Vegetable in Name Only

The similarities between this post and last do not cease at mere geometry of the subject matter. Logic forces me to admit that most quick-breads are hardly deserving of the connotation of nutrition evoked in their names. Zucchini bread is, let us face the facts, cake. Referring to it as such may decrease consumption — an unfortunate affair since this "bread" has come to serve as a zucchini disposal technique as of late. What else to do with the freakishly large specimens sturdy enough to use as columns for a portico? One gigantic zucchini usually affords me two loaves and change — this recipe is generally forgiving in proportions, so a bit of extra plant matter won't perturb the balance.

As usual I've opted to substitute butter where most recipes call for oil. In my mind it's better to consume fat that tastes wonderful than to simply dump in a bunch of tasteless canola oil. It's best to fill loaf pans less than halfway to facilitate proper cooking — a double batch of the recipe below manages well in three pans, while a single batch should probably be done in two. It keeps for what seems like forever, though one is hard pressed to let such a thing age beyond a few days.

Zucchini Cake

The Cake

• 3 Cups Flour
• 1.5 Cups Sugar (raw)
• 0.5 Cups Butter
• 1 Tsp. Baking Soda
• 1 Tsp. Baking Powder
• 1 Tsp. Salt
• 3 Tsp. Cinnamon
• 2 Cups Grated Zucchini
• 3 Large Eggs
• 3 Tsp. Vanilla

Fabrication

1. Preheat to 325F.
2. Melt the butter and bring the eggs up to room temperature. Mix the butter and sugar together vigorously before adding the eggs. Add the remaining wet ingredients, including the zucchini. Mix together all of the dry ingredients in a separate bowl, and then combine the two until uniform.
3. Butter enough loaf pans such that the batter will not go much over half the volume of any individual pan. Pour in the mixture and shake the pans to settle everything.
4. Bake for somewhere around 45 minutes, until something plunged into the thickest part of the loaf comes out clean. Rotate the pans in the oven once or twice, since in my experience burning is a distinct possibility. Let cool before slicing.

NB: More batches make more friends.