Zucchini Bread

Zucchini is a Summer squash of the Mesoamerican origin. Growing up, Italian we called it gagootz and ate it savory in a red gravy. Everyone grew them in their garden and some grew as big as baseball bats. Nothing makes a gardener prouder then to have your garden produce a HUGE zucchini.

Most cultures have their name for a zucchini. A zucchini is a thin-skinned cultivar of what in Britain and Ireland is referred to as a marrow and in South Africa, zucchini is known as baby marrow.

Along with certain other squashes and pumpkins, the zucchini belongs to the species Cucurbita pepo. It can be dark or light green. A related hybrid, the golden zucchini, is a deep yellow or orange color. How fun would it be to have a colorful cousin like a pumpkin? Gourds also fall in the same category as pumpkins.

In the culinary world, the zucchini is treated as a vegetable; it is usually cooked and presented as a savory dish or accompaniment. Botanically, zucchinis are fruits, a type of botanical berry called a "pepo", being the swollen ovary of the zucchini flower. Don't freak, most fruits are the ovary of a flower. Zucchini has a rich, ancient history and we could go on and on about them, but let's get cooking.

You'll need: 2 loaf pans 325 degrees 50-65 mins

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

3 eggs (beaten)

1/2 cup oil

1/2 apple sauce

3 tsp. vanilla

3 cups flour

t tsp nutmeg

3 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 cups grated zucchini

1 cup chopped walnuts

In a large bowl, mix all the wet ingredients. Cream the apple sauce, oil and sugars well. Mix in the vanilla and zucchini. Set this aside. SIFT, yes I still sift, all the dry ingredients together. It's up to you how you sift. You can purchase an expensive hand held sifter but why bother? I put all the dry ingredients in a fine wire colander and shake over a bowl. It's a cheap way of doing it and I like the fact that everything in my kitchen can serve more then one purpose.

Slowly mix the dry into the wet ingredients in increments of three. Once blended fold in the chopped nuts.

Spray and prepare the loaf pans with baking spray so they don't stick. Fill the pans half way up and bake until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Allow to cool completely before removing from the pans.

The zucchini bread freezes beautifully and makes a great breakfast treat.

Enjoy!