To store zucchini bread, cover it with aluminum foil or plastic wrap and keep it at room temperature for three days.
For longer longevities, seal it in an airtight container and keep it for a week in the refrigerator, or place it in a freezer bag and store it for up to 6 months in the freezer.
Zucchini bread is easy to make and delicious to enjoy. It is considered a healthy snack and can make up an easy-to-digest breakfast. So, in this article, we will provide you with detailed instructions on how to store zucchini bread and the easiest but delicious recipe to treat your family.
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Storing Zucchini Bread
Typically, there are three ways to preserve the bread resulting in three different lifetimes. Also, all the longevities given below are based on homemade bread with no preservation. As for commercial products, they can last way longer due to specific brands.
Store zucchini bread at room temperature (up to 3 days)
Cover the bread tightly with aluminum foil or plastic wrap or put it in an airtight container, then keep it at an average temperature for up to three days. Ensure the conditions below.
- It doesn’t access the air. Otherwise, it will get dry and stale real quick as the air moisture will encourage bacteria growth.
- It is not exposed to direct sunlight or any heat sources like the stove or the fireplace.
Store zucchini bread in the refrigerator (up to 1 week)
As most types of bread dry out in the fridge, you may wonder if you can store zucchini bread in the refrigerator? The answer is yes, providing you seal it tightly.
To preserve it in the refrigerator, place it in an airtight container or cover it entirely with a plastic bag or plastic wrap. Then you can keep it in the fridge for up to a week.
Store zucchini bread in the freezer (up to 6 months)
To freeze zucchini bread, let it cool down, wrap it in foil or plastic wrap, and place it in a freezer bag or specialized food storage container. In this way, you can keep it in the freezer for up to six months and enjoy the taste of the summer all year round.
Tips: If you don’t plan to eat the whole bread at once, consider cutting it into slices and wrap them separately before putting them in the container.
Health Benefits of Zucchini Bread
Is zucchini bread healthy? The answer depends on the recipe. Since zucchini is an excellent source of nutrition, it will make up a healthy recipe with suitable components. Below are the health benefits of homemade zucchini bread without much sugar, butter, or preservative.
- Promote eye health: The lutein and zeaxanthin in the skin of the veggie support eye health and eyesight.
- May improve heart health: Pectin, one type of fiber in the veggie, helps in reducing cholesterol levels. Also, potassium in this veggie helps reduce blood pressure and lower the risk of heart disease.
- Provide vitamins and fibers: The veggie is rich in vitamin A, B, C, K and essential trace elements like iron, calcium, and zinc.
- Help in weight loss: Zucchini provides few calories, an average of 20 calories per cup. Whole wheat and whole-grain zucchini bread are two of the best healthy recipes for this veggie.
A Good Recipe to Try
Things to prepare (for a 9×5 inch loaf)
- 2 cups of shredded zucchini with the skin (300 to 400g)
- 1,5 cups all-purpose flour or whole wheat flour for healthier
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ cup oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking power
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon (optional)
- ½ cup apple sauce (optional)
- Chocolate chips or grains (optional)
- A 9×5 inch loaf pan.
Step-by-step guide
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a big bowl, well-combine shredded zucchini, eggs, sugar, oil, and vanilla until smooth. Then, add the rest materials into the mixture and stir them until no dry flour is left.
- Slightly wet the pan with the oil and pour the mixture into it. Then bake for about 50 to 60 minutes.
- Check the baking state by insert a toothpick or cake tester into the cake. Once it comes out with no crumbs, the bread is ready.
- Take the pan out of the oven, let it cool down in 10 to 15 minutes, and then relocate it to a wire cooling rack.
Benefits of Baking with Zucchini
- An excellent substitute for many ingredients: In baking, it adds moistness and lots of nutrition to baked goods, thus be an excellent alternative to carrot, banana, and applesauce in cake, bread, and muffin recipes.
- Combine well with almost everything: The veggie has a super mild flavor to harmonize with any ingredients. Hence, you can use it to bulk up the cake without the fear of affecting the taste.
- Replace the oil: Its natural moistness functions similarly to the oil in baking. Thus, it is an ideal substitute for oil in many recipes. For a cup of oil, use 1 cup of shredded zucchini.
Keeping Your Zucchini Bread Moist
There are two principles to keep the bread moist: add more moistness when making it and keep it away from the air when storing.
- When making: You should prefer moist-rich components to add more moistness to the bread. For instance, use brown sugar or honey instead of white sugar and add additional zucchini to utilize its moist content. Applesauce is also a great ingredient that encourages keeping moist.
- When storing: No matter you want to keep it overnight or for a long time, always keep it from prolonged exposure to the air, as mentioned in the storing section above.
How Long Is Zucchini Bread Good For In The Refrigerator?
With proper preservation, the bread can last up to a week in the refrigerator. To maximize its life, keep freshly baked bread in a cool, dry place and let it cool down entirely before storing it in the fridge.
Still, its longevity can change due to specific conditions like the materials used and the humidity level. How to know if the bread has gone bad? Check its smell and look at its surface. Once there are weird smells or mold, do something before it’s too late.
How Do You Keep Zucchini Bread From Getting Soggy?
Most soggy bread cases come from the recipe, in which there is too much moist content in proportion to dry ingredients. Besides, leaving the mixture too long before baking is a reason for soggy bread.
To avoid soggy bread:
- Let the zucchini drain or squeeze it if there are many moist-rich ingredients already in the recipe.
- Don’t let the mixture wait for too long before cooking.
- Put the freshly baked one on a wire cooling rack after removing it from the pan. In this way, the hot bottom part can access the air and decrease the risk of soggy.
To fix soggy bread, bake it one more time. Cut it into 1-inch pieces and bake in the oven until fully baked. Or, if you want to bake the whole thing, tent the pan with foil to avoid the bottom side from turning brown.
What Should I Wrap Zucchini Bread In?
To store it at room temperature, wrap it with foil or plastic wrap or put it in an airtight container.
To refrigerate it, put it in a well-sealed bag or container. Or, if you don’t have them, use foil or plastic wrap.
To freeze it, tightly cover the whole bread or slice with plastic wrap, then put it in a freezer bag or freezer container.