Rich and decadent Chocolate Zucchini Brownies are made extra moist with grated zucchini. Topped with a decadent fudge frosting, these fudgy brownies are easy to make in one bowl!
As much as we all love Roasted Zucchini as a side dish, let’s focus on some sweets. We love this Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread and Zucchini Banana Bread. What’s your favorite zucchini recipe?
Why this Recipe is Best
If you’ve never added zucchini to your chocolate desserts before, you’re in for a treat. This recipe is the perfect way to use up any extra zucchini you have in your fridge, without making another loaf of zucchini bread.
- Grated zucchini makes chocolate brownies unbelievably moist.
- Works well with fresh OR frozen zucchini.
- Topped with dreamy chocolate fudge frosting!
Bonus: these are so easy to make! The brownie batter comes together in one mixing bowl in a matter of minutes.
If you LOVE frosted brownies, you’ve got to try them with zucchini too.
Ingredient Notes
- Cocoa powder. A good quality chocolate cocoa powder, such as Hershey’s Special Dark or Ghirardelli is best.
- Vegetable oil. A higher fat to flour ratio keeps these brownies incredibly moist and fudgy.
- Unsalted butter. If using salted butter, omit the extra kosher salt in the recipe.
- Vanilla extract. As always, choose a pure vanilla and not imitation vanilla. Our homemade vanilla extract is easy to make, and affordable too!
- Shredded zucchini. See instructions below for the best way to grate zucchini. If using frozen zucchini, be sure to squeeze out the excess moisture, THEN measure the amount needed. Choose smaller zucchinis if possible as they retain much more moisture than those overside large zucchini (which tend to be more dry and perfect for freezing).
How to Grate Zucchini
The first step to making chocolate brownies with zucchini is to grate the zucchini well. After washing your zucchini, cut off the stems. (Peeling is optional but not necessary.)
If you have extra large zucchini, scoop out those big seeds from the middle.
A food processor with a grater attachment is the easiest and fastest way to grate zucchini. Start the food processor and feed the zucchini in vertically while it’s running.
You can also grate it the old fashioned way with a big box grater: Hold the zucchini up against the grater placed over a large bowl. Run the zucchini down the side of the grater just like you would a block of cheese.
I don’t recommend using a fine microplane zester or a food processor with blades. Both will make the zucchini more pureed and watery than grated and it won’t work as well in the brownies.
Once your zucchini is grated, it’s time to bake some brownies!
Tips & Tricks
- Let the batter rest. The brownie batter will look very dry when it first comes together. This is normal. Let it sit for 10 minutes before pouring it to the baking dish. The moisture from the zucchini will release into the batter as it rests. Trust me!
- Cut brownies with a clean plastic knife. The plastic knife makes perfectly even cuts–no crumbling! Be sure to let the brownies cool completely before cutting them!
- Store tightly covered. At room temperature, these chocolate zucchini brownies stay good for 4 -5 days.
- Additions: Add some chocolate chips or walnuts pieces to the batter before baking for a delicious dreamy brownie.
- Try our chocolate chip frosted zucchini brownies for a delicious twist! Or give our zucchini cookies a try next!
Recipe FAQs
This recipe was tested in a 9 x 13 inch baking dish.
The batter is supposed to be quite dry before you add the zucchini. Stir in the zucchini then let it rest for 10 minutes and it’ll start to be softer and more workable.
You can use milk if you want but the frosting won’t be as thick and creamy. I highly recommend real heavy whipping cream here!
Double Chocolate Zucchini Brownies
These fudgy brownies are topped with a delicoius fudgy frosting.
It’s easy to make too! Combine melted butter with cocoa powder in a small bowl with a whisk. Add in powdered sugar, heavy cream and vanilla. Whisk until smooth.
Spread over cooled brownies. Cut into bars and enjoy!! You could also make a half batch of our creamy chocolate buttercream frosting. Or give our vanilla frosting recipe a try instead!
More Zucchini Recipes
- Chocolate Zucchini Bundt Cake: it’s as delicious as it looks!!
- Streusel Topped Zucchini Bread: the crunch on top makes this one epic bread!
- Zucchini Bundt Cake: this beauty is topped with a cinnamon glaze!
- Chocolate Zucchini Bread
- Zucchini Orange Muffins
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Chocolate Zucchini Brownies
Ingredients
For the Brownies:
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup light brown sugar packed
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup dark chocolate unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 ½ cups finely shredded zucchini
For the Frosting:
- ¼ cup unsalted butter melted
- 5 Tablespoons dark chocolate unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 6 Tablespoons heavy whipping cream
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degree F. Line a 13×9 baking dish with parchment paper. Set aside.
- For the brownies, in a large bowl, combine oil, sugars, and vanilla extract. Add in flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Stir together until well blended. The batter will be very dry, it’s okay!!
- Fold in shredded zucchini. Depending on the moisture of your zucchini, your batter may still be slightly dry. Let batter sit 10 minutes before pouring into baking dish.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes until cooked. Remove and cool completely before frosting.
- For the frosting, combine the melted butter with cocoa powder in a small bowl with a whisk. Add in powdered sugar, heavy cream and vanilla. Whisk until smooth. Spread over cooled brownies. Cut into bars and enjoy!!
Notes
- Let the batter rest. The brownie batter will look very dry when it first comes together. This is normal. Let it sit for 10 minutes before pouring it to the baking dish. The moisture from the zucchini will release into the batter as it rests. Trust me!
- Cut brownies with a clean plastic knife. The plastic knife makes perfectly even cuts–no crumbling! Be sure to let the brownies cool completely before cutting them!
- Store tightly covered. At room temperature, these chocolate zucchini brownies stay good for 4 -5 days.
- Additions: Add some chocolate chips or walnuts pieces to the batter before baking for a delicious dreamy brownie.
- Try our chocolate chip frosted zucchini brownies for a delicious twist!
Video
Nutrition
Don’t waste any zucchini ever again. Make Chocolate Zucchini Brownies covered in a fudgy ganache frosting instead!
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!!! Everyone that’s eats these, LOVES THEM!!!!! Make them NOW!!! YUM!!!
So they were a hit? LOL 🙂 Happy to hear!
These were delicious! Followed recipe to the T! Moist & don’t fall apart. I added some chocolate chips they really turned out fudgey!
I read through the comments before I made these and had a couple ideas to hopefully make it so some of the problems didn’t happen. I added an egg and I also added the zucchini to the wet mixture. Seems weird to add it at the end. I had shredded it about 15-20 before so there was lots of water in the bowl already. I also added an egg. These are very good. One thing I will say is brownies don’t normally have baking soda in them. The baking soda makes them rise like a cake instead of being fudgy brownies.
I use the baking soda to help leaven the mixture since there are no eggs. By adding an egg, you could have skipped the baking soda.
The best brownie I’ve ever made! I sent some home with my older children, they all replied, Best ever!
Excellent recipe. The direction to not be afraid when the batter was dry that they would be moist with the zucchini. It was magic how the change occurred Moist, tasty.
Yes! It truly goes from crumbs, to batter in minutes!
can you replace the finely shredded zucchini with something else
Wonderful frosting. Definitely my go to from now on. The brownies turned out beautifully, but SO salty. I’ll use table salt next time. Frosting is not optional 😃
Totally amazing!
I just made these. They have a good flavor, but I am disappointed in the texture. They are not fudgy at all but are very cakey. I followed the directions completely, and I baked them for around 30 mins until set. Do you have any idea why they are not fudgy and what I need to do differently to make them fudgy?
Did you let the batter sit before baking?
Yes, I did. I did not have parchment paper, so I just sprayed the pan; however, I don’t think that would have made a difference. Do you think I should maybe bake them less? When I do the toothpick test, should I take them out when there is still some brownie sticking to the toothpick? I am going to try and make them again for a hot lunch at school, so I am just trying to figure out what to change. 😊
tiffany, i’ve read other zucchini brownie recipe comments stating the same thing. i will be trying these and will be adding some mayo. i do that to all my brownie and cake mixes, at least the chocolate ones. the mayo does make it a bit denser.
Making these now, they look amazing.little leery of no eggs, but gonna trust the process
These were very moist and yummy. I was leery that w/o eggs they would be dry. Make sure you follow directions and let batter sit, makes a world of difference!!
Yay! Trust the process….exactly 🙂
Yes, I did. I did not have parchment paper, so I just sprayed the pan; however, I don’t think that would have made a difference. Do you think I should maybe bake them less? When I do the toothpick test, should I take them out when there is still some brownie sticking to the toothpick? I am going to try and make them again for a hot lunch at school, so I am just trying to figure out what to change. 😊
Umm, yes, please! Seriously the best way to eat Zucchini, lol. I mean how can you go wrong with chocolate brownies and Zucchini. I love Zucchini bread, but these are even better!
Always so yummy to find new treat recipes to bake with zucchini. Our garden is exploding with it and my family has had enough. These brownies were so delicoius and perfectly textured. And really no zucchini flavor. Just perfect!
I love adding zucchini! It makes the cake so moist. I’ll take this over any dessert!
I normally don’t write reviews, but sorry, but these were not good. Very disappointed. I thought this would be a good way to use zucchinis. I found that the batter was SO dry I had to add an egg to add some moisture and hold things together. They had a very odd vegetable after-taste. The only good thing about them was the frosting. I wouldn’t call these brownies by any means, it was like a cake and a dry one at that.
These are baking right now…. So anxious to try them. Have to admit I’m a Betty Crocker brownie fan, …So just didn’t feel right not to add eggs….but I didn’t, we’ll see!
Delicious!!!!!
They weren’t that fudgy. ..I would give this a B-
These look amazing. Can’t wait to try them. Have you ever made them thicker in a 9 inch square pan? I luv thick brownies.
OMG this looked so good I had to try it and let me tell you, I am not disappointed at all! At first I was really worried because the batter was nothing but dry flour clumps, but once the zucchini was added, WOW! It smelled so nice when it was baking too. Brought some for the girls at work and got nothing but compliments and they couldn’t believe how moist it was and that you couldn’t taste the zucchini at all. If I had to rate this it would get 5/5 for taste, 5/5 for texture and 5/5 for easy.
**it’s more cake like then brownie but absolutely delicious**
Ha, so glad you loved it and stuck with the recipe and trusted me!!! Thanks for the sweet comment 🙂