Buttery and cheesy Zucchini Beer Bread is an easy, no-yeast bread made with asiago cheese, hoppy beer, and a touch of honey! The zucchini keeps the bread moist, while the melted butter bakes into the top creating an irresistible crispy crust.
Why I Love This Easy Quick Bread
I was whipping up a batch of my favorite beer bread last weekend and I started wondering what would happen if I added cheese and zucchini. One grated zucchini later and we were gobbling down slices of this warm and crusty zucchini beer bread! It’s so good, we have already made it three more times! Here’s why I think you will also love this bread:
- Quick and Easy: Ready in just over an hour with no yeast needed. All you have to do is stir the batter, pour it into the pan, top with melted butter, and bake!
- Flavorful: Zucchini keeps the bread moist, while asiago cheese and beer add rich flavor and the honey adds a touch of sweetness.
- Simple Ingredients: Uses common pantry staples for a fuss-free quick bread!
- Perfect Crust: The melted butter bakes into the top of the bread and creates a deliciously crispy and buttery crust.
Key Ingredients
Below you will find helpful notes for key ingredients used to make this cheesy zucchini beer bread. Scroll down to the recipe card below for the full ingredient list and exact amounts!
- Asiago Cheese: While I used asiago cheese, shredded parmesan, or cheddar cheese would also work great in this bread!
- Beer: Add your favorite medium bodied lager style beer, I used a bottle of Modelo.
- Honey: Raw honey or agave nectar is best. If you don’t have honey, you can add 1/4 cup granulated sugar instead.
- Zucchini: You can grate the zucchini yourself or purchase already made Zoodles (zucchini noodles) in the produce section. If using zoodles, I recommend chopping them so you don’t have super long strands of zucchini.
- Chives: You can also use green onions.
What’s The Best Beer To Use?
All kinds of beer work for this recipe, but I prefer light-colored types over dark ones. Pilsners, lagers, and pale ale’s are my favorite because they add plenty of wheat and malt-based flavor without overpowering the rest of the ingredients.
How To Make Cheesy Zucchini Beer Bread
It’s just like making your favorite savory loaf, but the beer helps the bread rise. Below is a quick recipe overview, but please scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post for full instructions.
- Prep the oven: Preheat it and grease a loaf pan with cooking spray. Set it aside.
- Mix the dry ingredients: Whisk all of the dry ingredients, cheese, and zucchini in a bowl.
- Make the batter: Fold in the beer, honey, and chives until a loose dough comes together.
- Fill the pan: Spread out the batter in the pan and top it with melted butter.
- Bake it: Pop it into the oven until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Serve: Remove it from the oven and let it cool slightly. Slice and serve the bread with butter and honey. Enjoy!
Cook’s Tips & Variations
- Add bacon: Cook 4-5 bacon strips and crumble them. Fold it into the batter and bake as usual for a smokey, crunchy bite.
- No need to strain: Use zucchini as is; the moisture gives the bread the perfect texture.
- Swap the cheese: Shredded cheddar, Muenster, gouda, or a Mexican cheese blend are all delicious in this beer bread recipe.
- Make muffins: Grease a muffin tray and pour the batter into each cavity until 3/4s full. Bake for 17 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Fresh herbs: Add extra flavor by stirring in some freshly minced herbs like rosemary or thyme.
- Make it alcohol-free: Swap the beer for a 0% alcohol beer, ginger beer, or milk.
- Cover with foil: Lightly cover the top of the bread with foil if the top darkens too quickly.
Serving Suggestions
- Chili: You can’t go wrong with serving this zucchini beer bread with a bowl of crockpot chicken chili or my 30-minute easy chili!
- Protein: Smothered pork chops, my hearty instant pot pot roast, or baked lemon pepper chicken will all pair well with this quick bread.
- Soup: Try serving it with a bowl of my comforting cabbage roll soup or this classic chicken stew!
Cheesy Zucchini Beer Bread
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup shredded asiago cheese, or cheddar cheese
- 12 oz beer
- ¼ cup honey, or 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup shredded zucchini, about 1 large or 2 small zucchini
- 2 tablespoons chopped chives
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Generously butter a 9×5 loaf pan and set aside.
- In a medium size bowl, whisk to combine the flour, baking powder, salt, garlic powder, onion powder and black pepper. Add the cheese and zucchini and toss to coat.
- Mix in the beer, honey and chives using a wooden spoon, just until a dough ball forms. The dough will be sticky, do not over mix.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan, spreading the dough to fill the bottom of the pan. Top with the melted butter.
- Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, until baked through and a toothpick in the center of the loaf comes out clean. Let the bread rest for 5 minutes before removing it from the loaf pan. If your bread starts to darken too much on top while baking, cover lightly with foil.
- Let rest for 10 minutes, them remove from loaf pan. Serve warm, with butter and honey, if desired.