I’ve teamed up with Kingsford® and Glad® to bring you today’s sweet treat! My family has been using their charcoal for our summer weekend grilling and plastic containers for storing our leftovers since before I was born. We love them!
Nearly every summer weekend throughout my childhood, my parents invited one of our best family friends, a couple from across town, over for a backyard barbeque. They showed up in the late afternoon with plenty of time to chat and catch up before starting to prepare the food.
Eventually, Dad and the husband wandered out to the back patio, carrying that iconic blue-and-white bag of charcoal and setting it down next to the grill before scrubbing off the remnants from our last barbeque from the grill. As a purist, Dad always cooked with charcoal (never gas!) because we all loved the hint of smoky flavor that permeated into the food.
While the coals began heating, Mom and the wife headed into the kitchen to pull out cutting boards and serving platters. Mom usually shaped hamburger patties for my brother and me, then set out a few salmon fillets for Dad to season (he almost always generously coated them with a spicy Cajun blend!), although sometimes the adults opted for burgers topped with freshly sliced cheddar instead. While Mom worked, the wife tossed together a healthy salad or slid chopped veggies onto skewers to throw onto the grill, too.
Once Dad spread the coals across the bottom grate, we helped carry the platters of meat and veggies outside. About twenty minutes later, my brother and I set the patio table with spots for six, and shortly after, we all sat down to eat as Dad flipped the last burger off of the grill.
When everyone had scraped the last lingering grill-marked bites of salmon and zucchini off of their plates, my brother and I helped clear the table while Mom sealed the leftovers inside of plastic containers in the kitchen to pop into the fridge or send home with our guests. Then came dessert (my favorite part!), which usually consisted of big bowls of ice cream while sitting on the patio soaking in the last few rays of sunshine.
With the days growing longer and the warm weather already here in California, we started wiping the winter dust off of the grill to cook dinners outdoors again at the end of last month. At the end of one of our meals, I decided to try something a little different than our usual dessert… This Dark Chocolate Drizzled Grilled Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread was the result—and a huge hit!
To start, you’ll need a loaf of my favorite zucchini bread recipe. My family and friends call it the best zucchini bread they’ve ever had! And for a good reason… It’s really tender, full of cozy spices (and chocolate!), and packed with fresh zucchini. It’s the perfect treat for summer’s zucchini season, and it can be our little secret that it’s so easy and healthy!
The dark chocolate drizzle is even easier! Simply mix together cocoa powder, pure maple syrup, and milk in a small bowl. Then transfer to a zip-topped bag, and wait to snip off one tiny corner until you’re ready to serve. You’ll just need regular ol’ unsweetened cocoa powder for the drizzle—no need for Dutched or special dark! The drizzle already tastes really dark chocolaty without those latter two options.
I used to be slightly intimidated by grilling (mostly because I tend to be a klutz and didn’t want to combine that with hot coals!), but once I tried it a few times with my dad, I was amazed at just how easy it is! He patiently walked me through the whole process each time, so that’s what I’m going to do with you too!
First, you’ll fill the chimney with Dad’s favorite Kingsford Original Briquets (the same ones he’s been using since before I was born!). Stuff some crumpled newspapers underneath, and light those with a match or long-nosed lighter. You’ll only need to wait about 15-25 minutes for them to completely heat up, depending on how many charcoal briquets you add to the chimney, before inverting the chimney and spreading the coals across the bottom grill grate.
Next, cover the grill with the lid, leaving the holes open to let in a little air. This allows the coals to cool off a little and reach the same temperature as their neighbors so you don’t have one area of scorching hot coals and another of mostly hot. We want our food to cook as evenly as possible without burning it!
To grill the slices of zucchini bread, coat the top side of each slice with cooking spray, as well as the main grate of the barbeque. With each spray of the grate, you’ll see a burst of flames shoot up from the coals underneath, so be careful! Using tongs or a spatula, place each slice on the grate with the cooking spray side facing upward, and let it cook briefly until that bottom side is toasted. Then flip, let the other side toast, and you’re done!
Wasn’t that easy?
If you happen to have leftovers like us (our eyes always seem to be bigger than our stomachs… and four people probably shouldn’t eat twelve slices of zucchini bread anyway!), then simply seal those inside of plastic containers to enjoy later. I love these Glad ones that I found in their MatchWare Variety Pack! They come in cute colors and multiple different sizes, and their tight-fitting lids ensure that those extra zucchini bread slices stay fresh for days. I bought the containers at Walmart, along with the Kingsford charcoal and all of the ingredients I needed for the zucchini bread, too!
Sweet ice cream, rich chocolate, melty chips… Who’s ready to dig in??
Dark Chocolate Drizzled Grilled Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread | | Print |
- 2 tbsp (10g) unsweetened cocoa powder (measured like this)
- 1 tbsp (15mL) nonfat milk
- 1 tsp pure maple syrup
- 1 loaf whole wheat chocolate chip zucchini bread, cut into 12 slices
- vanilla frozen yogurt or ice cream, for serving (optional)
- To prepare the drizzle, stir together the cocoa powder, milk, and maple syrup in a small bowl. Transfer the mixture to a zip-topped bag, and set aside.
- To grill the zucchini bread, place a charcoal chimney on the bottom grate of a barbeque grill. Fill the chimney halfway full with Kingsford Original Briquets. Add 3-5 pieces of crumbled newspaper under the chimney. Light the newspaper with a match or long-nosed lighter. Let the briquets heat up for 20 minutes.
- Invert the chimney, and spread the briquets across the center of the bottom grate in an even layer using metal tongs or a metal spatula. Place the top grilling grate into the barbeque. Place the barbeque lid on top, leaving the air vent open, and let the briquets sit for 10 minutes.
- Lightly coat the top side of each slice of zucchini bread with nonstick cooking spray. Remove the barbeque lid, and carefully coat the top grate with nonstick cooking spray. Set the slices of zucchini bread onto the top grate over the briquets with the cooking spray side facing up. Let the slices cook for 2-3 minutes, or until lightly toasted, before flipping with a metal spatula or tongs. Cook the second side another 2-3 minutes, or until lightly toasted. Remove the zucchini bread from the grill.
- Just before serving, cut off a tiny corner of the chocolate sauce bag. Drizzle on top of the zucchini bread, and top with ice cream, if desired.
- Seal any leftover slices of zucchini bread in Glad Matchware Food Storage Containers, and refrigerate for up to 1 week.
Honey or agave may be substituted for the pure maple syrup.
For a sweeter drizzle, substitute additional pure maple syrup for some of the nonfat milk (the same amount).
If grilling the zucchini bread after cooking entrées and/or vegetables, skip Steps 2 and 3. Scrape off any lingering food remnants with a metal brush before coating the top grilling grate with cooking spray in Step 4.
Depending on how hot your briquets are, the cooking times may vary. The zucchini bread is done when it’s toasted and you can see faint grill marks.
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, low calorie}
This post was sponsored by Kingsford Charcoal and Glad. As always, the text, photographs, recipe, and opinions are all my own.
Whoa, GRILLED?! 🙂 Takin’ it to the next level!! Your whole wheat chocolate chip zucchini bread is one of my favorites, I’m going to have to make this when I go home next weekend because I’m sure that grilled flavor is AMAZING! Would it work even without a charcoal grill?
Oh my gosh Marina, I’m so touched that you called my zucchini bread recipe one of your favorites! That means so much to me! ❤️ We’re a family of BBQ purists (it all comes from my dad! ?), so I don’t have any experience with gas grills… But I’m guessing it should work without a charcoal grill! I’d love to hear what you think if you try that!
Grilled bread!?! You’ve taken this to an entirely new level. I love grilling season, but would never have thought to grill the bread.
Thanks Brittany! That means a lot to me. I know how much you like to cook healthy food! 🙂
I never thought of grilling a bread before, but this one worth a try. Thank you for sharing!
I’d love to hear what you think if you try it Earl!
Wow, I did a double- take when I read the title of this recipe- grilling zucchini bread, what a fun idea! I bet that char takes it to a whole new level!
Thanks Andrea! I bet your hubby would be happy to grill it with you this summer! 😉
wow this is genious! i LOVE anything zucchini – i always look forward to using my zucchini that i can HOPEFULLY grow towards delish things such as this! and combining the grill which i also love is awesome! can’t wait to try this!
Thanks Marti! Someday when I have my own garden, I’d love to grow my own zucchini… And basil, and cherry tomatoes, and snap peas, and… The list goes on and on. 😉 I can’t wait to hear what you think of the grilled zucchini bread! 🙂
I love zucchini so much! Love this recipe as well! Thanks for sharing it with us 🙂
I’m glad you enjoyed the zucchini bread! 🙂