Whether you have a bumper crop of zucchini in your vegetable garden, or just enjoy this yummy summer treat, you are going to love this delicious zucchini coffee cake recipe. It is such an easy zucchini recipe for a quick and healthy summer breakfast! So if you are looking for recipes that use zucchini, you will love this recipe that will have you baking with zucchini. Even picky eaters will love this zucchini crumb cake!

Zucchini Coffee Cake

Do you grown any plants in your backyard? My husband always says I have a green thumb because I didn’t grow up on a farm or with a backyard garden, in fact I grew up in an apartment on the 4th floor in Madrid, Spain!  But ever since we got our first home, I was excited to grow my own healthy veggies and my garden has steadily grown in size and quality every year. One of the first things ready from our summer garden are the zucchini plants that produce prolifically! This recipe is more than just an excuse to use up extra zucchini! This zucchini coffee cake has an amazing flavor and a delicious topping that make it a family favorite recipe in our house!

Zucchini Coffee Cake Recipe

To make this healthy zucchini cake, start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees F.

Zucchini crumb cake

Now, in a large bowl scoop 1 and 1/2 cups packed brown sugar. You can use light or dark brown sugar, whatever you have on hand!

Next add the wet ingredients to your brown sugar:

• 1/3 cup oil – we use canola/coconut blend for health reasons, but vegetable oil works well too
• 1 cup milk – we use whole organic milk, but whatever you have on hand will work
• 1 large egg – yep, our egg is green! It came from our backyard flock; we have one that naturally lays green / blue eggs.

Baking with zucchini

Now it’s time to add in the following ingredients and mix well.

• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Lemon zucchini coffee cake

Next zest 1 medium-large lemon (or orange if you prefer). It’s really not complicated to grate the peel and it will give it an amazing FLAVOR! If you don’t have anything on hand, you can skip this step, but it give the cake a really great depth of flavor!

HINT: You can squeeze the juice from the lemon to make lemon bars, add to a glass of water, or another favorite recipe that uses fresh lemon juice.

Recipes Using Zucchini

Finally, add in 2 and 1/2 cups all purpose flour and about 1 and 1/2 cups fresh, grated zucchini.

You will love that if your kids don’t see you add in this healthy vegetable to your cake, they won’t even be able to taste it!

HINT: You can add 1/4 – 1/2 cup cocoa powder to make a truly spectacular chocolate zucchini bread that will completely hide the green zucchini remnants and delight your kids!

Streusal Topping

You can make the yummy streusel topping before you make the homemade breakfast cake or after. To make the coffee bread topping you are going to mix the following in a separate bowl

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup instant oats (also known as quick oats)

Healthy coffee cake

Then cut in 1/2 cup butter using a pastry blender (like you would use to make a pie crust) or two knives until well blended into little pea size pieces.

We use organic salted Target or Costco brand.

Now butter or spray your 9×13 baking pan so your cake doesn’t stick.

Spread 1/2 of your batter in the prepared pan, then sprinkle with 1/2 of your topping mixture. Pour on the remaining batter and spread to even out. Sprinkle with the remaining topping.

Zucchini Cinnamon Coffee Cake

Put your Zucchini Coffee Cake in the oven at 350 F for 40 minutes.

Zucchini Cake Recipe

Oooooh it is smelling fantastic and looks so yummy…. but give it 5-10 minutes to cool before cutting and serving it up.

Now it’s time to cut your coffee cake into about 12 slices!

This easy zucchini breakfast cake is moist and super flavorful. My family loves the streusel topping and spongy cake that takes zucchini bread to a whole new level! Serve with coffee or a glass of orange juice and you have a nutritious, balanced breakfast recipe your whole family will look forward to!

Zucchini crumb cake

This zucchini coffee cake recipe will become a new favorite at your house. It is delicious, uses up zucchini, and the lemon gives it a special little something!

Zucchini Coffee Cake Recipe

Beth Gorden

Enjoy summer favorite zucchini fresh from the garden or grocery store with this tasty Zucchini Coffee Cake Recipe.

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Course bread, Breakfast

Cuisine American

Servings 10 servings

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 cup oil (I use canola / coconut blend)
• 1 large egg
• 1 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspooon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 cup zucchini, shredded and patted dry
• 1 medium lemon, zested (optional)

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350 F. Mix all cake ingredients. In a separate bowl mix up the topping and cut in the butter. Grease a 9x13 pan and put in 1/2 the cake batter and sprinkle with 1/2 the topping. Repeat by adding another layer with the remaining batter and sprinkle with the remaining topping. Bake for 40 minutes. Allow to cool 5-10 minutes before serving.