zucchini bread

My sister came home the other day with the largest zucchini I've ever seen. It was picked from my aunt's garden and hand delivered to me with instructions to bake something with it. I suppose that I could have been more creative when choosing what to make with it, but this seemed like an easy solution for an overgrown vegetable.

I actually don't automatically associate zucchini with savory dishes. I think it's because I was introduced to zucchini in muffin form. My mother used to purchase the most delightful zucchini muffins from my favorite bakery, Publix. They were incredibly moist and sweet and a staple in my diet throughout high school. These muffins would come in packs of four and I recall easily finishing all four within 24 hours. Those were the days. 

I only recently introduced zucchini to my dinner plate after I discovered how delicious it is when it's properly seasoned and sautéed. I still, however, prefer my vegetables sugared and baked to perfection.

This zucchini bread comes from the infamous blog Smitten Kitchen. You can always trust Deb to deliver a delicious recipe. This one is simple and quite tasty. I overbaked mine slightly because I went to the gym while it was in the oven and asked my husband to remove it from the oven once the timer beeped and use his judgment to determine whether it was done (foolish, I know). I recommend pulling your bread out around 50 minutes and using the toothpick test to see if it's ready. Enjoy!

Zucchini Bread

3 cups all purpose flour
3 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 cup oil
3 eggs
2 cups grated zucchini
2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Grease two loaf pans and set aside
In a large bowl, beat eggs with a whisk
Mix in oil, sugar, and zucchini until well combined
In a medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients
Slowly incorporate dry ingredients into wet ingredients until just combined
Divide batter into prepared pans
Bake loaves for 1 hour, minus/plus 10 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean
Let cool completely on cooling rack before serving

*Note: recipe can easily be halved

Source: Smitten Kitchen