchini. This also helps to tenderize the vegetable, remove any bitterness, and of course, add extra sweetness!

After draining in the colander, we take some paper towels and give the zucchini a good squeeze. This is just to make sure we’ve gotten out as much water as possible.

If you happen to be using a large or overgrown zucchini, it’s still good to use for bread, just scoop out the seeds before shredding and draining. The seeds tend to be bitter and super watery and just unpleasant to eat.

Storing Your Leftover Blueberry Zucchini Bread

Zucchini bread can be stored at room temperature on the countertop for 2-3 days. FYI the glaze will melt into the bread as it sits.

Another way to store leftovers is storing the zucchini bread in an airtight container in the fridge. This is helpful if you live in a particularly humid climate.

You can freeze this bread, but don’t glaze it until after it’s thawed.

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