Zucchini Bread

I still remember the first time I encountered zucchini bread as a teenager. I had a hard time getting my mind around the concept. At the time, zucchini was something my mom made me eat, and not anything you would bake into something sweet. Fortunately, the pathway into my naturally resistant-to-new-foods teenage mind had already been cut with carrot cake. Heck, if you could get something that good out of carrots, why not zucchini? After one bite, I was sold forever. Grated zucchini, mixed into the batter, brings moisture and tender texture to what is essentially a spice cake.

Zucchini Bread Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 3 cups grated fresh zucchini
• 2/3 cup melted unsalted butter
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• Pinch salt
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)
• 1 cup dried cranberries or raisins (optional)

Method

1 Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). In a large bowl, mix together the sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Mix in the grated zucchini and then the melted butter. Sprinkle baking soda and salt over the mixture and mix in. Add the flour, a third at a time. Sprinkle in the cinnamon and nutmeg and mix. Fold in the nuts and dried cranberries or raisins if using.

2 Divide the batter equally between 2 buttered 5 by 9 inch loaf pans. Bake for 1 hour (check for doneness at 50 minutes) or until a wooden pick inserted in to the center comes out clean. Cool in pans for 10 minutes. Turn out onto wire racks to cool thoroughly.

Makes 2 loaves.

Zucchini Bread with Pineapple

Ingredients

• 3 eggs
• 1 cup olive oil
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 cups coarsely grated zucchini
• 1 can (8oz) crushed pineapple, drained
• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 cup raisins

Method

1 Preheat oven to 350°F. In a mixer, beat eggs. Add oil, sugar, and vanilla; continue beating mixture until thick and foamy. With a spoon, stir in the zucchini and pineapple.

2 In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg. A third at a time, add dry ingredients into wet and gently stir (by hand) after each addition. Add the walnuts and raisins, blend gently.

3 Divide the batter equally between 2 greased and flour-dusted 5 by 9 inch loaf pans. Bake for 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in to the center comes out clean. Cool in pans for 10 minutes. Turn out onto wire racks to cool thoroughly.

Makes 2 loaves.

Adapted from a 1974 Sunset Magazine recipe