It's that time of year!...the summer garden season is winding down and some people's refrigerators are still stocked full of extra zucchini...mine is! I have eaten zucchini at least 4 day a week all summer long. My favorite thing about zucchini is that it is so versatile. Most of my breakfasts these past few months have consisted of sauted zucchini and summer squash from my garden, plus organic onions from a friend's garden all pan fried in coconut oil or fresh raw, rich, yellow butter and eaten with a side of ground beef or chicken leftovers from the fridge! I favor this kind of breakfast over less protein and fat rich items like cold cereal which usually contain a lot of carbs and sugars.
My sauted zucchini/veggie and meat dish gives me a nice start to my day but it's certainly not the only thing I zucchini for. Zucchini is famous for being 'hidden' in baked items. I love veggies and think that they shouldn't have to be disguised in, dishes in order for people to eat them. I use zucchini in baked items not to hide it, but rather to give the bread/cake a wonderful moist texture!
Below is a recipe I created to use up some of the last of this summer's zucchini! The warm spices will definitely help your taste buds get into the fall spirit. If worse comes to worse, you don't have to tell anyone that there is zucchini in it!
If you didn't get a chance to have your own garden this year and don't have any mingling zucchini in your fridge, ask a friend if they have some, ask someone you know who has a garden or go to a farmers market! You're sure to find some! If you are local to Bismark the Bismarket farmers market that happens every Saturday is a great location to pick up a bunch of different kinds of vegetables.
Ingredients:
1 cup shredded zucchini
1 large ripe banana mashed (or 3/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce)
6 large eggs
1/4cup + 1 TBS cup maple syrup
2 TBS coconut oil melted and cooled
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup almond flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 chopped pecans
2 tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp kosher salt
4 ounces dark chocolate, chopped into chunks or dark chocolate chips like the brand "Lily's"
Directions:
1. Places shredded zucchini between two paper towels or a thin kitchen bread towel and press out as much water as possible.
2. In a large bowl, mash the banana (or if using applesauce just place that in the bowl)
3. In a separate bowl whisk the eggs, maple syrup, coconut oil, and vanilla together. Sprinkle in the coconut flour, cinnamon powder, baking soda, nutmeg powder, and salt, then stir until evenly combined.
4. Stir in the shredded zucchini, fold in two-thirds of the chocolate and stir in chopped pecans.
5. Rub your baking pan with melted oil and pour in batter.
6. Sprinkle the rest of the chocolate on top.
7. Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes or until the top is firm to touch. Once done remove from oven and let cool before cutting into it...although that's pretty hard to do because now your house smells amazing!!!
*Note- To make this a less sweet/more savory bread you could lesson the amount of maple syrup and even eat it for breakfast, or you could add some homemade chocolate frosting to make it a complete dessert cake.
Don't forget to smear some richly flavored, butter from grass-fed cows on top of this treat for added health benefits!
Enjoy!
