Mocha Zucchini Bread
It's zucchini season and I don't like zoodles, and I've made Sol's zucchini pancakes several times, and now I have tomatoes I'll make that fresh gratin I like so well. I have a couple of batches of zucchini candy in the dehydrator, and haven't made zucchini bread yet this year, so it was time.
I'd been "saving" a recipe to try, a chocolate zucchini bread with chocolate chips and a bit of espresso, my kind of flavors. The only problem is that the recipe specifically said 9x5 pans, 2 of them. I used 9x5 pans and my zucchini bread is only this tall:
I TRY to always follow the recipe the first time, and so, in spite of my misgivings in noting the amounts of ingredients, I used that size pan. Next time I'll use the next smaller size and get a taller loaf!. I might actually follow the directions next time too, I was trying to simultaneously make zucchini bread, blanch corn for the freezer and make supper, LOL, so I missed the part about creaming the butter and sugar, adding the zucchini and then mixing in thirds into the dry ingredients. Yeah, didn't happen. I dumped everything into the bowl and stirred. Turned out fine, it's a quick bread. Good thing, it's not so fussy about how it's handled, LOL.
That little bit of espresso powder added a nice little undefinable flavor to the chocolate, and the mini chips I used weren't really noticeable, but added to the layers of chocolate. I was going to glaze it, but decided that wasn't necessary.
Gotta eat your veggies, you know.
Annie
Comments (13)
9 years ago
PRO9 years agoRelated Discussions
Zucchini Bread Pudding?
Comments (4)Zucchini bread will probably fall apart and get mushy in bread pudding. It'll be a lot better if you put something airy and glutinous with it. Best bet would be a braided challah because of the long strands and airy crumb. Don't cut the challah too small--let it give some structure and something for the zucchini bread to cling to. And, whatever you do, don't stir it a lot or you'll have zucchini bread soup. You can soak the challah in the custard, but your best bet, for your star ingredient, would be to fill up your pan with the breads, as densely as you can, so the zucchini bread doesn't dissolve, pour on the custard/flavoring mix, and add as much bread as you can. You can press at this point. Just don't squash it too hard. A plastic plate to keep the bread down would be better than a real weight. For the custard, you're right to cut the sugar. If you want it to be a sweet dessert maybe add a little, but it shouldn't require it to be good, especially if you're planning a hard sauce. You could also add some dried fruit to add sweetness, instead. Soak it in the custard for an hour before you mix with the bread. Or you could macerate the dried fruit in liqueur and cook off the alcohol. I haven't tried this, but it occurs to me that an alternative to a traditional bread pudding that might work is to slice the zucchini bread maybe half the height of the pan, dry the slices, then line the pan in two layers of slices and pour the custard over. Let the custard settle and soak in and add more to fill the pan, and maybe another round if it needs it. That would be a lot less stirring and squishing, and the large pieces would have more integrity. More like making a French toast pie. If you want to add fruit, nuts, etc., do it between the layers of bread. Good luck!...See Morechanges to Zucchini bread recipe?
Comments (9)We love zucchini bread. Now I put a little less sugar andI cut the amount of oil in half but make up for the other half of oil with apple sauce. It makes the bread more moist and has the sweetness. Other times I throw caution to the wind and add a ripened banana with the same amount of zucchini! Great flavor with potassium as a plus. K...See MoreFavorite tried and true zucchini bread?
Comments (14)I've also made zucchini brownies and I have a recipe for zucchini bread with pineapple that I like a lot. Amanda likes me to add coconut to that one. I use the big zucchini, don't peel, do remove the seeds. I squeeze out the liquid, but the big ones often aren't that juicy. I've also been known to grate zucchini and just freeze it in a ziplock bag to use later, although I have some in the garage that are at least four days old and they are still fine, not refrigerated. My favorite use for zucchini, though, is Sol's zucchini pancakes, they're savory instead of sweet and good with a lot of things: Zucchini Pancakes ================== Sol's recipe 2 cups grated zucchini 3 eggs, lightly beaten 3 tablespoons melted butter (more for greasing the pan) 3/4 cup AP flour 1-1/2 tablespoons water 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese Black Pepper and Salt to taste * 1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg Serve with: 6-1/2 ounces double cream brie Roasted tomatoes 2 tablespoons chopped chives Preheat a frying pan over medium heat. Combine all pancake ingredients in a bowl, except for the water. Mix until smooth, then add enough water to make a thin batter (you shouldn't need more than 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons). Mix until just combined. For 6-inch pancakes, add about 1/3 cup of batter to greased pan and cook 1-2 minutes per side. Serve with double cream brie (or your favorite melting cheese), roasted tomatoes and chives. *Add all the black pepper you like, but use a light hand with the salt, as parmesan provides some saltiness. I normally add 1/8 teaspoon salt, and find it's plenty. Enjoy. Pineapple Zucchini Bread 1 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened 1 cup shredded zucchini (1 small) 1 can (8 oz) crushed pineapple in juice, undrained, reserving 1 tablespoon liquid 2 eggs, slightly beaten 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans Glaze: 1/2 cup powdered sugar reserved 1 tbls pineapple liquid 1 tsp corn syrup 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour bottom only of 9x5-inch loaf pan. In large bowl with electric mixer, beat brown sugar and butter on medium speed until light and fluffy. With spoon, stir in zucchini, pineapple and eggs. Stir in flour, baking soda, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, the salt and allspice until well blended. Fold in walnuts. Spread evenly in pan. Bake 60 to 70 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pan to cooling rack. Cool 30 minutes. In small bowl, mix all glaze ingredients until smooth; spoon over warm loaf. Cool completely, about 1 hour. Store in refrigerator. Zucchini Brownies from King Arthur Flour Brownies 8 ounces zucchini (about one 8" fresh zucchini, trimmed), cut into chunks. If you don't have a scale, 8 ounces is about 1 1/2 cups shredded zucchini, lightly tamped down. 3 tablespoons butter, melted 3 large eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla 3/4 cup sugar 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, Dutch processed preferred 1/2 teaspoon espresso powder, optional; for enhanced chocolate flavor 1/2 teaspoon baking powder heaping 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup all purpose or White Whole Wheat Flour 3/4 cup semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips Frosting 3/4 cup semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips 1/4 cup heavy cream or 3 tablespoons milk Directions Preheat your oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9" square pan. To make the brownies: Combine the zucchini, melted butter, eggs, and vanilla in the work bowl of a food processor, and process until smooth. Add the sugar, cocoa powder, espresso powder, baking powder, salt, and flour; process briefly, just until well combined. Add the chips, and pulse several times, to break up the chips just a bit. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake the brownies for 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, or with a few moist crumbs clinging to it; you shouldn't see any sign of wet batter. Remove the brownies from the oven, and allow them to cool completely before frosting. To make the frosting: Combine the chocolate chips and milk or cream in a microwave-safe bowl or small saucepan. Heat until the milk is steaming, and the chips are soft. Remove from the heat, and stir until smooth. Spread the frosting atop the brownies. Place them in the refrigerator for an hour or so, to set; then store them at room temperature, covered, for several days. Yield: 16 brownies. Tips from our bakers If you don't have a food processor, use a blender to blend the zucchini, melted butter, eggs, and vanilla until smooth; then transfer the mixture to a mixing bowl before proceeding with the recipe There are lots of goodies to be made with zucchini, I'll have to try Martha's lemon version, I love lemon. Enjoy your zucchini. Annie...See MoreHow much can I reduce sugar in zucchini bread?
Comments (12)That blog from Kind Arthur Flour was really fascinating reading. Pretty technical but I like to know why something does or does not work. For example, I did not know that reducing the sugar in a recipe makes it less moist. I saved some of the links to hopefully save me from failures when altering a recipe. Cloudy Christine, I did not know that cakes with oil have more sugar! My favorite banana bread recipe from Cook's Illustrated uses melted butter. That also makes 2 loaves like this one; I should compare the sugar content in that one (sure enough, only ¾ c of sugar! But with 3 bananas, I don’t know how much sugar comes from those ). That tastes sweet but not as sweet as this zucchini bread recipe. For my purposes quickbreads are add-ons to breakfast. “Elevenses” to hold me til lunch (I am self employed and if busy often won’t break for lunch until 2 pm). Or something to have with afternoon tea. Lascatz, that Brazilian recipe looks interesting. Looks rather like a pound cake. Sleevendog, I would love that non-sweet recipe if you get the chance! I decided to start a new thread about the carrot quick bread. Banana bread ingredients from Cook's Illustrated 2 C unbleached all purpose flour ¾ C sugar ¾ tsp baking soda ½ tsp salt 1 C chopped walnuts (toasted if you have time) 3 very ripe bananas, mashed well ¼ C plain yogurt (buttermilk or sour milk works also, as above) 2 large eggs, slightly beaten 6 Tbsp butter, melted and cooled 1 tsp vanilla...See More- 9 years ago
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Riverrat, is that you? Man, I've missed you! It might be zucchini, but it's sure not health food, it's definitely candy! (grin) You'll need a dehydrator, and it comes out like gummy worms. I've never tried to make it in the oven because it just takes so many hours. The kids get a big charge out of it, getting all their friends to sample it and guess what it's made of. They never guess, of course, and then the grandkids spring it on them that they're eating zucchini, LOL. This batch was cherry-limeade flavor, the dark cherry seems to be the favorite so far.
The recipe comes from Linda Lou at Harvest, she doesn't post there any more, but she gave me this recipe years ago:
Zucchini Candy
10 cups peeled diced zucchini 1/2 inch cubes
( I use "worms" about 3 inches long and 1/12 inch thick and wide. The little dice would be good in muffins, though.
3 cups water
2 pkgs. unsweetened Koolaid
2 1/2 cups sugar
Peel zucchini, dice, removing seeds. Mix the liquid syrup together.
Add zucchini. Bring to a boil and them simmer for 25 min. Drain.
Put on dehydrator trays. Dry 14 hours at 125 degrees. Turn pieces
over and dry another 4 hours. This will feel dry and not sticky
when done. Store in jars or other tightly sealed containers.
If you dip in sugar when you turn them, they will be more like
"gum drops" on the outside.
I've made lots of flavors, I'll see if I can pull myself away from canning tomatoes long enough to get a picture of the different kinds, so you can see what a nice colorful mix there is. I've found that grape koolaid makes almost black gummies, and that lime is the least favorite so far, although I like it.
Sol, the coffee and chocolate hides the zucchini, if that helps! I do have a tomato and zucchini gratin recipe that I like a lot, and I love your zucchini pancakes, so I'm using them up, a few at a time.
Annie
- 9 years ago
annie1992Original Author