Confession: I did go around telling people that I hate zucchini.
And why would I say that?
Firstly, I have always thought of zucchini as a cucumber wannabe. It somewhat resembles a cucumber but unfortunately, it is not as cool as one. Thanks to bland, soggy and overcooked zucchini in some stir frys I had from dodgy Asian takeaways, I was “scarred” and wouldn’t touch it with a ten foot pole.
Having said all that, it’s a like a slap on my face for making this zucchini loaf.
Yes, I would put up with a slap for this as there’s something a cucumber can’t do – to be made into a loaf. I once cringed when my Swiss friend made a zucchini loaf. But it turned out to be one of the wonderful food memories I had.
Naturally, I have to eat back my words and may have misunderstood zucchini for a little. Like other ingredients, they can be wonderful if they are treated cooked/baked correctly.
Plus, it’s high time I stop being a picky child towards zucchini! (2011 new year resolution no.11)
Easy Walnut & Zucchini Loaf
(adapted from Meals Men Love – How to Catch a Man in 3 Courses)
Serves 4
Prep time: 5 – 10 minutes
Baking time: apprx 35 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 medium zucchini, grated
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 2 tsps vanilin sugar (alternatively, normal sugar with 1 tsp vanilla extract)
- 1 cup self-raising flour
- 2/3 cup crushed walnuts
- A pinch of ground nutmeg
- 1 tbsp demerara sugar (coarse sugar) – optional for toppings
(Note: Less liquid will be generated from the zucchini when you coarsely grate it – which I have done. And because of that, I added 2 tbsps of milk to moisten the batter; On the other hand, if you finely grate it, more liquid will be generated and therefore longer baking time.)
Method:
- Preheat oven to 170 degrees C / 338 degrees F
- Combine all ingredients and transfer into a greased loaf tin. Refrigerate for 5 minutes.
- Just before baking, sprinkle the loaf with walnuts and demerara sugar.
- Bake for 35 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- Allow to cool before serving.
What an amazing combo!!!! Looks so wonderful, and I love your photos!
Thanks Sandra. I must say I do like this combination and the pinch of nutmeg was what made it even better! 🙂
I’ve got the Meals Men Love cookbook too! LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!
Your pics look fantastic, will try your version tonight. Did you try the land a man lasagne recipe yet? my (man’s) fav by far.
Really? Unfortunately, the zucchini loaf is the first recipe I’ve tried from this book….I got to say I love all the titles of the recipes.
Like the texture of the loaf. Very hardy.
Paul
Thanks for your kind comment, Paul! 🙂
I love a good zucchini loaf! My kids eat one with chocolate and whole wheat flour and don’t know that there is zucchini in it. This one has my name all over it though! Nicely done!
That’s true, you can’t taste the zucchini in this…perfect for vegetable averse people, hehe!
I actually think zucchinis are better than cucumbers. I totally have to try this bread. I love zucchini bread, and this one looks fantastic.
Thanks for your compliment…. I may have overreacted when it comes to zucchinis, hehe! I don’t mind zucchinis when they are grated in cakes/loaves or as pasta sauce. I simply can’t stand them in stir frys as I prefer the veggies in my stir frys to be crisp. Cucumbers, on the other hand, are great to be eaten straight or made into drink…. ultimately, it depends on how they are prepared, I suppose. 🙂
My wife makes a fried zucchini to die for.
Awesome looking bread! And so healthy too. *bookmarked*
Yeah it’s pretty healthy unless you decide to slather some butter over it..hehe! 🙂
This sounds super tasty!
Thanks Tiffany! 🙂
love your site! and this recipe. 🙂 I’ve saved it to my online cookbook, cookmarked.com, for safe keeping. I’m going to try a vegan version sans egg.
Thanks Laura. Hope you’ll enjoy this! 🙂
Looks wonderful! It is amazing how good zucchini is in a quick bread…some would say almost unnatural. 😉
Haha, that’s true. The person who came with the idea of adding zucchini in a loaf is a genius, don’t you agree?
Ok, this looks ridiculously delicious, colorful and flavorful! I’m totally bookmarking this!!
Great blog; happy I found you!
Mary
Delightful Bitefuls
Thank Mary, hope you’ll enjoy making this. It’s too easy not to try right?
This looks so delicious. I love the combination of zucchini and walnuts.
I’d love for your to submit them to Vegolicious, a vegetarian food photo gallery where readers can browse beautiful photos to discover new recipes and wonderful blogs. If you would like to share this recipe with our readers please submit a photo along with a link to this post.
Thanks for your compliment. 🙂 I’ll check it out!
I like the easy and how it looks in the pictures. I can’t wait to do it. Thanks ahead for the recipe and will let you know how my family likes it.