Chocolate Chip Zucchini Cookies: Soft and Cakey

Chocolate chip zucchini cookies are soft and cakey by design, and the zucchini is the reason they stay that way for days. The risk with extra moisture is a flat, lacy cookie, so this recipe squeezes the shreds twice and chills the dough before it hits the tray. The batch makes 24 cookies and takes 67 minutes, most of that being the chill. One medium zucchini from the store is all you need, which makes this an easy year-round bake. It is a good way to use a bag of chocolate chips and a lone zucchini in the crisper drawer.

Why this works

• Zucchini keeps these cookies soft for days.
• Squeezing the shreds twice removes the water that would thin the dough.
• Chilling the dough 30 minutes makes it scoopable and keeps it from spreading into lace.
• Creaming the butter and both sugars until pale builds a light, cakey crumb.

The biggest worry with a vegetable cookie is texture, and this recipe answers it directly. The zucchini adds moisture, so the dough is built to handle it: squeezed hard, chilled and scooped cold. The cookie that comes out is soft in the middle with set edges, closer to a cake than a crisp tuile. If you like a crunchy cookie, this is not that cookie, and it is better to know up front.

What to know about the ingredients

You need 1 cup of shredded zucchini, from 1 medium zucchini. Use a box grater, then squeeze it dry in a clean kitchen towel, twice.

The dough uses 1/2 cup (1 stick) of softened butter, 1/2 cup of packed brown sugar and 1/2 cup of granulated sugar. The 2 cups of all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon and 1/2 teaspoon salt get whisked in a separate bowl. Semisweet chocolate chips, 1 cup, go in at the end. Use butter that is soft enough to dent with a finger, but not shiny or melting.

The shreds disappear into the dough, leaving only a few green flecks that read as part of the chocolate. Shred the zucchini fine for the least visible result. Both sugars have a job: brown sugar for chew and moisture, granulated sugar for a light crust on the edges. Use real vanilla extract if you have it, since there is little else in the dough to hide behind, and measure the baking soda level so it does not leave a metallic taste.

Chocolate Chip Zucchini Cookies

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Soft and cakey by design, with a chill step that stops the dough from spreading into lace.

Prep25 min

Cook12 min

Total1 hr 7 min

Serves24

Scale1x2x3x

Ingredients

• zucchini, shredded and squeezed dry — 1 cup (1 medium) (120 g)
• all-purpose flour — 2 cups (240 g)
• butter, softened — ½ cup (1 stick) (113 g)
• brown sugar, packed — ½ cup (110 g)
• granulated sugar — ½ cup (100 g)
• egg — 1 large (50 g)
• semisweet chocolate chips — 1 cup (170 g)
• vanilla extract — 1 teaspoon (5 ml)
• ground cinnamon — ½ teaspoon (2 g)
• baking soda — 1 teaspoon (5 g)
• salt — ½ teaspoon (3 g)

Instructions

1. Shred the zucchini, squeeze it dry in a clean kitchen towel, then squeeze it a second time. These are the shreds, 120 g (1 cup). Cookie dough has nowhere to put extra water.
2. Beat the butter with both sugars for 2 minutes, until the mixture looks pale and fluffy and holds a soft peak on the beater.
3. Beat in the egg and vanilla for 30 seconds, until fully combined. Stir in the shreds by hand.
4. Whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a separate bowl, then stir it into the dough until no dry flour shows. Fold in the chips.
5. Cover the bowl and chill 30 minutes. The dough goes from sticky to scoopable, and cold dough spreads less on the tray.
6. Heat the oven to 350 F (175 C) and line two sheet pans with parchment. Scoop 30 g (2 tablespoon) mounds, 12 per pan, spaced 2 inches (5 cm) apart.
7. Bake one pan at a time for 11 to 13 minutes, until the edges are set and lightly golden and the centers still look soft when the pan is tapped.
8. Cool on the pan 5 minutes, then move to a rack. They firm as they cool.

Nutrition per serving

146Calories

2 gProtein

21 gCarbs

6 gFat

Estimated per serving from standard nutrition reference values; will vary with brands and substitutions.

Tips for getting it right

1. Squeeze the zucchini twice. You should end up with 120 g (1 cup) of dry shreds.
2. Beat the butter and sugars for 2 minutes, until the mixture looks pale and fluffy and holds a soft peak on the beater.
3. Beat in the egg and vanilla for 30 seconds, then stir in the shreds by hand.
4. Stir in the flour mix until no dry flour shows, then fold in the chips. Cover and chill 30 minutes.
5. Scoop 30 g (2 tablespoon) mounds, 12 per pan, 2 inches (5 cm) apart, onto parchment-lined pans.
6. Bake one pan at a time at 350 F (175 C) for 11 to 13 minutes. Pull them while the centers still look soft, and cool 5 minutes on the pan before moving to a rack.

A cookie scoop makes the mounds even, which means they bake evenly. If you do not own one, use two spoons and aim for the same size each time. Leave room between the mounds, since they spread a little even when cold. Rotate the pan if your oven has hot spots, and do not overbake while waiting for the tops to look done. The centers should still look soft when you pull them, because they finish setting on the pan.

How to store, freeze and make ahead

Keep the cookies in an airtight container for 4 days. For longer storage, freeze the scooped mounds for up to 3 months and bake straight from frozen, adding 2 minutes to the bake time. That gives you warm cookies on a weeknight with almost no effort, since the work is already done.

What to serve with it

Eat them still warm from the sheet, tuck them in a lunchbox the next morning, or eat them frozen and cold. A glass of milk is the classic pairing. For a dessert plate with more chocolate, add a few squares of Fudgy Zucchini Brownies.

Variations

• Replace some of the chips with chopped nuts.
• Use dark chocolate chips for a deeper flavor.
• Add an extra pinch of cinnamon for a warmer taste.
• If you want something more breakfast-like, bake Cinnamon Zucchini Muffins, or go bigger with Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread.

For more recipes that make good use of zucchini, see Zucchini Recipes and Small-Batch Preserving.