Wonderfully juicy zucchini bread with fresh rosemary and lemon zest.
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I’m on a mission this summer. A mission out of necessity resulting from the abundance of certain summer squash I planted in my parents’ garden. Four plants. What was I thinking?! A zucchini plant alone could feed a family of four.
So the order? Come up with recipes we all love that a quantity of summer squash. I’ve been experimenting with zucchini bread for two weeks. We have some fine zucchini bread recipes on the site, but I was hoping for something heartier.
I tried all sorts of combinations, experimenting with cheddar, parm, jalapenos, etc. Mom’s response to most of these was, “Fine, if you toast them and then put sugar and butter on top.” Not good enough.
I ended up succumbing to the classic slightly sweet zucchini bread, but flavored it with rosemary and lemon for a savory twist. More than good enough. Really good. My conclusion is that zucchini bread works well with sugar. Here we’re using 1 1/4 cups for 3 cups of zucchini and 3 cups of flour. So it’s not much, but it’s enough to bake a nice, slightly sweet bread.
Lemon Rosemary Zucchini Bread
ingredients
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3 cups (390 grams) flour
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2 teaspoons baking powder
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1/2 teaspoon baking powder
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2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
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2 eggs
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1/2 cup melted unsalted butter
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1/4 cup olive oil
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1/2 teaspoon salt (omit if using salted butter)
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1 1/4 cup sugar
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1 tablespoon of lemon zest
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3 cups shredded zucchini (from about 1 pound zucchini)
method
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Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare two 4×9-inch loaf pans that you will either butter or spray with cooking spray.
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In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and rosemary.
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Beat the eggs in a mixer (or by hand) until fluffy. Beat in the sugar. Beat in the melted butter and olive oil. Stir in the lemon zest and grated zucchini.
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Add the dry ingredients one-third to the wet, stirring after each incorporation.
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Divide the dough/dough between two loaf tins. Bake in a 350°F oven for 45 to 50 minutes. Test after 40 minutes. If you gently press the surface of the loaf, it should spring back and a bamboo skewer inserted into the center should come out clean.
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Take out of the oven. Allow to cool for a few minutes, then remove the loaves from their pans to cool on a wire rack.
