Zucchini Bread

It really is getting close to the end of gardening season. Usually this time of year people are trying to ditch their surplus garden produce left and right especially zucchini. I'm usually a taker though. I love, love, love the stuff. I eat it raw in salads, steamed with some basil for a quick and easy side dish, grilled, grated, diced, stuffed. MMmm! So for you who are a little less enthusiastic about your mounds of zucchini, I put together a few zucchini recipes- check the labels on the right, scroll down and enjoy!

Another one of those recipes that I've been working on to get the best tasting bread possible. Unfortunately this one was made when my camera was on the charger and it didn't last until the battery was full. Whoops! This bread is great for an afterschool snack, for breakfast or for dessert. Sometimes I add a thin sugar glaze on top when I really have a sweet tooth (which is often). I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Zucchini Bread

3 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup mashed banana or applesauce
1 cups white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups grated zucchini
1 cup chopped walnuts

Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Sift flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl. Beat eggs, oil, applesauce/banana, vanilla, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add sifted ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well. Stir in zucchini and nuts until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake for 40 to 60 minutes, or until tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and completely cool. (If you try to slice this before it's completely cool it will fall apart. I know this from experience- I don't think I've ever been able to let it cool completely before diving in!)