Zucchini, zucchini and more zucchini. Yes, we have lots of zucchini. We have made a few loaves of zucchini bread, mixed zucchini in an amazing ratatouille and have grilled it as a side dish with dinner. I will be sharing these recipes with you in the upcoming weeks.
While I was looking for recipes for zucchini and summer squash, I came upon this recipe in Allrecipes.com. Hmm...dessert with zucchini, better yet, chocolate dessert with zucchini. I need to try this zucchini brownie recipe.
As I started to make the recipe I noticed there were no eggs, first sign that there is something wrong with the recipe. For me, it was perfect! I love taking recipes and adding new and exciting twists so I needed to figure out something with the liquid and consistency. I started byadding 2 eggs, using to different types of sugar and adding kahlua rather than vanilla. When I made the frosting, I added half and half instead of milk and got a fudgier frosting that was amazing.
The cake was moist and fudgy and the frosting was rich and delicious. It doesn't have the consistency of a brownie but the cake does have somewhat of a denseness. The chocolate zucchini brownies didn't last long at our house, but then again, do any? It's great as a snack cake and even better with ice cream...coffee ice cream for me!
Too much zucchini, looking for something tempting, this is the best of both worlds...eating your vegetables as dessert.
Ingredients:
Zucchini Brownies
1/2 cup of canola oil
1 cup of white sugar
1/2 cup of Demerara sugar (washed raw cane sugar - light brown granular)
2 eggs
1 tablespoon of Kahlua
2 cups of all-purpose flour
1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons of baking soda
1 teaspoon of Kosher salt
2 cups of shredded zucchini
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts
Frosting
6 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup of butter
2 cups of confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup of half and half
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract (or kahlua...depending on the audience)
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch baking pan.
In a large bowl, mix together the oil, sugars, eggs and kahlua until well blended.
Combine the flour, 1/2 cup cocoa, baking soda and salt; stir into the sugar mixture. This mixture will be thick and a bit stiff. Add zucchini and walnuts. Spread evenly into the prepared pan.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until brownies spring back when gently touched.
To make the frosting, melt together the 6 tablespoons of cocoa and butter; set aside to cool. In a medium bowl, blend together the confectioners' sugar, half and half and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Stir in the cocoa mixture. Spread over cooled brownies before cutting into squares.
