Oy vey…
So this last week of pre-orientation has been INSANE. 3 hours of sleep and meeting 20 awesome new freshman? No biggy.
Anyways, I’m sorry I’ve been totally neglecting ya’ll with any semblance of foodie goodness. So as a little present, here’s an end-of-summer treat to keep you going to remind you of all the wonders of Summer 2012. 
One of my favorite things about being home is baking. But not just any baking…healthy baking!
Usually with vegetables. Sometimes with chocolate. Always with ridiculous dancing. Hopefully with ultimate deliciousness
H and family have been the best of hosts this summer and have graciously allowed me to use their kitchen, but surprisingly, I’ve done very little baking. With the dog days of summer dwindling though, I’m finding myself propelled to the kitchen to use up the last bits of summer produce and summer free time. This summer has been a bit indulgent (wonderfully so), but now, I’m feeling quite dandy about a healthy treat that feels great and tastes even better.
So here’s to zucchini bread….
Whole grain, protein-packed, vegetable- dotted, moist, light, summery, and most importantly, DELICIOUS zucchini bread.
Healthy Zucchini Bread
Ever-so-slightly sweet with a variation of different textures, this zucchini bread is one of the tastiest things I’ve baked all summer. It’s bursting at the seams with whole grains, protein, and omega-3’s, but you’d never guess it. Lovely either a morning breakfast with coffee or for a late summer gathering with some lemonade, this is a treat you can feel proud to eat.
Inspired by Sweet Tooth, Sweet Life’s Zucchini Bread
Makes 10 slices
Ingredients:
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour**
1 cup rolled oats
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup raw turbinado sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 eggs
2 tsp chia seeds
3 tbsp milk (I used non-dairy almond milk)
3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups shredded zucchini
1/3 cup walnuts, chopped
**Regular whole wheat is too heavy. If you don’t have whole wheat pastry flour, you can use 1/2 whole wheat and 1/2 all purpose flour.
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, and grease a 9 x 5 loaf pan.
In a large bowl, combine the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, salt, cinnamon, and spices., using a whisk to evenly distribute all ingredients. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs until light and foamy. Add the chia seeds, milk, applesauce, vanilla, and zucchini, and whisk until mixture is even.
At this point, combine the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Gently stir to avoid getting a “glue-y” batter, and then, fold in the chopped walnuts.
Bake for 50 minutes, or until the bread is golden on top and cooked in the middle. Allow to cool for 15 minutes (important or you will end up with mushy bread!).
EDIT: A note from my dear mother...Since this bread has a high moisture content from the zucchini and no real preservatives (yay!), it is best kept in the fridge in order to maintain freshness. If you are planning on eating it over a long span of time, slice bread and then freeze + reheat. :)
I was a little bit nervous about this bread turning out dense due to the combination of so many wet ingredients (zucchini, applesauce, eggs, etc.) and whole wheat, but it definitely exceeded my expectations! I modified much of Courtney’s recipe to suit my own tastes, swapping chia seeds for the egg whites and adding walnuts.
The only thing I might try next time is either using quick oats (as originally recommended) or grinding up rolled oats a tad to make them a bit less pronounced in the bread. I really like whole oats in my breads, but I’m not sure if guests would feel the same.
That said, Mom let me know this morning that she “really liked the oat-iness.” Ironic, eh?
I guess it just goes to show you that this bread is a winner all-around!
P.S. Plus, it makes for another great recipe too….
Any guesses?
And most likely picture of yoga, the Pacific Ocean, and everything in between. 
I’ve spent the better part of the past year trying to figure out how to explain the recovery process. Both to myself & to others. Most often, I’m asked, “Are you back to normal now?”