This easy one-bowl zucchini bread is everything a quick bread should be: a soft, moist crumb, a crunchy demerara and pumpkin seed crust, and barely any washing up. The bread is baked and ready in under an hour with no special equipment and no squeezing out moisture!
If you've ever Googled "is zucchini the same as baby marrow", - yes, they are, and you're in exactly the right place. Baby marrow, kousa, courgette, and squash are the same vegetable family with different names depending on where in the world you are. But wherever you are, whatever you call it, any zucchini works perfectly in this recipe.
And here's the part that'll make you actually bake this easy one-bowl zucchini bread today: no squeezing out the moisture. Just grate it, add it straight to the bowl, and bake. One bowl, under an hour, with a crunchy demerara and pumpkin seed crust that makes this loaf worth making on repeat.
Ingredients
- Baby marrow (kousa): Any zucchini or courgette works just as well.
- Egg: One large, room temperature.
- Oil: You may use olive oil, sunflower oil, coconut oil, melted butter, or ghee; they all work beautifully.
- Sugar: Regular white granulated sugar.
- Cinnamon: Swap for cardamom or allspice if you prefer.
- Baking soda and baking powder
- Flour: All-purpose or plain flour.
- Demerara sugar and pumpkin seeds: Optional but highly recommended, as this gives the loaf its signature crunchy crust.
How to make it?
This recipe is adapted from Smitten Kitchen's Ultimate Zucchini Bread, and the technique is what makes it special. The leavening agents (baking soda and baking powder) go straight into the wet ingredients, which sounds wrong but works perfectly. No squeezing, one bowl, and the batter comes together in minutes.
I've halved Deb's original portions to fit an 8x4 loaf pan and tested it twice with different oils and sugar quantities. Both times, the crunchy crust and those little green specks of zucchini were the best part.
FAQs
Why you don't have to squeeze out the moisture
Most zucchini bread recipes ask you to wring out the grated zucchini before adding it to the batter. This one doesn't - and it's not a shortcut, it's intentional. The flour ratio is balanced to absorb the extra moisture from the zucchini during baking, making it a lifted loaf with a moist crumb rather than a dense one.
Can I make muffins instead of a loaf?
Yes, use the same batter and divide it into a standard muffin tin. Start checking at 20 minutes since muffins bake faster than a loaf. You should get around 4 to 5 muffins from this recipe.
If you love baking with fruit and veg, these ripe plantain muffins are made the same way, too.
Variations
I've tested this with olive oil, melted butter, and ghee - all work well. Melted butter gives the richest flavour, ghee adds a subtle nuttiness, and olive oil keeps it light. Sunflower or coconut oil works too if that's what you have on hand.
If you enjoy simple one-bowl loaves, Dominique Ansel's Banana Bread is made the same way.
More Related Recipes
Prefer a tangier loaf? Try my zucchini bread with buttermilk.
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📖 Recipe Card
Easy one-bowl Zucchini Bread (Baby marrow or Kousa)
Equipment
- 1 8x4 loaf pan
Ingredients
- 1 cup grated baby marrow (kousa), (grated using the large holes)
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- ⅓ cup cooking oil, (olive oil or melted butter or melted ghee)
- ½ cup white sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon powder , (or allspice or cardamom powder)
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, (maida)
- 1 tablespoon demerara , optional but recommended
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds, optional but recommended
Instructions
Prepare the pan
- Heat the oven to 175°C. Lightly grease and line an 8×4-inch loaf pan with baking paper.
Prepare the batter
- Place grated baby marrow in a large bowl and add oil, eggs, sugars, vanilla, and salt. Use a hand whisk to mix until combined.1 cup grated baby marrow (kousa) (grated using the large holes)1 large egg room temperature⅓ cup cooking oil (olive oil or melted butter or melted ghee)½ cup white sugar½ teaspoon salt1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Sieve the cinnamon powder, baking soda, and baking powder over the surface of the batter and whisk thoroughly. Sieve in the flour and fold until just combined.½ teaspoon cinnamon powder (or allspice or cardamom powder)½ teaspoon baking soda¼ teaspoon baking powder1 cup all-purpose flour (maida)
Bake the bread
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top. Sprinkle some raw or demerara sugar and pumpkin seeds.1 tablespoon demerara optional but recommended1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds optional but recommended
- Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until a toothpick test, comes out batter-free.
- Remove from the oven and let the bread cool completely in the pan. It is best served the next day or at least until it is completely cooled.
Serve and store
- Remove the bread and slice using a bread knife. Serve with tea or coffee. Store any leftover slices in an airtight box. This bread stays good for 3 to 4 days at room temperature. But you may refrigerate during warmer days.
Famidha Ashraf says
I love how baby marrow, which is called kousa here, makes this loaf incredibly moist. It’s my favourite way to use up garden-fresh baby marrow that are perfect with a cup of tea. I hope you enjoy this hidden-veggie treat as much as I do!
Susanne aurich says
One cup on flour makes this a very small loaf? Also 1 cup does not equal 250g , cups purely measure volume so it depends on the ingredient. If you weigh a cup of coins it’s way more then 250g or if you weigh wheat bran it is way less . What is baby marrow? Marrow is zucchini ripen long so that the peel goes hard. There is no baby marrow.
Famidha Ashraf says
Hi Susanne, This recipe makes one shy 8x4 loaf. You can bake in 4 muffin holes, if you prefer. The reason I mentioned 1 cup=250ml is because that is what is inscribed on my measurement cup set. 1/2 cup=125ml etc. I understand it is different in the other side of the world. I agree with you that measure by volume and weight are different for different ingredients. But as mentioned in the notes, I measured using a cup that is 1 cup / 250ml but by just scooping and levelling. Not an ideal way to measure for failproof bakes but this is a homestyle cooking. And lastly, baby marrow and zucchini are same family. I will try to update the post with an image of baby marrow aka courgette or kousa in arabic. But google is your friend.Thank you for taking the time to share your comment.