Saturday, August 16, 2008

Lulu's Zucchini Bread


Today I used the last large zucchini to make Mum's Zucchini Bread. This picture is a little sad, but the loaves are not very high because, even though her recipe says it makes 2 loaves, AFTER I baked it in 2 pans, I remembered that I used to just make 1 regular loaf and 1 mini-loaf. So, it's not very pretty, but it sure tastes good! It's very moist and if you look close you can see I had a bit of trouble getting one of them out of the pan. Since it is so warm here, I didn't want to turn on my oven to bake these. They were baked in my new-to-me Toastmaster Roaster Oven that G found at the flea market a couple weeks ago. Mum used to have a similar thing made by Westinghouse in the 1950's and 1960's and she passed it on to me at some point. Of course at some point over the years, I sold it I guess. In a heatwave OR for the holidays these free-standing roaster ovens really come in handy!
Lulu's Zucchini Bread
3 eggs, beaten
1 C. oil (I used Crisco Oil)
2 C. sugar
2 C. grated raw zucchini
1 T. vanilla
2 C. flour
1/4 t. baking powder
2 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
1 T. cinnamon
1 C. chopped nuts of choice
optional: 1 C. raisins
  • Prepare your pans by spraying them and dusting with sugar if desired.
  • Sift the dry ingredients and set aside.
  • Blend eggs, oil and sugar well.
  • To the egg mixture add the zucchini and vanilla
  • Add the sifted dry ingredients to the wets and combine well.
  • Add in the nuts and raisins if you are using them.

Pour into pans. I have made 4 mini-loaves from this recipe or 1 large loaf and 1 mini-loaf. As I recall I have also made this in a 9" x 13" cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 min. to 1 hour depending on your pan size. The mini-loaves will take less time. When out of the oven I let the pans sit 10 min before I tried to turn out the bread. Perhaps 15 min. would be better. OR....you could line the bottom of your pans with parchment paper. There would be no worry if you choose to bake this in a 9"x13" pan! I may do that next time.

Notes:

  • You can sprinkle a little powdered sugar over the loaves or dress them up with a little homemade glaze. A quick glaze can be made by adding a little water to some canned frosting!
  • I see a little note Mum made by the sugar and it appears you could cut the sugar to 1.5 C.
  • Next time I make this I will try using 3/4 C. oil instead of the full cup. I might also buy some of that alternative to shorting made from fruit pulp or try it using applesauce for all or most of the oil to make this a bit more heart healthy.
  • I can't eat nuts and G doesn't like raisins, so ours was plain and G-G-GREAT!

Nummmmmmmmmmm!

Friday, August 1, 2008

Lulu's Bean Salad

Note: I apologize for not having a picture of this salad, which I recall as being very good and very pretty! Mum made it often, but I do not make it unless we are going to a potluck or having a lot of company for a barbeque. Reason? My other half, aka G, dislikes/hates/abhors beets of any sort. It might be me only but I just don't think this salad is the same without beets which I love.

Also note: Mum's recipe calls for #2 cans of everything and with todays packaging changes I just would make sure that the ounce amounts of each ingredient are equivalent. As I recall, #2 cans were just a little larger than a soup can - or wait a minute........were those the #303 cans! Maybe the #2 were the big chubby cans! UPDATE: Thanks to Lil of Recipes from the Heart (see link on side) I have been able to add in the ounce equivalents for the numbered cans in Mum's recipe! I found a comprehensive list here.


Marinated Bean Salad
  • 1/2 C. sugar
  • 1/2 C. vinegar
  • 1/3 C. oil
  • #2 can (2-1/2 Cups) of green beans, reserve 1/2 the liquid
  • #2 can (2-1/2 Cups) julienne beets, drained & rinsed
  • #2 can (2-1/2 Cups) red kidney beans, reserve 1/2 the liquid
  • #2 can (2-1/2 Cups) garbanzo beans, reserve 1/2 the liquid
  • 1 red onion, peeled, halved & sliced thinly into 1/2 rings
  • Optional: 1/2 to 1 C. diced or sliced green pepper
  • Combine reserved liquid, sugar, vinegar and oil in large bowl.
  • Put all beans, onions & beets into bowl and mix well.
  • Cover bowl and leave overnight in refrigerator.
  • Drain before serving cold the next day.

NOTE: If you are not overly fond of beets, you can use a smaller can. They add nice color to the salad, but if you don't drain and rinse them well, they will turn the entire salad red!