Zucchini Bread

Preheat your oven to 175°C (350°F) with the rack positioned in the middle. Grease a 9x5 inch (23x13cm) metal loaf pan with nonstick spray or softened butter, then line the bottom and long sides with an overhanging parchment paper sling for easy removal after baking. Grate unpeeled zucchini on the large holes of a box grater, transfer to a clean kitchen towel, and squeeze firmly over the sink to remove 60-75ml (1/4-1/3 cup) of excess moisture to prevent soggy bread. Set squeezed zucchini aside.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine 240g spooned-and-leveled all-purpose flour, 5g (1 tsp) baking soda, 2g (1/2 tsp) baking powder, 3g (1/2 tsp) fine sea salt, 4g (2 tsp) ground cinnamon, and 0.5g (1/4 tsp) ground nutmeg. Whisk vigorously for 30 seconds until all leaveners and spices are evenly distributed throughout the flour, with no visible clumps of spice remaining. Set the dry mixture aside.

In a large mixing bowl, add 150g (3/4 cup) granulated white sugar, 100g (1/2 cup, packed) light brown sugar, 120ml (1/2 cup) neutral vegetable oil, 2 room-temperature large eggs, 60ml (1/4 cup) whole-milk plain Greek yogurt, and 5ml (1 tsp) pure vanilla extract. Whisk by hand or with an electric mixer on low speed for 1 minute until the mixture is smooth, glossy, and fully combined, with no streaks of unincorporated egg remaining.

Add the entire dry ingredient mixture to the wet mixture all at once, and use a rubber spatula to fold gently just until 2-3 dry flour streaks remain. Add the squeezed grated zucchini and 75g (2/3 cup) toasted chopped walnuts (if using), and continue folding only until no dry flour is visible. Do not overmix, as this will create a dense, tough loaf; the finished batter will be thick and flecked with bright green zucchini.

Scrape the batter evenly into the prepared loaf pan, smoothing the top with your spatula. Place on the middle oven rack and bake for 50-55 minutes at 175°C (350°F). Test for doneness by inserting a wooden toothpick into the center of the loaf—it should come out with 2-3 moist crumbs attached, not coated in wet batter. If the top browns too quickly before the center sets, tent the pan loosely with aluminum foil after 35 minutes of baking.

Once fully baked, remove the pan from the oven and set it on a wire cooling rack for 20 minutes to rest in the pan. Use the overhanging parchment sling to lift the loaf out of the pan, then set it directly on the wire rack to cool for an additional 30 minutes before slicing. This resting period allows the crumb to set, preventing crumbly, broken slices.