This playful 3-ingredient slow cooker dessert leans into Earth Day by celebrating one of the most unassuming vegetables in the crisper: whole, unpeeled zucchini. Instead of shredding or disguising it, we simply nestle the raw squash into the bottom of the slow cooker, pour over a sweet, spiced mixture, and let time and gentle heat transform it into something soft, jammy, and spoonable.
The result is a cozy, caramelized dessert that feels like a cross between baked apples and zucchini bread filling, but with almost no prep and just one pot to wash.
Whole zucchini beside a slow cooker and brown sugar
Serve the warm zucchini dessert in shallow bowls, spooning plenty of the syrupy sauce over each piece. It pairs beautifully with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, a dollop of Greek yogurt, or lightly sweetened whipped cream. For an extra Earth Day touch, sprinkle with toasted nuts or granola for crunch.
Leftovers are lovely chilled and spooned over oatmeal, pancakes, or plain yogurt the next morning.
3-Ingredient Slow Cooker Zucchini Dessert
Servings: 4
Ingredients
4 small to medium whole unpeeled raw zucchini (about 1 1/2 to 2 pounds total), rinsed and dried
1 cup packed light or dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (or apple pie spice)
Directions
Place the whole, unpeeled raw zucchini in a single layer on the bottom of a 4- to 6-quart slow cooker. If your zucchini are very large, you can trim the stem ends so they fit with the lid fully closed, but keep them otherwise whole and unpeeled.
In a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar and ground cinnamon until evenly combined and no streaks of spice remain.
Cinnamon sugar being mixed in a small bowl
Sprinkle the cinnamon–brown sugar mixture evenly over and around the zucchini, letting some fall down the sides so it reaches the bottom of the slow cooker. The sugar will look dry at this point; it will melt into a syrup as it cooks.
Cover the slow cooker with the lid. Cook on LOW for 4 to 5 hours, or on HIGH for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, until the zucchini are very tender when pierced with a fork and the sugar has melted into a thick, fragrant syrup.
Zucchini in a slow cooker covered with cinnamon sugar
Carefully remove the lid, lifting it away from you to avoid steam. Using tongs, transfer the whole cooked zucchini to a cutting board. Let them cool for a few minutes until they’re comfortable to handle.
Slice the soft zucchini into thick rounds or chunks, discarding only the tough stem ends if still attached. Return the sliced zucchini to the slow cooker and gently stir to coat the pieces in the cinnamon-sugar syrup, breaking them up slightly with a spoon if you prefer a more spoonable, compote-like texture.
