If I was a zucchini, I'd be happily flourishing in my garden! Yee-Ha! I'd be basking in the afternoon sun and enjoying the cool of the early morning and night with my neighbors squash, cucumber, pumpkin and onions. Most of all I would eagerly anticipate four excited children lifting my oversized leaves to find the hidden treasure of my green growth. How fun it would be to be a zucchini?! Something to ponder...I don't have a natural green-thumb, but I'm slowly learning how to grow and produce some bountiful crops. My zucchini's are the first to really sprout and grow! There's so much you can do with zucchini: grate it for breads, can it for cold winter days, make soups and freeze, or slice and bake it with a little butter, garlic salt and Parmesan cheese on top. My family loves to do this. We toss them on the grill as well...so good!
I wanted to share one of my favorite Zucchini Bread recipe's:
3 eggs
2 C. sugar
1 C. vegetable oil/substitute with 1/2 applesauce if you'd like
1 tsp. vanilla
2 C. grated zucchini
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
3 C. flour
Chocolate chips; semi-sweet or milk chocolate to taste. I usually toss in a heaping handful or so.
Beat eggs, add sugar and oil; mix well. Blend in the remaining ingredients. Grease two loaf pans and bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes. I like to start checking my breads at around 35 minutes in the oven. I also like to make mini-loafs. Those only take about 30-35 minutes.
You could add craisins, walnuts, white chocolate chips, or drizzle chocolate across the top as well for a 'little flair for the gourmet' and to make it look pretty. If you want to drizzle the chocolate over the top simply melt the chocolate in the microwave with a little oil. Then drizzle it on top.
I find zucchini can be a little 'extra' wet, so I pat it down with paper towels after I grate it, and let it air dry a bit before I add it to my bread. (My unscientific method for not making bread as heavy as a brick that my husband could use on one of his houses.)
Also, here's a couple other Zucchini sites hosting lots of different and useful ideas.
All sorts of Zucchini Recipes-Yum!
Zucchini Brownies
Zucchini Canning Recipes
