Vegetables in bread?

A couple of weeks ago I figured I would attempt making zucchini bread for Garrett when he came to visit. I had never tasted this strange vegetable bread before, so I approached it with great hesitancy. On my first attempt, I split the recipe in half and baked two small loaves; one loaf for Garrett and one for my friends and I. As soon as I took the loaves out of the oven, I dropped the majority of one loaf on the floor, so I was left with a small taste of what hadn't fallen on the floor and I hoped that the other loaf tasted alright. 

Fast forward a week and I decided it was time to attempt this strange yet tasty bread again. Well, I believe that zucchini bread is my new favorite thing. On top of the deliciousness of this bread, it has 1-2 whole zucchini in it, so it must be healthy, right?!

 I used this recipe with a few modifications, which I've noted below.

Zucchini Bread

2 cup grated zucchini
1/3 cup water
4 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup vegetable oil  

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce 

2 cups sugar

2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoon baking soda 

1 1/2 teaspoon salt
3 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon lemon juice

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and sugar. In a separate bowl, combine oil, eggs, water, zucchini, lemon juice, and vanilla extract. Mix wet ingredients into dry and fold in. Bake in 2 standard loaf pans, sprayed with nonstick spray, for 1 hour, or until a tester comes out clean. Alternately, bake in 5 mini loaf pans for about 45 minutes.

 Yum.

-K

Cinnamon Toast

I've spent my whole life eating cinnamon toast the WRONG way. I had no idea until this woman brought it to my attention and I'm thankful she did. So, the following morning I tried cinnamon toast the RIGHT way (according to her, soon to be me, and probably you too). Oh my goodness! Who knew such a nice and simple treat could have such potential?!

You need to try this, seriously.

Cinnamon Toast - The Right Way (adapted from The Pioneer Woman, you can find the original recipe here)
*I altered the recipe to a single serving, replaced and omitted a couple items.
 
2 slices of whole wheat bread
1 Tbsp. Earth Balance, Softened
1/2 Tbsp. Sugar
1/2 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
1/4 tsp. Vanilla Extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Stir to completely combine the Earth Balance with a sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla.

Spread onto slices of bread, covering the entire surface, all the way to the edges.
Place the bread on a cookie sheet and bake for 3 or so minutes (I honestly didn't pay much attention to the time, but it was much less than her suggestion of 10 minutes).

Turn the broiler on and broil until golden brown and bubbling (be careful not to let it burn!).

Remove from oven and enjoy!

How simple is that?

Recipe:

I completely forgot to share this delicious recipe with you (especially Angie)!

Cranberry-Pumpkin Cookies

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 cup solid pack pumpkin puree
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup fresh cranberries
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon orange zest
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
2. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla, egg and pumpkin. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon; stir into mixture until well blended. Cut the cranberries in half and stir into mixture along with the orange zest and walnuts. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto cookie sheets.
3. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes.