Sunday, September 16, 2007

a meager harvest


Squirrels ate all our strawberries, all our pumpkins, and almost all our zucchini. But yesterday, while poking around under the leaves and sticky vines, I gleefully discovered one monstrous vegetable they had somehow overlooked. I really should have taken a picture. If zucchini were ranked by size, this one was a prize specimen, fat, shiny, and at least 18 inches long. I decided that I would turn it into zucchini bread (which, despite its name, is really much more like zucchini coffee cake). I found the recipe below at Allrecipes and baked two delicious little loaves. I hid one to save for later, which was a good thing, because by morning, the other was almost gone.

The little zucchini in the photo came from the grocery store, not the garden. Is it just my dirty mind, or is their shape faintly remarkably, uh, phallic?

INGREDIENTS

Batter
3 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup applesauce
2 cups white sugar
3 cups grated zucchini
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

Crust
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons butter or margarine

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F ( 165 degrees C). Grease and flour two 8x4 inch loaf pans. In a large bowl, beat eggs. Mix in oil, applesauce and sugar. Stir in zucchini and vanilla. Combine flour, cinnamon, soda, baking powder and salt; stir into the egg mixture. Divide batter into prepared pans.

Combine crust ingredients. Work with fingers until it becomes the consistency of crumbs. Sprinkle on top of batter.

Bake approximately 70 minutes, until fork inserted in center comes out clean.

26 comments:

Katie said...

Nasty squirrels. I tried to start feeding the birds, and all that happened was the squirrels destroyed every bird feeder I bought!
Will have to pass this recipe on to my Mum, she grows lots of them (we call them courgettes btw), though the rain we got this year destroyed the plants.

S said...

Mmm, sounds yummy...

I'd say that picture is fairly phallic, yes.

MyThreeBlogs said...

I love squirrels - but then they're the urban squirrels... that just look cute running around with the little acorns in their mouths.... not the real, live in nature squirrels!! That's a real hassle.

And thank you, I always think zucchini... more than cucumbers - have an especially phallic look

Julia said...

Mmmm... sounds very yummy. Particularly on this, the first day of my "nothing remotely tasty is in this plan" diet. It's only 10 days. That's what I keep telling myself. Maybe I will start a folder of recipes to try once the torture is over. If I do, this is going in there.

Mrs. Collins said...

Oh that looks wonderful! I'm more impressed that you can actually grow things. Everything flora I touch withers.

E. Phantzi said...

"faintly"????? :-)

Magpie said...

18 inches!!??

Sarah said...

YUM! I loooooooove zucchini bread!

thirtysomething said...

Zucchini in any form, but especially bread, is my absolute fav. Have you tried the chocolate variation to zucchini bread? It is quite delectable also.

niobe said...

Okay, Slouching Mom and Elizabeth, I'll edit that sentence. Happy now?

Aurelia said...

Don't edit! It's a classic!

ROTFLMAO

Anonymous said...

Thanks for your note. If I see one more carefree pregnant woman, I will vomit. On her shoes.
Blessings to you on your journey, and know you have a new stalker (your recipe looks fab!!).

tipsymarie said...

That sounds absolutely delectable. I made banana "bread" this weekend. It is more like cake as well. But if you call it bread, then it's more . . .healthy. That's right . . .healthy.

Anonymous said...

Did you save a slice for me?

Zucchini does look phallic, but nowhere near as phallic as a butternut squash.

susan said...

Yumm. We have had no luck with zuchhini or anything else this year. The squirrels are all fat and happy, though.

jeanie said...

Oooh - that recipe looks good. And that zucchini looks - interesting...

Furrow said...

Yum, phallis -- I mean, zucchini bread!

Doughnut said...

Zucchini bread is one of my favorites too, especially this time of year. Seems to me it sometimes tastes better the next day - if you can get a loaf to last that long! Good thing you hid it although I wonder if it just might become a midnight snack - phallic or not :)

painted maypole said...

oh... yum...

something ate all of my garden this summer, but I have yet to see the perp...grr....

Anonymous said...

Hmm, sound yum :) X

Caro said...

That recipe looks good, I might have to try it.

MB said...

Totally phallic. Part of their allure, I suppose. Love zucchini bread. Mmmmm, add some walnuts...mmmm.

LawMommy said...

Yeah, it's totally NOT just your dirty mind.

G

daisies said...

wow ~ that is one big zucchini !!

crazy squirrels ...

Anonymous said...

18 inch? Wow. And it is not just your mind, surely not.

Monica H said...

Ooh, I make a mean chocolate zuchinni bread. Wonderful!