Zucchini Bread

If you've ever tried to grow zucchini or squash, you know that from time to time you find a ginormous one on the plant that managed to escape your previous attempt at a harvest.  These ones lose some of their flavor and delicate texture once they hit the 12 inch mark but they are perfect for shredding into zucchini bread.  You can do this by hand using a grater if you're looking for an upper body work out or a food processor fitted with a grater blade will do the trick in a matter of seconds.  

I found that one massive zucchini equated to roughly 4 1/2 cups shredded which was more than I needed for one recipe so I made another half recipe in a smaller loaf pan as well.

Ingredients:  makes one large loaf

2 cups of whole wheat flour (white would work too)

2 teaspoons of cinnamon

1 teaspoon of baking soda

1/4 teaspoon of baking powder

1/4 teaspoon of kosher salt

1 cup of sugar
1 cup of brown sugar
3/4 cup of vegetable oil*
3 large eggs

1 teaspoon of vanilla

3 cups of grated zucchini

1/2 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

*The second time I made this, I did 1/2 cup low fat buttermilk and 1/4 cup vegetable oil to lighten it up and it was equally as moist and delicious.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Measure the dry ingredients (flour through salt) into a bowl and stir together with a whisk.

Beat sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla in the mixer or by hand in another large bowl.  Mix in the zucchini and then the dry ingredients.  Mix gently until just combined (Add the nuts last if you use them.)

Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  Let cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes before turning the loaf out onto the rack to cool the rest of the way.  Once cooled completely, wrap in foil or plastic wrap until you're ready to serve.  It keeps at room temperature for a couple of days or for a few months in the freezer (air tight). 

The top gets nice and crunchy while the inside stays perfectly moist and tender.  You can't help but sample a piece while its still warm...  Even it if means showing up to your grandmother's house with a partial loaf, oops.   =)

You'll note I didn't title this recipe Whole Wheat Zucchini Bread...  That would likely give people the impression that we're dealing with dense, cardboard-like "healthy" tasting bread which is just not the case here.  The original recipe calls for white flour but I assure you the whole wheat flour gives you the nutrition boost yet still yields the tender texture.  The recipe also calls for half shredded sweet potato instead of all zucchini which would also be delicious and would pack in some additional vitamins and minerals too.