I’ve shredded, I’ve diced, I’ve simmered, I’ve sliced. But when my last batch of zucchini-and-cheese omelettes (a former favorite) failed to please my tykes, I knew the squash had run its course. Rather than banish the produce to the freezer, it’s come to this: the quick-bread no one can resist.
Zucchini Bread
1 pound zucchini, ends trimmed*
1 ½ cups sugar
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
¼ cup plain yogurt
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon each baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and allspice
½ cup toasted pecans or walnuts, coarsely chopped
Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 375 degrees. Generously grease a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan.
Shred the zucchini on the large holes of a box grater over a clean kitchen towel, then bundle the towel’s edges together and twist the towel to squeeze out as much moisture as possible.
In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, butter, eggs, yogurt and lemon juice. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice and salt. Gently fold the zucchini and the yogurt mixture into the flour mixture with a rubber spatula until just combined. Do not over-mix. Fold in the nuts.
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the surface. Bake until golden brown, about 1 hour. Let the loaf cool in the pan for 10 minutes before unmolding onto a wire rack to cool completely.
*If using a large zucchini, half the squash lengthwise and scrape out the seeds before shredding.
Recipe adapted from America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
Editor’s Note: Angela Denstad Stigeler writes a food column each week for the Caledonia Argus. She, her husband and their two young children live in Caledonia.
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