Wednesday, February 11, 2009

"Healthified" Zucchini Bread...here I go again!

While visiting my son Jeffrey's family in December, his wife, Janet, made the most delicious zucchini bread that I have ever tasted!! It was moist and flavorful....rich, yet not too heavy. Dave and I enjoyed every last crumb of it while there. She is such a wonderful cook, so I wasn't surprised at how yummy it was. Upon leaving, I asked Janet for this wonderful recipe so that I could make it at home.

I received that recipe via email yesterday and now realize why it was so scrumptious! It is filled with yummy things such as grated zucchini, cinnamon, vanilla extract, walnuts...eggs, oil and lots (2 and 1/4 cups) of sugar!

This put me in a quandary of sorts. Do I make her incredible zucchini bread...or do I try to ruin it "healthify" it? I have attempted this before with banana bread as well as pumpkin bread and ended up with two, very heavy banana and pumpkin "bricks".

But, as I have felt my pants getting a bit tighter around the waist lately (groan) and, as I am watching high cholesterol numbers, I decided to attempt a lighter version...hoping that it might come out better than the two previous attempts. I went to this wonderful site called "Eat Better America" to see if there was a healthier version of zucchini bread that I could try.

There was....so, I made it.

I just had a piece of my still warm bread right from the oven....and here is the verdict: Janet's is soooo much better than mine....but, this recipe really wasn't bad at all. It was definitely a step up from the last two healthified breads I made! With 1 and 1/2 cups sugar (3/4's cup less than the yummy recipe)...it was actually still a bit too sweet. (I recommend cutting out some of the sugar....maybe only doing 3/4 cup total and dusting it with some powdered sugar if necessary.)

It is only 180 calories a slice and loaded with dietary fiber provided by using a whole wheat flour and white flour mixture....and, the applesauce replaces half of the oil which keeps the fat content down.

Now, to me, this counts as my eating a serving of vegetables. Don't you agree?

Zucchini is a green vegetable, isn't it?

Bon Appetit! : )