Protein Zucchini Bread

Meet my new obsession: protein zucchini bread made with peanut butter and sprinkled with mini chocolate chips.

This bread is the end product of a stress baking/cooking day. Some people deal with stress by going for a run, treating themselves to a massage, or drinking wine. I bake.

I’ve had mixed results with using zucchini in anything baked: breads, muffins, lasagnas, quiches, you name it. And that’s largely because zucchini holds a lot of water. But over the past year or so, I’ve gotten a technique down for using sliced zucchini: wrap in paper towels, place in a colander, squeeze the heck out of it and repeat. Yes, it may mean going through a few paper towels, but it’s so worth it to not end up with a liquidy final product.

When I saw this Grain Free Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Zucchini Bread over at Ambitious Kitchen, it felt like a meant-to-be baking moment. As I mentioned in a recent post, I’ve been trying to up my protein intake lately, especially in snacks. And as much as I love my Greek yogurts and nutrition bars, I’m a sucker for quick breads and muffins. This zucchini bread is the perfect marriage of quick bread and healthy snack, as there’s plenty of healthy fats and filling protein going on. Oh, and there’s veggies. Can’t forget about that ;).

I adjusted the original recipe a bit based on my experiences with making protein bars and other quick breads. The most important difference is slowly adding in the protein powder. Different brands of protein powder absorb liquid very differently. As a result, I recommend mixing all the liquid ingredients first and then slowly adding in the protein powder, until the batter is thick but still liquidy. I used my vanilla Sun Warrior vegan protein powder, which really absorbs liquid. I found two leveled scoops to be perfect (56 grams). The other two differences are more minor: I added a pinch of salt to bring out the sweetness of the maple syrup more and used mini chocolate chips. Mini chips are perfect for baking as you can use a smaller amount but get more chocolate-filled bites.

If you aren’t a fan of baking with protein powder, but are still interested in a low-carb zucchini bread, be sure to check out the original post over at Ambitious Kitchen for ways to alter the recipe.

By the time you’re reading this post, Bry and I will be on a train going from Bergen to Oslo. It’ll also mark our trip being more than half way over :(. As sad as I’ll be to leave, I’ll be looking forward to sharing all my eats and adventures with you all next week!