Craving cheesy bread, but you’re on a low-carb or keto diet? My recipe for Cheesy Zucchini Bread hits the spot without compromising good nutrition.

This crust is amazing! Instead of using flour, you are going to combine eggs, shredded zucchini and cheese to make a melt-in-your mouth, crunchy bread substitute. It will be nearly impossible to stop at your first slice. But, then again, why would you? These “breadsticks” are easy on the waistline and a great recipe to have in your low-carb toolbelt.
Zucchini grows like crazy in my mother’s garden and my family gets to reap the benefits of her harvest each year. That being said, I have had a lot of opportunities to experiment with this vegetable and find ways to use it that are both irresistible and low-carb. This recipe for Cheesy Zucchini Breadsticks is one of my favorite creations!
If you love pizza, giving it up is perhaps one of the hardest parts about going keto. When I was dieting, I dreamed up this recipe out of desperation for an ooey, gooey slice of happiness and was surprised at how close I got to the real thing. I was even more surprised when my kids came back for seconds!
Tips for Zucchini Breadsticks
- Add a 1/2 tsp of salt to grated zucchini, let it sit for about 10 minutes before squeezing out all the liquids.
- Place the grated zucchini into a kitchen towel and squeeze out liquid. The more liquid you get out, the more crunchy and bread-like your crust will become.
- Bake your Cheesy Zucchini Breadsticks on high-heat. If you lower the heat, you will not get that caramelized look on the top. Plus, since zucchini “dough” has more moisture than traditional dough, it will need to bake at a higher heat to crisp up properly.
- It’s tempting to buy the cheapest, pre-shredded cheese you can find in the grocery store aisle. But, trust me, using higher-quality cheeses will significantly change the results of this dish. Try to buy blocks of mozzarella and parmesan and grate them on your own. This process unlocks oils and flavors that are lost in pre-shredded bags.
- Serve the breadsticks right away! They are best consumed right out-of-the-oven, when all the cheese is freshly melted.
- Make our Easy Marinara Sauce to dip your breadsticks in. Yum!
- Using parchment paper is absolutely acceptable when making Cheesy Zucchini Bread. However, if you plan on starting a keto diet and think you will make this dish a lot, invest in a silicone baking mat. You won’t have to spend money on parchment paper and you can rest assured that your crust will slide off the mat with ease every time!

Zucchini Pizza Crust
You can easily use this recipe to make a more traditional pizza crust. Form the dough into a round, pizza-shaped crust and pile on your favorite toppings. Here are some of my favorite, low-carb topping combinations:
- Chicken, spinach and my Easy Alfredo Sauce (5 Minutes)
- Blue cheese, uncured bacon and mushrooms
- Tomato slices, basil and Italian sausage
- Prosciutto and arugula
- Pepperoni, bell peppers and olives
Reheating Zucchini Breadsticks
Whatever you do, do not reheat your Cheesy Zucchini Breadsticks in the microwave. Like I said above, zucchini contains a ton of moisture. Microwaving your breadsticks will result in a soggy, non-pizza like crust. Instead, use your oven to reheat the breadsticks and make them crispy again. Heat your oven to 425°F and bake for 5-10 minutes.
Zucchini Recipes
It’s no secret that I am absolutely obsessed with zucchini and how versatile it can be. Feel the same way? Check out some of my other zucchini recipes!
Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 cup Graded Zucchini
- 1/2 cup Mozzarella Cheese
- 1/3 cup Parmesan Cheese
- 1 Egg
- 1 tsp Garlic Salt
- 1 cup Grated Cheese of Choice (topping)
Instructions
- Squeeze all of the juices you can, out of the grated zucchini. You can use your hands or a kitchen towel to do so.
- In a bowl, combine together grated zucchini, mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, egg and garlic salt. Stir to combine everything together.
- On a lined baking dish with parchment paper or silicone baking mat, layout the zucchini mixture.
- It's best to lay out the mixture to at least half of an inch in thickness, it will shrink while baking. Bake at 425F for 15 minutes.
- Top baked crust with your choice of cheese. I like to use mozzarella or Mexican cheese. Bake until the cheese melts. Serve while it's still hot.
Hello! Can you update the nutrition facts to include the serving size? Is that per one zucchini strip if cut like pictured? Thanks!
Hi, servings are listed in the recipe card. The recipe makes 6 servings. Enjoy
very nice and effort
thank you!
I don't understand the very end of the directions. Does it mean after baking I add more cheese on top and bake a little more?
Yes Sandra, you are correct. You can add more cheese and bake for a bit more.
How many does this yield for the nutritional value?
This recipe makes 6 servings. Enjoy
I'm not seeing dirctions either. Would definitely like to know oven temperature you used.
Hey Marilyn, you can click on the jump to the recipe on top and you can see directions or just scroll to the bottom for step by step.
I made zucchini bread sticks it was so good so healthy and amazing even my 14 year old like
Ana, that's an amazing review! So glad your family enjoyed it! Makes me happy
Is that ok not to use Parmesan cheese??
Hey, yes it is fine, it is there for the flavor.
I tried this last night, it was delicious but, as others said, had to be eaten with a fork. I baked it on a stoneware sheet pan on parchment paper for probably 18 minutes, until I saw the brown spots begin to appear on the top. You said to roll it out to about 1/2" thick, I thought I rolled mine a little thinner, so not sure why it wasn't more firm. I also squeezed my zucchini shreds in a kitchen towel. Perhaps next time I will try the salt method, as well as adding a bit of almond flour. Thanks for the recipe!
Hey Becky, thank you for sharing your feedback!
I always salt the zucchini and let sit for 20-30 minutes to draw the water out before squeezing. I would use the 1 tsp of regular salt for 4 cups of zucchini and replace with garlic powder for seasoning.
Hey, this is a really good tip. Thanks for sharing
For all those saying it is mushy or you can't pick it up I have 2 suggestions. Bake it for about 5-7 min in a stoneware pan (highly suggest) or a baking sheet. Then let it cool. Add toppings and then bake for another 10 min. To keep it gluten free you can also add a bit of almond flour. It came out perfect.
Deb, thank you for sharing all your tips. I need to try your version!
This was delicious, but didn't set up so it could be picked up like bread. I used a 9x13" pan and that seemed about right for the thickness. But I think next time I'll try 1) grating the zucchini on the fine grate instead of coarse 2) using 2 eggs 3) do the salt and sit thing to really get the moisture out. 😄 Thanks for the recipe!
Maggie, Try squeezing out as much as possible of the juices from the zucchini. You should be able to pick it up.
That would be “grated” cheese. Also, what I’d Mexican cheese? Thanks!
It’s shredded cheese, if you google the words you will see an image. I think it will be more helpful to visually see it. Hope you love it!
WARNING: do not use parchment paper. So mad I wasted all these ingredients. What a gross mess.
What happened to it?
these were ok. the "crust" didn't harden up. the zucchini was very dry when i started. so I know that wasnt the issue. maybe less cheese should be used. lots of oily grease on the pan.
The crust in this recipe is not as crispy as your typical pizza would be. I am wondering what brand of cheese did you use because mine doesn't produce grease in the pan. It creates a nice golden crust on top.
Would you please send the instructions? It's not show here.
Thank you.
If you scroll to the bottom we have it there with step by step photos. Enjoy
Can the breads ticks be frozen and reheated later?
I wouldn't recommend it because zucchini can produce more juice while freezing. If you must, reheat in the oven.
I made this tonight - delish!
But... I measured 4 cups zucchini and it didn’t cover a 9x11 pan. Should I have used 4 zucchini?
You can always add more zucchini, we typically don't cover the entire 9X11 pan.
How much is a serving of zucchini bread sticks. 1or 2???
Hi Linda, this recipe makes 6 servings.
So are the nutrition facts per serving or for the whole recipe?
There are 6 servings in this recipe, the calories are per serving. Enjoy
Can you use yellow squash instead of zucchini?
Hey Kim, yes you can, make sure to squeeze all the juice from it.
I just made this and squeezed a ton of juice out of the zucchini until I couldn’t get any more out. And it’s mushy. Did I not flatten it enough? It’s still good but more like a cheese zucchini mush than anything. 😞
I had the same problem, I also couldn’t get all the water out!! What is the trick? I just put it back in to cook for another bit to try and make it more bread like. It was very gooey. But smells DELICIOUS!
After shredding, lightly salt the zucchini and let it set for 10 - 15 minute. That will pull extra water from the flesh of the zucchini. Squeeze it out, then put it in a kitchen towel and wring is out.
Thanks for sharing!
Hey Kimberly, you can spread out the "crust" a bit thinner. It will brown a bit more.
Hey Beth, yes it does sound like it wasn't flat enough to get the crispiness. I am glad you still enjoyed it! 🙂
Can u prepare it in advance or do you have to cook it straight away
If you keep zucchini with salt it will produce more liquid. You can prepare zucchini in advance and only put everything together before baking. Enjoy
Thank you it was deliciously cheesy and definitely gonna make it again
Hey Hebah, I am happy to hear this. Thank you for sharing!
What size of pan? Did I miss that?
The pan I use is 9 X 11.
I may be a little late to the party 😊
I found this recipe yesterday and made it today, all I can say is yum!
Thank you I'll definitely be making this again.......soon!
OH you are never late for the party! But better late than never! Enjoy!
Why can I not print a recipe?
Hey Barbara, it looks like its a bug that the website has. We sent it off to our developer to get it fixed asap. Thanks for letting me know.
The recipe you have shared is really good and the amount of nutrition in it is also very high, this type of food is beneficial for health. Keep it up
Thanks.
Hey Sanjay, thank you so much!
What is the serving size? No one ever puts this in their recipes!!
This recipe has 6 servings so this would give you an idea. Enjoy!
Hubs is on the keto wagon and sent me this recipe as a hint. Kudos to y'all who do so for health reasons - It doesn't apply to me and I'm super supportive in giving everything a whirl to help extend the life of one of my most loved ones. I'll try anything once!
But this....
First up:
Approximately how many grated (not "graded") zucchini yield 4 cups?
1.5 zucchini = 1 squeezed dried zucchini so you will need 6 medium to large zucchini to make this assuming you are serving 6. This recipe should mention this. People don't have bushels of zucchini just laying around.
Next wierdo aspect -
I doubled the recipe and it barely covered a standard 12" Pyrex. The nutritional content and serving size of 6 is quite outlandish. I would say a max serving of 3 given the recipe -- These are bread sticks, not lady fingers.
Next dilemma- Between Instructions 4 and 5, there is no mention of downtime for this alleged "dough" nor is there any real indication this is any base for toppings. In fact, this is not a dough substitute - It is zucchini dried to the level of cabbage bound together with egg and mozerella that is dehydrated to a crisp....
On parchment paper...
That you top with some mozzarella...
And.... Enjoy?
Save your time, money and energy by simply halving a zucchini, slapping it into the oven at 425 for 5 minutes, topping with mozzarella then waiting til that begins to brown to slap on more mozzarella and that is also the time to add garlic cloves or powder of your choice:
Garlic salt = Water weight.
Unless you're a Karen who wants to complicate things.
Really KAREN? it is good move on
🙂
That's a long post for a Karen that doesn't want to complicate things.
Can i use frozen zucchini? Abundance in my freezer & you can only rat so much bred
I haven't tried using frozen zucchini. I think if you remove all liquids from it, you should be able to use it.
This looks so good:) can’t wait to try it!!
I hope you love them. Let me know what you think!
Does anyone know....can I replace yellow squash for zucchini in this recipe? This looks delicious, but I have some fresh yellow squash from the garden.
I think squash wouldnt have same texture. Sometimes it can come out more mushy. If you do try this recipe, let me know how you like it.