ZUCCHINI BREAD – BAKING DAY – CLEAN OUT THE REFRIGERATOR/FREEZER
Shredded Carrots and Zucchini
Today I wanted to get rid of some of the items in my refrigerator and freezer, so i decided to make a non-traditional Zucchini Bread, using Zucchini, Carrots, Chocolate Cookie Crumbs and chopped Macadamia Nuts and dried Pineapple.
Since I ended up with 4 cups of shredded fruit/Vegetable (yes, Zucchini is a fruit) I doubled my normal recipe./zuchinni-muffins/ The ingredients that I used are:
6 Eggs
2 cups Brown Sugar*
1 cup granulated Sugar
1 cup Butter
1/2 cup Vegetable Oil
1 Tbsp. Vanilla
4 cups shredded Zucchini and Carrots
5 cups Flour
1 cup finely chopped Chocolate Cookie Crumbs
2 tsps. Baking Soda
1/2 tsp. Baking Powder
2 tsps. Salt
2 tsps. ground Cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground Cloves
*I never use the total amount of Sugar and Oil that the original recipe calls for. Tastes just as good with less sugar and lasts just as long with less oil.
For a bread with more chocolate flavor you can substitute 1/2 cup flour with 1/2 cup baking Cocoa.
Be sure and grease/spray your baking pans before getting started. If you are making muffins, you can use paper liners instead of greasing the pan.
It is best to measure the flour and mix it together with the other dry ingredients before you get started. The oven should be preheating while you are making the batter.
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Beat the Eggs with a paddle beater in your electric mixer or whisk by hand.
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Add the Sugars and Vanilla; beat in.
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While still beating, slowly add the oil and then stir in the shredded fruit/vegetables.
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Stir in the Flour mixture; mix until well combined.
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Finally stir in the chopped Nut/dried Pineapple mixture.
Pour into the prepared pans (half full) and bake as directed above.
The fruit used can be varied – almost any fruit will do in this recipe.
When a toothpick inserted in the middle of the breads comes out clean, they are done. However, I usually bake them about 5 minutes longer so that the tops are more brown and crispy. If you are muffin top lover, then definitely bake them just a little bit longer than necessary.
Zucchini Bread and Muffins
As an added note, this recipe produces a relatively healthy product. You have your vegies in the Zucchini and Carrots (Vitamin A here). I used Red Carrots which seem to have much more pigment than the orange ones – this means more Vitamin A as the pigment is where the Vitamins are. In the photo at the top of the page, the carrots look orange (dark orange!) but if you look closely you will see the red. Most of the red is on the outside, but the orange is much darker than on regular orange carrots, thereby probably containing more Carotene (Vitamin A source)
The recipe also contains Eggs, Macadamia Nuts and dried Pineapple. The Butter and/ or Oil are also essential products for a healthy body. Whether you think it or not, oils are essential for survival!
Try my version or create your own. This is a very flexible recipe and you can do a lot with it. By the way, I usually use Raisins (good source of Iron) but since I had the Pineapple and am trying to clean out my fridge and freezer, I used that. You can use whatever you have on hand! Enjoy!
Categories: Baking, Baking Tidbits, Bread, National Food Days Tags: baking, Bread, butter, dried Pineapple, Eggs, Fruit, Mac Nuts, National Food Days, Oil, Zucchini
Teen Basics Culinary – Day Five
Our last day of Camp was desserts which were chosen by the students on the first day of camp. There were some interesting requests, most of which we were able to do. Two students put down vegetables on the dessert list. Not knowing whether someone was just trying to be funny or really meant it, I decided to accommodate them. Two of the desserts that we made were Carrot Cookies and Zucchini Muffins with Cream Cheese frosting.
Two other requests were Cheesecake and Key Lime Pie. I combined the two and the students made Key Lime Cheesecake. These were made in mini-tart pans that the students were able to take home. Another request was for Pie; no particular kind of pie, but just pie. I provided Peaches and Apples for the Pies and we made half and half. Half were French Apple Pies with a streusel topping and the other half were Peach Pies with a double crust.
The two favorites of the day were the Chocolate Lava Cake and Strawberry Shortcake. The Chocolate Lava Cake had a molten interior and if you like chocolate, you certainly like these. These were made in individual disposable custard tins so that they could be brought home, if so desired. No one was able to wait long enough to take them home and they were all eaten in class. Of course, they are better when they are warm and the chocolate is molten, so the students made the right choice. Of course this way, they didn’t have to share the Chocolate Lava Cakes with eager siblings.
The Strawberry Shortcake was made with an actual ‘shortcake’. That is, sweetened biscuit dough. Some of the students had never made whipped cream before and they were amazed that you could whip up cream to that wonderful consistency that whipped cream is. The students did end up taking home their Apple or Peach Pie along with Carrot Cookies and their Zucchini Muffins. A few actually had not eaten the Key Lime Cheesecake and were able to take those home as well.
All in all, it was a very sweet ending to a wonderful week of learning the basics of cooking and of being able to apply their new skills. Each of the students ended up the week with a binder packed with recipes that were used in class along with a packet of Basic Information that included Safety Guidelines, Abbreviations and Equivalents, Cooking Terms and a list of Basic Equipment needed. Unfortunately, we didn’t manage to take any pictures for this class so none will be posted. For some photos of our baking camp though, you can go to our Flicker Link and there will be many up there.
Categories: Dessert Ideas, Fruit, Main, Pre-Teen Classes Tags: Apples, Carrots, Children's Cooking, Chocolate, Cream Cheese Frosting, Dessert Ideas, Fruit, kids cooking, kids recipes, Peaches, Strawberry Shortcake, Whipped Cream, Zucchini
