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Zucchini Bread:
1/2 cup (50 grams) pecans or walnuts
1 cup (135 grams) shredded raw zucchini (courgette) (about 1 medium zucchini)
1/2 cup (60 grams) grated raw apple (about 1 large apple)
1 1/2 cups (195 grams) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon (4 grams) baking soda
1/4 teaspoon (1 gram) baking powder
1/4 teaspoon (1 gram) salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg (optional)
1/2 cup (120 ml/grams) flavorless oil (safflower, corn, vegetable, or canola oil)
1 cup (200 grams) granulated white sugar
2 large (100 grams) eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon (4 grams) pure vanilla extract (optional)
1/2 cup (25 grams) dried shredded or flaked coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
Cream Cheese Frosting: (optional)
1/4 cup (55 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
4 ounces (115 grams) cream cheese, at room temperature
1/3 cup (40 grams) confectioners sugar (powdered or icing)
1/2 teaspoon (2 grams) pure vanilla extract
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Zucchini Bread: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Butter (or spray with a nonstick vegetable spray) a 9 x 5 x 3 inch (23 x 13 x 8 cm) loaf pan and then line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper.
Toast the pecans or walnuts for about 8 minutes or until lightly browned and fragrant. Let cool and then chop coarsely.
Grate the zucchini, using a medium grater, and then peel and grate the apple.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, ground cinnamon, and nutmeg.
In the bowl of your electric stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment (or with a hand mixer), beat the oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract until well blended (about 1 minute). Beat in the grated zucchini and apple. Add the flour mixture, beating just until combined. Then fold in the nuts and coconut. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with the back of a spoon or offset spatula. Bake until the bread has risen and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 60 to 65 minutes. Place on a wire rack to cool for about 15 minutes and then remove the bread from the pan. If desired, frost with cream cheese icing. Well wrapped, this bread will keep for several days at room temperature (if unfrosted) or for several days in the refrigerator (if frosted). This bread can be frozen.
Frosting: In the bowl of your electric stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter and cream cheese until very smooth with no lumps. Add the powdered sugar and beat until fully incorporated and smooth. Beat in the vanilla extract. Spread over the top of the cooled zucchini bread.
Makes one - 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf.
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The 1970s was a time when any baked good that contained a vegetable, and used oil instead of butter, was considered healthy. This trend made Zucchini Bread, as well as Carrot Cake, very popular. And true to its name, Zucchini Bread does contain grated zucchini, as well as grated apple. Both of these ingredients, along with oil, give the Zucchini Bread a wonderfully moist texture. Add to that chopped nuts, dried coconut, ground cinnamon and nutmeg, and it's easy to see why this quick bread has stood the test of time.
Jean Anderson tells us in her 'The American Century Cookbook' that Zucchini Bread first became popular in the 1960s. Zucchini, also known as a courgette, has a smooth dark green skin that isn't removed before grating as we want to see its pretty shreds of green running through the bread. The flavor of zucchini is often described as 'delicate' which means it does not add a lot of flavor to a dish. However, what it lacks in flavor it more than makes up for with its moist texture. This recipe is slightly different from most in that we also add grated apple. I like to use a firm textured apple, like Granny Smith. This batter can be made fairly quickly so if you have a bounty of zucchini from your garden you may want to make a few extra loaves and freeze them. This bread is very tasty plain, but like a carrot cake, you may want to try it with the cream cheese frosting.