Zucchini Bread
Baking loaves of tender quick bread is the most excellent way to employ a bumper crop (or over-enthusiastic purchase) of zucchini. In the spirit of using up excess, the recipe makes a double batch.
Anytime in baking, but especially when making double batches, it is very important to measure the flour properly to avoid dry results. It’s best to weigh it, but if you don’t own a baking scale, use this method: first, fluff the flour well with a fork inside the bag to aerate it, then lightly spoon it into a measuring cup, slightly overfilling it, then levelling it off with a knife. Because flour packs down, it is very easy to get too much in a measuring cup – almost a guarantee, in fact, if you’re scooping straight from the bag.
I like to cut each loaf in half and store the halves in the freezer for future breakfasts, to serve drop-in guests, or to bring to friends’ houses as a gift.
Feel free to add a handful of toasted walnuts, if you’re partial to crunch, and I definitely wouldn’t knock a cup of chopped dark chocolate out of your hand.
- Cook Time: 1h
- Yield: 2 loaves
Ingredients
- 3 cups grated zucchini (from 1 large or two medium)
- 1 cup vegetable oil (such as canola or sunflower)
- 1/4 cup whole milk
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 3 1/2 cups flour
- 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon coarse salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line two standard loaf pans with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, stir together the zucchini, oil, milk, eggs, and vanilla extract. In a separate large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
- Pour the zucchini mixture into the dry ingredients and fold together with a stiff rubber spatula just until just a few slightly floury patches remain. Divide batter between loaf pans and bake about 60 minutes, until top feels slightly springy in the centre when lightly pressed or a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pans for 10 minutes, then remove loaves from pans and finish cooling on wire racks
