How to Make Individual Zucchini Breads

Zucchini bread is unbelievably tasty and good for you.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Bread:
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp grated lemon peel
• 2 medium zucchini, shredded (about 2 cups lightly packed)
• Garnish:
• 1 large zucchini
• 4 6" mini loaf pans
• mandoline
• toothpicks

1. To make the bread, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour four 6" mini loaf pans.

2. In a large bowl, combine all-purpose flour, wheat flour, granulated sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, baking powder, and nutmeg; add walnuts.

3. In a medium bowl, beat eggs. Add oil, brown sugar, vanilla, and lemon peel; beat until combined. Combine shredded zucchini with egg mixture; add to flour mixture, stirring just until blended.

4. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake until browned and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 35-40 minutes.

5. Transfer pans to wire racks; cool for 10 minutes. Turn loaves onto wire racks; cool completely.

6. To make the garnish, cut a 1/2" slice lengthwise from zucchini; discard. Using a mandoline, slice zucchini into thin, wide strips.

7. Slice strips in half lengthwise. Wrap 1 strip around center of bread crosswise and secure ends at bottom of loaf with a toothpick.

8. To make a bow, form another strip into 2 loops and place on center of bread; secure with a toothpick and cover with a walnut. To make curls, tightly coil zucchini strips and secure with toothpicks; drop curls into ice water before attaching them to the bread.

9. To make a different flavor, omit the walnuts and add 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil.

Tips & Warnings

• Zucchini can grow very large, but you should always use the smaller, more tender ones, especially when preparing in a side dish. Cakes and breads also taste better when you choose small, firm zucchini that don't have soft spots or other blemishes.
• A mandoline is a small kitchen device with folding legs and sharp adjustable blades that can cut vegetables in thick or thin slices. Because it makes precise, uniform cuts, the mandoline is perfect for making the zucchini bows in this recipe.
• A hand-held harp vegetable peeler can also be used for this purpose. It has a wide perpendicular blade that makes peeling easy.

[goldiec]

on 7/20/2009 Thanks for the great recipe for individual zucchini breads. I love zucchini and I make it all different ways. This particular recipe sounds great. Thanks 5*