Pioneer Woman Zucchini Carrot Bread

Pioneer Woman Zucchini Carrot Bread is a moist, warmly spiced quick bread made with shredded zucchini, shredded carrots, brown sugar, vegetable oil, and cinnamon, ready in about an hour with 15 minutes of hands-on work.

This starts with Ree’s Zucchini Bread from thepioneerwoman.com and folds in shredded carrots the same way she adds them to Sigrid’s Carrot Cake on Food Network. Both recipes share the same mixing method, spices, and oven temperature, so combining them is a straight swap.

Squeezing the moisture out of the shredded zucchini before adding it to the batter is the make-or-break step. Skip it and the extra water turns the center of the loaf gummy and dense, no matter how long you leave it in the oven.

Pioneer Woman Zucchini Carrot Bread

Author: Mohamed Shili Cooking Method:Baking Cuisine:American Courses:Bread Snacks

Difficulty:BeginnerPrep time: 15 minutesCook time: 55 minutesRest time: 30 minutesTotal time:1 hour 40 minutesServings:10 servingsCalories:290 kcal Best Season:Available

Description

Shredded zucchini and carrots disappear into a cinnamon-spiced batter that bakes into a tall, golden loaf with a crackly sugar top. One bowl, no mixer, and two vegetables hidden in every slice.

Ingredients

• Butter or cooking spray, for greasing the pan
• 1 cup (packed) shredded zucchini (about 1 medium)
• 1/2 cup (packed) shredded carrots (about 1 large)
• 2 large eggs
• 1/3 cup (80ml) vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup (100g) packed light brown sugar
• 2/3 cup (135g) granulated sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cups (220g) all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 2 tbsp coarse sugar, for topping
• 1/2 cup (55g) chopped walnuts or pecans, optional

Instructions

1. Prep the pan. Preheat the oven to 350F (180C). Grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan with butter or cooking spray and line with overhanging parchment.
2. Squeeze the zucchini dry. Place the shredded zucchini in a clean kitchen towel or several layers of paper towels. Squeeze firmly until no more liquid drips out, about 30 seconds of solid pressure.
3. Mix the wet ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and vanilla until smooth.
4. Combine the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg together.
5. Fold wet into dry. Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture and fold with a spatula until just combined. Do not overmix.
6. Add the vegetables. Fold in the squeezed zucchini and shredded carrots until evenly distributed. If using nuts, fold them in now.
7. Top and bake. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smooth the top, and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 50 to 55 minutes.
8. Cool before slicing. Let the loaf sit in the pan for 10 minutes, then lift out using the parchment and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Keywords:Pioneer Woman Zucchini Carrot Bread, Zucchini Carrot Bread, Sigrid’s Carrot Cake, Zucchini Bread

FAQs

Why squeeze the zucchini but not the carrots?

Zucchini is mostly water and releases a lot of liquid into the batter as it bakes, which can make the center soggy. Carrots are much denser and drier, so they hold their moisture inside instead of leaking it into the crumb.

If you skip squeezing the zucchini, you will need to add baking time and the texture still won’t be right. Thirty seconds of wringing in a towel saves you from a wet, underbaked center.

Why does Ree use both baking soda and baking powder in this loaf?

Baking soda reacts with the natural acidity in the brown sugar and vegetables for an initial lift, while baking powder provides a second rise from the oven heat. Together they give the loaf enough height to dome above the pan without going flat.

Using only one leavener changes the texture. Baking soda alone can leave a metallic taste if there isn’t enough acid to balance it, and baking powder alone doesn’t brown the crust as well.

What does the coarse sugar topping actually do?

The large sugar crystals don’t melt fully during baking, so they create a sweet, crunchy crust on top of the loaf. This contrast matters because the inside is so soft and moist from the vegetables.

Regular granulated sugar melts and disappears into the batter. Turbinado or demerara sugar works best here because the crystals are large enough to hold their shape through a full hour in the oven.

Can you taste the vegetables in the finished bread?

Not really. The zucchini melts into the crumb and adds moisture without any squash flavor. The carrots add a faint sweetness that blends with the cinnamon and brown sugar, similar to how they taste in Ree’s carrot cake.

Kids who refuse vegetables at dinner will eat this bread without knowing it contains two of them. The shredding breaks the vegetables down so fine that they vanish into the texture completely.

How should you store this bread so it stays moist?

Wrap the cooled loaf tightly in plastic wrap and keep it on the counter for up to 3 days. The zucchini and carrots hold moisture inside the crumb, so it actually tastes better on day two than fresh out of the oven.

For longer storage, slice the loaf first, wrap individual slices in plastic and then foil, and freeze for up to 3 months. Toast frozen slices for about 2 minutes and they come back soft and warm.