Groovy Recipe: Zucchini Bread

Last week, I took Babydoll to her first dance class (EEEEEEEEE!!!  I loved dance as a little girl, and I hope she will, too).  While signing in, the program director showed us the huge zucchini she'd plucked from her garden.  "I don't know what to do with it," she said.  "You could make zucchini bread, or muffins, with it," I suggested.  "I don't cook," was her laughing reply.  A friend of mine, Diva's Mama, happily volunteered me to take that bad boy home and whip it into something edible.  I told the director I'd have Babydoll's Daddy bring her the results when he brought the kiddo to her play group the following week.

We brought him home.  He sat on the dining room table for a few days.  I wondered if he was, in fact, edible at all.  This was he, in his former state:

That is a full-size laptop, for comparison.

I conferred with my Facebook cooking group (yeah...I'm THAT kind of nerd).  The conclusion was that it would be suitable for baking, but nothing else.  Bread, or muffins, coming right up!

*This recipe is lovingly adapted from my kitchen bible, The Joy of Cooking.

ZUCCHINI BREAD

* makes 1 full sized loaf, 4 mini loaves, or 12(ish) muffins

Ingredients

2 cups grated zucchini, squeezed of extra moisture

2 eggs

1/2 cup oil

2/3 cup sugar

1 tbsp vanilla

1 1/4 cup flour (I use wheat; you can sub white, or half and half)

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp cinnamon

Before I get going on the method, let me show you how I dismantled this thing in order to get it ready for grating.  It was quite a process.  It involved my machete (a 12" Santoku knife), a non-slip cutting mat, a spoon, and a mandoline fitted with a grater.  The skin was extremely tough, so that had to be removed.  The center was reminiscent of a pumpkin.  I had to cut the beast into quarters, skin it, remove the membranes and seeds, then cut each quarter into multiple pieces.

Hacking away.

Now we can grate!

A big-ass bowl of grated zucchini.

Method:

Preheat oven to 350.  Grease up whatever receptacle you're going to pour the batter into.

Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, spices and salt.  In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, sugar and vanilla.  Using a few, quick strokes, fold the dry ingredients into the wet (don't over mix).  Fold in the zucchini with a few more strokes.  Pour the batter into the pan or tin.

Bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes (for a large loaf), 35-40 minutes (for four mini loaves), or 25-30 minutes (for muffins).  Do a toothpick test to check if it's done.  Let cool in its pan for at least 20 minutes, then flip out and serve right away, or within four days.

That big-ass zucchini made four batches of the above recipe.