Your Ingredients, Your Zucchini Bread

Editor's note: To get you ready for your weekend grocery shopping, we have moved Mom's Cookbook to Fridays.

As a little girl I remember the first time I tasted zucchini bread and recall how pleasantly surprised I was by its delicious taste.  

Zucchini has a very mild flavor, so I’m not sure what I was expecting it to taste like in the form of bread.  The combination of zucchini, cinnamon and flour really has a distinctive taste and it creates a moist loaf of bread. 

 I searched and found recipe upon recipe. Some called for crushed pineapples while others called for raisins, cranberries and or nuts.   I wanted simple tasting zucchini bread like I remembered tasting as a kid.  I found a recipe from Betty Crocker and I modified it to my liking – and so can you.

This recipe called for two loaf pans. Instead, I made 12 muffins and one 9 x 5 loaf pan.  The muffins only took 20-25 minutes to bake.  They’re easy to freeze in zipped bags and you can thaw a few at a time for a quick snack or yummy breakfast! 

So, visit your local or the grocery store (I found zucchini on sale at in Dedham for $1.49 a pound) and whip yourself up some homemade goodness!

Homemade Zucchini Bread (adapted from Betty Crocker)

• 3 cups shredded zucchini (2 to 3 medium)
• 1 2/3 cups sugar
• 2/3 cup vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 4 eggs
• 3 cups all-purpose or whole wheat flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• teaspoon baking powder  

1. Move oven rack to low position so that tops of pans will be in center of oven. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease bottoms only of 2 (8x4-inch) loaf pans or 1 (9x5-inch) loaf pan with shortening or cooking spray.
2. In large bowl, stir zucchini, sugar, oil, vanilla and eggs until well mixed. Stir in remaining ingredients. Divide batter evenly between 8-inch pans or pour into 9-inch pan.
3. Bake 8-inch loaves 50 to 60 minutes, 9-inch loaf 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on cooling rack 10 minutes.
4. Loosen sides of loaves from pans; remove from pans and place top side up on cooling rack. Cool completely, about 2 hours, before slicing. Wrap tightly and store at room temperature up to 4 days, or refrigerate up to 10 days.

Makes 2 loaves (24 slices each)