This summer, for the first time in 13 years, I decided not to grow a backyard garden. I even grew a clandestine veggie garden outside my apartment while in Med school, so this was a big change! Instead, we bought shares in a local CSA and we’ve been up to our ears in produce. I’ve never had so much salad in all my life! The challenge of ‘eating down’ the veggies before the next week’s share is delivered has been fun. I’ve also enjoyed the variety of vegetables.With my small home garden, I never had the space for a sprawling zucchini plant, so we’ve never enjoying baking it up in bread. This recipe is adapted from my mother-in-law. This is the tried and true recipe that ‘The Sisters’ use…meaning that this recipe has passed the test in the kitchens of 3 Midwest grandmothers. While not exactly low-fat or low in sugar, it is classic.
Sisters’ Zucchini BreadMakes 2 loaves2 heaping cups grated zucchini, skin and all2 cups sugar1 cup oil2 egg replacers ( I use Ener-G)1 teaspoon vanilla3 cups flour (I have experimented with 1/2 white and 1/2 whole wheat and it works)1 T. cinnamon1 t. salt1 t. baking powder1 t. baking sodaCrumb Topping (optional)1/4 cup brown sugar1/4 cup flour1 T. dairy-free margarine, melted ( I use Fleischmann’s Unsalted Margarine)1/2 t. cinnamon1.) Preheat oven to 325.2.) Mix the first set of wet ingredients together in a medium bowl.3.) Mix the second set of dry ingredients together in a larger bowl.4.) Dump the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir gently until everything is just blended.5.) Divide the batter evenly between two greased bread pans.6.) Mix the crumb topping ingredients together in a small bowl, and sprinkle over the batter. You’ll have extra, so save it in the freezer for topping muffins someday.7.) Bake for 1 hour. They’re done when the center is set. You can try inserting a toothpick to see if it comes out dry, or just touch the tops. When they spring back, the bread is done.8.) Let them rest for a few minutes, then carefully remove from the pans to a cooling rack.The first loaf gets devoured immediatly, the second loaf gets cut into slices. I put a small piece of waxed paper or parchment between each slice and freeze…perfect for lunches or mid-day snacks!Egg Free Zucchini Bread Dairy Free Zucchini Bread Vegan Zucchini Bread
Honestly, my kids are not for lack of frozen treats during the summer. Our freezer is full of freeze pops and other frozen juice treats. There are so many great safe options out there in popsicle world…unless you really want a creamy dairy-free fudgesicle. The two dairy-free options in the store are either the terribly pricey and oddly numbered 3-pack of So Delicious Fudge Bars for $5 or the less expensive Sweet Nothings Fudge Bars which kinda gross me out having “pea starch” as an ingredient.
Dairy-Free Fudgesicles1 cup safe chocolate chips (I’ve used Divvies and Enjoy Life)
1/2 cup vanilla or chocolate soymilk
1 box silken tofu (12 ounces)1.) In a microwave-safe bowl, heat the soymilk and chocolate chips slowly, 30 seconds at a time stirring between zaps, until melted and smooth.
2.) Using a stand blender, immersion blender or a food processor, mix the warm chocolate soy mixture with the box of tofu until smooth and creamy. A hand mixer or whisk won’t do it, you have to blend it well to get the tofu lumps out.
3.) Freeze in popscicle molds. I’m a Midwesterner. I have Tupperware ones. But I did buy them on eBay and didn’t go full Midwest and buy them at a Party.
I actually didn’t start out trying to make homemade Thin Mints, but was really on a borderline obsessive quest for the perfect egg-free and dairy-free chocolate wafer cookie to decorate a cake I want to try later this month. My quest took me through many recipes…Martha, King Arthur, Thomas Keller, Heidi Swanson, Alice Medrich…and finally, in desperation, after a pile of failed trials, I just gave up and tried my own recipe…and doggone if it wasn’t exactly what I was looking for.
Egg-Free and Dairy-Free Thin Mint CookiesMakes about 100 1-inch cookies1 1/2 cups cake flour (I used Swan’s Down, be careful…Pillsbury Softasilk has egg and dairy.)3/4 cup cocoa powder ( I used Nestle)1 1/4 cup powdered sugar1/4 teaspoon baking soda1/4 teaspoon salt1 3/4 sticks (14T) dairy-free margarine, room temp ( I used Fleischmann’s Unsalted Margarine)2 cups of safe chocolate chips for dipping ( I used Divvies)2 T. shorteningPeppermint extract to taste1.) I found these to be pretty fussy as far as measuring goes. For the flour, cocoa and powdered sugar, I first fluffed up the item to be measured with a spoon or my measuring cup and then scooped with the measuring cup and leveled off with a knife.2.) Place everything except the margarine into a food processor and pulse a few times to mix.3.) Slice the margarine into the food processor bowl.4.) Pulse about 8-10 times until the margarine is well blended, the mixture is still crumbly and hasn’t come together into a ball yet.5.) Dump the crumbly mixture onto a piece of plastic wrap and form into a flat disk.6.) Refrigerate for at least an hour.7.) Roll out to 1/4 inch thickness and cut into 1 inch rounds or hearts. I have a really cool set of nesting fluted round cutters that I got from Amazon, which I use all the time, the smallest size is perfect.8.) Place the cookies on a parchment or Silpat-lined baking sheet and place in the freezer.9.) Preheat the oven to 350 while the cookies freeze.10.) Bake for 10-12 minutes. They should puff up, then flatten out. When they start smelling good, they’re probably ready.11.) Let them rest on the baking sheet for a few minutes before moving to a cooling rack, they’re pretty fragile when hot.12.) When cool, you can dip them! Melt the chocolate chips and the shortening in a microwave, 30 seconds at a time, stirring well until they are completely melted. Mix in the peppermint extract. I used about 1/4 teaspoon per cup of chocolate chips, you may want to use more or less. Dip the cookies quickly and place on a Silpat or waxed paper. Make sure to tilt and shake the cookies so the chocolate coat is thin and not really overwhelmingly thick. Once you’re done, put all the cookies in the freezer. Once the chocolate is dry, you can transfer all the cookies to a freezer-safe container for safe-keeping! Enjoy!
