Hide the Zucchini

There's a new game at our house - hide the zucchini. Our sorry garden failed to do much with the peas, tomatoes and corn we planted, but outdid any expectations with the four zucchini plants we planted. This was about three too many plants!
So, there has been an effort to find new recipes for zucchini! Two from this week are muffins and chocolate cake. I'll be looking for more because there are now several bags of grated zucchini in the freezer waiting for future recipes.

Zucchini Bread (made into muffins)           

My muffins didn't hold their rounded top shape well,
I think because the batter is so moist. I may try
adding oatmeal for a drier batter. 

½ cup plus 2 tablespoons orange juice

½ cup canola oil (I used lemon infused olive oil)

½ cup unsweetened applesauce

3 eggs, lightly beaten

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 cups all-purpose flour

4 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon baking soda

2 cups shredded zucchini

1 cup chopped pecans

 

Directions:

1.     Preheat oven to 350°. In a bowl, combine orange juice, oil, applesauce, eggs and vanilla. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, salt and baking soda; mix well. Add orange juice mixture; stir until just combined. Fold in zucchini and pecans.

2.     Pour into two 8x4-in. loaf pans (or 24 muffin cups) coated with cooking spray. Bake 60-65 minutes (22-25 minutes for muffins) or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

I have found that a more sure way of checking for doneness is with a food thermometer. When muffins are completely baked, the internal temperature will be 120°.  These still looked moist on top, and I would have baked them longer and perhaps overbaked them if depending on appearance. They are a very moist product, zucchini makes most baked goods very moist. I recommend keeping them in the refrigerator.

CHOCOLATE ZUCCHINI CAKE                                    

I didn't even get the photo before
a piece was cut out!

 ½ cup (8 tablespoons) butter

½ cup vegetable oil

1 ¾ cups sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

½ cup sour cream buttermilk, or yogurt

2 ½ cups all purpose-flour

¾ cup baking cocoa

2 teaspoons expresso powder, optional but tasty

3 cups shredded zucchini

½ cup chocolate chips

Directions:

1.     Preheat the oven to 325° F. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch pan.

2.     In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter, oil, sugar, vanilla, baking soda, baking powder, and salt until smooth.

3.     Beat in the eggs.

4.     Stir in the sour cream, buttermilk, or yogurt alternately with the flour.

5.     Add the cocoa and espresso powder, mixing until smooth.

6.     Fold in the zucchini and ½ cup chocolate chips. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan.

7.     Bake the cake for 30 – 35 minutes, until the top springs back lightly when touched, and it seems set. (I needed a few more minutes until the top ‘set’.)

8.     To ice the cake: Slide the cake out of the oven, sprinkle it evenly with 1 cup chocolate chips, and return to the oven for 5 minutes, or until a cake tester (toothpick) inserted in the center comes out clean.

9.     Remove the cake from the oven, and use a cake spatula to spead the chocolate chips into a smooth glaze. Cool on a rack.

My note: I didn’t find this glaze method very satisfactory, so I used a ready made frosting which can be thinned to glaze consistency in the microwave.

Many are not familiar with the cake batter mixing method of alternately adding dry and wet ingredients. I remember being taught this in 4-H Foods many years ago, and that you start and end with the dry ingredients, but wasn’t sure why, except it incorporates the ingredients better. From King Arthur Flour’s website, here are the explanations.

First, whisk dry ingredients together to evenly incorporate the ingredients and avoid lumps. Start and end with dry ingredients because there is usually more of the dry ingredients then the wet  ingredients.

This alternating of ingredients in smaller amounts is to not ‘shock’ the air out of the batter by dumping in a lot of flour or splashing in a lot of liquid all at once. By adding these ingredients a little at a time the air bubbles are preserved and the cake will be lighter.

This method also helps the butter batter absorb the liquid more easily. Otherwise, the eggs and butter or oil could only hold so much liquid and the result would be a separation of the batter, which makes a heavy cake.

Starting with the flour brings the batter together to help absorb the excess liquids and helps prevent the batter from separating. This also helps make a lighter cake.

There’s your food science lesson for the day!