Labbits Like: Chocolate Orange Zucchini Bread

Just look at this moist, chocolatey slice of goodness that Pipkin's munching on! Can you believe it's zucchini bread? Who on earth ever looked at a zucchini and thought, "mmmmm, that would make fantastic bread?" His friends must have pointed and laughed at him. But then he made a loaf of deliciousness and his friends were too busy stuffing their faces to laugh at him again. True fact, I'm sure.

Okay, totally made up, but the fact is, zucchini bread doesn't taste like some mystery green vegetable your mom makes you eat, it bakes up a really moist quick bread! Add in some chocolate chips, orange zest and bake it in a bundt pan and it's practically cake.  This recipe's easy and quick to make, and great to bring to parties! In fact, you might want to print out extra copies of the recipe to share. Print the recipe here.

Don't forget salt! Pipkin always forgets one ingredient in the photo.

Chocolate Orange Zucchini Bread
Ingredients:
3 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups grated zucchini
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels
2 tbsp orange zest (about one labbit sized orange)

Preparation: 
Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In another large bowl, beat the eggs, then add sugar and continue to beat until light and fluffy. Stir in the applesauce, vanilla, zucchini and chocolate morsels. Add the egg mixture to the dry ingredients and stir well to blend. 

Pipkin admits that at this stage, it doesn't look so appetizing.

Pour it all into a greased bundt pan* and bake at 350ºF for one hour or until a toothpick inserted through the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool slightly in the pan before flipping it over and serving. 

Yields: one bundt zucchini cakey bread. Enough for 12 - 16 servings.
*To make a more traditional bread shape, bake in two separate 9 x 5 bread loaf pans, for about 50
minutes at 350ºF, OR make a couple dozen muffins, baked for 20-22 minutes at 350ºF.

Labbits Like: Summer Squash Tacos

Pipkin hasn't folded this taco so you can see all the yummy goodness inside.

MMMmmmm veggies fresh from the garden. With summer in full swing, the Year of the Labbit blog was crying out for a seasonal dinner option, and what better way to celebrate Meatless Monday than with a taco filled with fresh from the garden veggies? Summer squash, zucchini and cilantro fill up this taco, and some black beans add protein, the rice provides a base, and of course you need cheese to goo it all together! If Pipkin had thought this through a little more carefully he would have added roasted corn (but corn isn't ready yet here in Vermont) and he would have gotten bigger wraps to make burritos, which are neater to eat. But these tacos are just as tasty as burritos, and sometimes messy food is more fun! Print the recipe here.

Summer Squash Tacos

Ingredients:
1-2 Tbsp olive oil
1 summer squash, diced
1 zucchini, diced
1 14 oz can of black beans, rinsed and drained
1 fresh mango, diced
Fresh cilantro, chopped - as much as you like!
2 cups cooked brown rice
Tortilla shells - Pipkin used 10" for big tacos, but they're not big enough for burritos. Get 12" shells for burritos

Toppings:
Shredded cheese - Pipkin had Cabot Racer's Edge sharp cheddar, but Monterey Jack, Jalapeno Jack, and cheddar are all great!
Salsa - Pipkin went with Newman's Own Mango salsa
Sour Cream - optional, Pipkin didn't have any today
Lime juice - optional, yum yum!

Preparation:
Cook 1 cup of brown rice using either a stovetop method or a rice cooker. (Pipkin's got a rice cooker.) While the rice is cooking, rinse and drain the beans. Dice the two squash and the mango.

Heat some olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the summer squash, zucchini and beans and cook until the veggies are tender. Turn off heat and stir in the diced mango.

Heat tortilla shells according to directions on the package. Top with a little brown rice, the veggie and mango mixture, and any toppings, like shredded cheese and salsa. Fold the tortilla shell to create your soft taco. Turn your head sideways and enjoy! :)

Yields: Enough tacos for four hungry labbits.

Labbits Like: Summer Chili/Summer Veggie Salsa

The labbits are thrilled to be getting summer squash, onions, tomatoes, scallions and zucchini from Deep Meadow Farm, their local CSA, and a regular booth at the Bellows Falls Friday Farmer's Market.

It's too bad that corn isn't in season yet, but Clover cheated a little and threw in some cooked up frozen corn into the pot, along with some chickpeas (from a can), and then served it up with chopped scallions, diced avocado and a dollop of sour cream. The only problem is, Clover has no idea what to call this dish. Is it a chili? It seems not soupy enough to be chili. Is it a goulash (which, according to Clover's friend Maggie Whalebutt, has onions and paprika) or is it not "stewey" enough? Is it a salsa? Served cold with some Red Hot Blues it's a fantastic salsa. It could also be served cold as a leafless salad, thinking along the lines of other leafless salads like bean salad or potato salad.  Whatever you decide to call it, it's a delicious way to celebrate the harvest of seasonal summer veggies. Print the recipe here.

Summer Chili/Summer Salsa

Ingredients:
1/2 Tbsp EVOO
1 cup diced red onion
1 or 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 zucchini, diced
1 summer squash, diced
1 cup frozen corn kernels (or fresh, if you are so lucky!)
1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed well
2 tomatoes, diced
1/2 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp hot paprika
S+P to taste

Garnish:
Sour cream
Freshly chopped scallions
1 avocado, diced
Garden of Eatin's Red Hot Blues or other tortilla chips

Preparation:
Heat the oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute for a minute, stirring constantly.

Add the zucchini, summer squash, corn, chickpeas, tomatoes, and spices and cook, stirring frequently, until the tomatoes have softened but the summer squash is still crisp, about 3 or 4 minutes.

Serve hot with a spoonful of sour cream, a sprinkling of chopped scallions and a generous helping of diced avocado, with tortilla chips on the side. You can also serve this cold like a salsa.

Serves: 4 labbits as a main; several labbits as a salsa.

Labbits Like: Lemon Zucchini Risotto

When the labbits' friend Teresa isn't touring around North America on her BMW 650GS, storm chasing in the midwest or researching extreme weather in the Arctic, she takes time to share one of her favourite recipes: Lemon Zucchini Risotto. Even superheroes have to eat, after all!

If you're a fan of risotto (and who isn't? It's like elegant mac n' cheese) be sure to check out the beet risotto from last week. Risotto, you'll learn, is a basic formula of oil, onion, arborio rice, and slowly stirring in hot broth. What you add to it is up to you. Print out the recipe here.

Lemon Zucchini Risotto

Ingredients:
5 cups vegetable stock
2 Tbsp EVOO
1 onion, finely chopped
1 2/3 cups arborio rice
1/3 cup dry sherry
3 tsp grated lemon zest
2 Tbsp lemon juice (about the juice of one lemon)
12 oz courgette zucchini, diced
1 Tbsp freshly chopped parsley (optional)
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Lemon zest for garnish
S+P to taste

Preparation:
Place the stock in a large saucepan, bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover, and keep at a low simmer.

Heat the oil in a large sauce pan, add the onion and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, or until softened. Reduce the heat, stir in the rice and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add 1/2 cup of hot stock stirring until all the stock is absorbed. Continue adding stock, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly, for 20 minutes, or until all the liquid is absorbed. If the risotto gets too dry, add a little extra stock or water.

Stir in the sherry, lemon zest, lemon juice and zucchini. Cook over low head for a further 5 minutes, or until the risotto is tender, with a slight bite to the inside of the grain. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, and stir in the parsley and half the parmesan. Garnish with lemon zest and remaining parmesan.

Serves: 4 - 6 labbits