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Carrot Cake Zucchini Bread

Carrot cake zucchini bread is a warmly spiced vegetable quick bread loaf that bakes up tender with grated carrots and zucchini. It’s topped with a thick, swirled cream cheese frosting for a two-bakes-in-one flavor with a soft crumb and cinnamon warmth.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
cooling 20 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 40 minutes
Servings: 10 servings
Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Carrot cake zucchini bread
  • 1.5 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 0.5 tsp baking powder
  • 0.5 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 0.25 tsp ginger
  • 0.25 tsp nutmeg
  • 0.75 cup brown sugar, packed
  • 2 eggs
  • 0.33 cup vegetable oil
  • 0.25 cup Greek yogurt
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 0.75 cup zucchini, grated and squeezed dry
  • 0.75 cup carrots, finely grated
  • 0.5 cup raisins or pecans (optional)
Cream Cheese Frosting
  • 4 oz cream cheese
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 tbsp milk

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan
  • 1 cast iron skillet

Method
 

Prep the loaf pan and preheat
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F and grease a 9x5 loaf pan. Set it aside for batter assembly.
Mix the dry ingredients
  1. Whisk all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg together. Mix until spices are evenly distributed with no visible clumps.
Mix the wet ingredients
  1. Beat brown sugar, eggs, vegetable oil, Greek yogurt, and vanilla extract until smooth. The mixture should look glossy and fully combined.
Add vegetables
  1. Stir in grated and squeezed-dry zucchini and finely grated carrots. Mix just until vegetables are coated.
Combine and add optional mix-ins
  1. Fold dry ingredients into the wet mixture until just combined. Fold in raisins or pecans if using, and stop as soon as no dry streaks remain (visual cue: batter looks thick and uniform).
Bake
  1. Bake at 350°F for 55–65 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. If needed, rotate the pan halfway through for even browning.
Cool and frost
  1. Cool the loaf completely before frosting. Let it rest at room temperature until fully set (visual cue: frosting-ready loaf surface is no longer warm).
  2. Beat cream cheese softened, powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk until smooth, then spread generously over the cooled loaf. Swirl across the top for a thick, slightly textured finish.

Notes

Pro tip: squeeze the grated zucchini very well so the loaf bakes with a tender, not gummy, crumb. Store covered in the refrigerator up to 4 days; freeze the unfrosted loaf up to 2 months (thaw overnight in the fridge, then frost). For a lighter option, use 0% Greek yogurt—texture stays close, but the flavor may be slightly less rich.