Carrot Zucchini Loaf

The title says Carrot Zucchini loaf, but this is a really versatile recipe which can be customized to suit whatever ingredients you have on hand. It can be all carrot, or all zucchini. You can add some chopped apples, raisins or even chocolate chips if you’re so inclined. It’s not super sweet and it’s perfect for breakfast or a snack.

This sort of thing is so simple to make from scratch, I hope to convince you to Go Boxless and give it a try.

I’m not sure where the recipe came from to be honest. I had scribbled it onto a piece of notepaper and kept it tucked inside another cookbook to be taken out as needed. Like my sister’s pumpkin cookies it was among the recipes I scanned and saved to “the cloud” this summer.

Over the years I’ve formed these ingredients into full sized loaves, mini loaves, snack cakes and muffins large and small. The original recipe calls for 2 cups of shredded zucchini, but I like it best with a mix of carrot and zucchini. As mentioned, you could even add some apple. No matter what you use, keep the volume of shreds between 2 and 2 1/2 cups and everything will be fine.

One medium zucchini and one medium carrot is usually sufficient. I don’t squeeze the moisture out of the shreds before measuring (actually, I don’t squeeze the moisture out at all).

If I’m making a half recipe I’ll save any extra shredded veggies to add to soup, spaghetti sauce or some other use (like less meat loaf). If you don’t plan to use the extras right away, they freeze pretty well. When halving the recipe, use two eggs and reduce the amount of oil to not quite a half cup.

When making this loaf I had my first experience using a vanilla bean instead of extract. According to the internet, the ratio seems to be 2 inches of bean = 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. I used half a bean and was pleased with the results although I was worried when I couldn’t smell the vanilla over the olive oil when mixing the batter. If you use a bean, split the pod with a sharp knife and scrap the seeds out with the back of the blade or a spoon. Add the seeds to the wet ingredients when mixing.

There are tons of walnuts available right now, so I bought a pound, picked them and chopped them up with a knife. It brought back memories of doing the same thing with my grandmother. I forgot to halve the amount of nuts but the loaf still turned out great.

The whole recipe makes two full loaves…one to eat, one to share if you like. ‘Tis the season!

Ingredients:

• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 2 – 2 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg (optional, I used more cinnamon)
• 3 eggs
• 2 cups sugar (the dark colored cane sugar is really nice for this)
• 2 cups shredded carrot and zucchini (one medium carrot, peeled and shredded plus one medium zucchini, washed and shredded)
• 1 cup vegetable oil (I used olive oil, but sunflower oil would be great, too)
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup chopped walnuts (any type of nuts you like will work)

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 350° and prepare all the ingredients. Lightly grease two loaf pans (or whatever you’re going to cook in.)
2. Measure the flour, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, baking powder and nutmeg into a bowl. Mix well. Set aside.
3. Beat the eggs with the sugar, oil and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. (You can use a danish whisk or a wooden spoon…no need for a mixer)
4. Add the half the dry ingredients and stir until moistened, then repeat with the other half.
5. Fold in the shredded mix and the nuts.
6. Distribute the batter between the two loaf pans and bake for about an hour. I usually turn the pan about halfway through. It’s done when the top springs back when pressed and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.

Of course, if you’re making muffins or small loaves you’ll need to adjust the time. Start checking at 15 minutes or when you can smell the loaf whichever comes first.