Chocolate Zucchini Bread

Chocolate and zucchini? Together?

Yes. Yes, yes, yes. Just trust me on this one.

My dad is a talented gardener, and every summer our garden was overflowing with fresh fruits and vegetable to be eaten up and canned. Zucchini, in particular, seemed to do very well in the Seattle soil, and each year we would be inundated by huge, dark green, monsters of zucchini. For mom, it was a challenge to figure out what to do with it all. Then she discovered this recipe (and dad discovered the Continental Vegetable recipe), and voila! Problem solved.

This is a lovely, moist, but not-too-sweet loaf cake that is perfect for a tea-time snack. It's a big recipe, and makes three loaves - if you want just one loaf, divide the amounts by three (which is what I usually do). It's a fairly forgiving recipe, so if you don't get the coversions exactly right for the baking powder and soda, it won't make much difference.

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

3 Eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup vegetable oil

1 tsp. Vanilla

2 cups brown sugar, packed

3 squares unsweetened chocolate

3 cups grated zucchini (about 3 store-bought zucchini, or one zucchini from Dad’s garden)

4 cups flour

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 tsp. cloves

Heat oven to 350 degree F. In a microwave or double boiler, melt the chocolate.

In a large bowl mix together the eggs, oil, vanilla and brown sugar.  Stir in the melted chocolate and then the zucchini.

Mix the dry ingredients together in a medium bowl, and then add them to the zucchini mixture. Stir well.

Bake in 2 or 3 greased and floured loaf pans for 40 - 60 minutes, depending on loaf size.  To test whether the loaves are done, get a piece of spaghetti and stick it into the tallest part of each loaf (my mom's clever technique). If it comes out with wet batter still attached, cook for another 5 minutes then test again.

The cooked loaves freeze well. (This is very useful as gardens generally produce a huge amount of zucchini all at once.)

From: the Zucchini Cookbook, discovered by Mom

Toad in the Hole

Tonight, we had Toad in the Hole. I know, weird name. Delicious dish. Toad in the Hole is basically Yorkshire puddings with sausages baked into them. Or, how I make it, one GIANT Yorkshire pudding with sausages baked into it.


What? You don't know what Yorkshire pudding is? My goodness, you have truly been missing out. Yorkshire pudding is sort of a savory popover, made of flour, eggs, milk, and water. The liquid in the water evaporates and causes the whole thing to puff up as it cooks, making it light and crispy. My dad is a Yorkshireman born and bred, and the traditional holiday meal in our house has always been Roast Beef with Yorkshire pudding. As a kid I could eat my weight in those things, smothered in gravy. Deeee-licious.


Nowadays, I haven't got any Yorkshire pudding tins, so when I'm in the mood for a fix, we usually make Toad in the Hole, served up with roasted potatoes, steamed veg, and a bit of beef gravy to drizzle over the top.

Toad in the Hole

Serves four to six

1 cup flour

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup milk

4 eggs

½ cup water

16 good breakfast sausages (I like to use chicken-apple sausages)

Some vegetable oil

Mix the flour and salt together in a mixing bowl. Add milk and mix until combined. Add eggs and mix again. Add water and mix again. Then turn the mixer on full blast and let it run for 2 minutes (According to Dad, the batter should be given “100 strokes by the arm of a Yorkshirewoman” but it’s easier to just use a mixer.)

Put the batter in the fridge for at least a half an hour.

Heat the oven to 400. Brown the sausages in a large saucepan. Put the batter back in the mixer and give it another 2 minutes at full throttle.

Pour a thin later of oil into each compartment of four Yorkshire Pudding tins (16 puddings total). If you don't have Yorkshire Pudding tins, use two heavy metal baking pans.

Put the pans into the hot oven for 5 minutes. Carefully lift them out and pour a little batter into each, about 3 to 4 tablespoons (if using pans, pour half the batter into each pan). Drop a sausage into each (or just scatter them at random if using pans).

Bake for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, use that saucepan to make a beef gravy.

Check out that gravity-defying Yorkshire pud! 

Chicken Piccata

Chicken Piccata is a simple, quick meal, great for busy weeknights. When I was growing up, my dad's go-to dish when he had very little time to prepare dinner was usually something along these lines - he sauteed chicken breast in a skillet, deglazed the pan with wine or chicken broth, then added seasonings and sometimes cream to vary the flavor. I often follow the same plan, adding and subtracting ingredients based on what's in the fridge. For example, this time I sauteed a bit of onions before deglaxing the pan, for a chunkier sauce.

I also find it works well as a potluck dish for a luncheon - I just make sure there is plenty of sauce, and then serve on top of some pasta with butter and fresh herbs.

½ cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, pounded to ¼ inch thickness
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 tablespoons white wine (can substitute chicken broth)
3 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons capers (optional)
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Combine four, salt and pepper and use to coat the chicken breasts.

Melt butter and oil in a large frying pan and cook the chicken breasts over medium heat for about 5 minutes per side, until cooked through. Remove and keep warm.

Stir wine into pan juices. Add lemon juice and bring to a boil. Return chicken to pan and cook for about 3 minutes, until sauce thickens slightly. Garnish with capers and parsley.