Whole Wheat Zucchini Banana Bread

It's zucchini season!!  I have been swimming in a sea of fresh zucchini's from our Coop and our CSA farm.  Since our vegetables are treated the same as grocery store vegetables, they spoil much quicker.  It's either Pluck and eat or Pluck and freeze or you lose the fresh goodness.  We did a little of both!!

So we decided to do a zucchini themed dinner/dessert the other night.  As soon as my mother-in-law started to grate them, Jason was reminded of something he ate a lot as a kid and loved.  So he started grabbing ingredients to throw a little something together.  It was a DELICIOUS something too!!!  And I made a mental note to thank his mother again for raising such a fine boy :)

Zucchini Fritters

Ingredients
4 lg. eggs
1 tsp. lemon juice
1/4 c. mayonnaise
1/3 c. Parmesan cheese
1/2 c. flour
1 sm. diced (finely) onion
4 c. shredded zucchini
Salt and pepper
1-3 tbsp. each butter
Sour cream and chives for topping on fry cakes



Directions

In a large bowl beat eggs with a fork or wire whip until well blended, then beat in lemon juice, mayonnaise, Parmesan cheese, flour and onion. Stir in zucchini until well combined. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

In a 10-12 inch frying pan (preferably with a non-stick finish) heat 1 tablespoon of the butter over medium high heat until butter melts.

Drop zucchini mixture, 1 heaping tablespoon at a time, into the pan and spread out to make pancakes about 3 inches in diameter. Cook until golden brown on the other side, 3-4 minutes total.

Offer sour cream and chives to spoon onto individual servings.

You know what I love??  When the recipe claims this amount of food will yield 30 pancakes and ours makes 15.  I feel like a true-blooded, more is better, over-eating, 1/2 pound burger kind of real American when that happens. 

And it always happens...

Okay - so now to dessert.  I decided to make some zucchini bread with the other half of the zucchini.  I set out to replicate this recipe but using only healthy and traditional ingredients!!  And Jason and I were fighting over the last four eggs in the fridge and he won.  So I opted for using the overripe banana (which is a good substitute for eggs if you run out) and it was a total hit!!  So here you have it.

Whole Wheat Zucchini Banana Bread

3 cups whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

3 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 overripe banana (or you can use 3 eggs)

1 cup coconut oil
1/2-3/4 cup rapadura sugar

3 teaspoons vanilla extract

2+ cups grated zucchini

Directions
1. Grease and flour an 8x8 inch pan (or you can use two 8 x 4 inch pans). Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.


2. Sift flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl.

3. Beat banana (or eggs), oil, vanilla, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add sifted ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well. Stir in zucchini until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pan.

4. Bake for 40 to 60 minutes, or until tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and completely cool.

And, as always, the taste-testers approved...sort of...

He was much more happy with the cake than the fritters (but he did eat them!!)