Our zucchini are huge.  And I mean HUGE!  We have about 20 MASSIVE zucchinis on the go in our garden right now… Which leads me to baking/cooking with zucchini almost constantly!!  In an effort to preserve and readily enjoy our zucchini, I’ve created this post in an ode to our zucchini.  I’ll be letting you in on some of the yummy zucchini recipes I’ve been making!  But first, check out these zucchinis…

1. Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread

Seriously – I pretty much ate an entire loaf myself.  In a day.  It was that good…You’ve been warned!!!

• 1 1/2 cups zucchini (grated, squeezed and drained)
• 1/2 cup pure maple syrup or honey (I personally like maple syrup best!)
• 1/4 cup oil (olive or coconut works best)
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 egg (or try a substitute if you’ve run out!)
• 1 and 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (you could use almonds too – I did for a few loaves!)
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips

1. Mix the zucchini, honey/maple syrup, oil, yogurt, vanilla and egg in a bowl.
2. Mix the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cocoa powder and cinnamon in a bowl.
3. Mix the wet and dry ingredients.
4. Mix in the nuts and chocolate chips.
5. Pour the batter into a lightly greased 5X9 inch loaf pan.
6. Bake in a preheated 350F oven until a toothpick pushed into the center comes out clean, about 50-70 minutes.

You could also make these in muffin tins like I did for one batch.  I also put a batch in a freezer bag and froze it flat (quicker to thaw!) for future use.

2. Zucchini and Potato Bake – Side Dish

I won’t re-type the recipe because the original is quite good!  Just know that I added hot peppers (YUM!), and used my own version of bread crumbs!

3. Zucchini Pancakes

Oh. My. Gosh.  These are fabulous!! We enjoyed them as a Sunday morning treat, and we were pleasantly surprised!  And who can resist a little extra veggie oomph first thing in the morning?!  Give these a try…seriously…

• 1 c. whole wheat flour
• 3/4 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 Tbsp. honey
• 3/4 cup milk (I used coconut milk)
• 1-2 Tbsp. melted butter or coconut oil
• 1 egg (or a substitute)
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 cup shredded zucchini

Combine dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet ones in another. Add the wet to the dry and mix until just combined. Stir in zucchini. Cook over medium until edges are dry and centers are bubbling. Flip and cook until done.  **If you want, you can prepare this batter and leave in your fridge overnight so that it’s ready to go in the morning!!

Of course, you can add zucchini to pasta, pizza, soups, and almost any other dish you can think of!  Be creative, and google some recipes!  You’ll be surprised what you come up with!  :)

Check out some of the food resource links on the left of my blog and enter “zucchini” as the item you have on hand and see what recipes they offer!

And if all else fails, slice them up into the shape you most use (shredded, quartered, in sticks, etc.) and freeze them in large ziplock bags!  We have 9.5 of those on the go…plus all the other goodness I just mentioned!  If you’re coming over, make sure to take a zucchini home with you!!!

Having this many zucchinis, is a finer thing!