zucchini bread

Thanks to a running gag that a friend of mine has been working for a while, I've been really craving some zucchini bread. (I'd explain, but you really had to be there. The point is it came up in conversation a lot.) I've started getting some zucchini from my CSA, so I decided that now was the time.

Sadly, once I actually set out to make the stuff, it became a comedy of under-preparation. The good news is that the final product is quite tasty, so I'm calling it a win.

I used a recipe that, according to my notes, was downloaded from AllRecipes.com, although I can't seem to find it now. It's pretty straightforward:

* 3 eggs
* 1 cup vegetable oil
* 2 cups white sugar
* 2 cups grated zucchini
* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 3 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
* 1 teaspoon ground cloves
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour two 8x4 inch loaf pans.
In a large bowl, beat eggs until light and frothy. Mix in oil and sugar. Stir in zucchini and vanilla. Combine flour, cinnamon, soda, baking powder, salt and nuts; stir into the egg mixture. Divide batter into prepared pans.
Bake for 60 to 70 minutes, or until done.

Now, here's the problem. One, I realized I didn't have vegetable oil. I probably should have gone out and gotten some but I was lazy, so I used olive oil. Again, the end result was tasty, but that was an awful lot of olive oil, and I can't endorse that particular substitution.

Second, I forgot until I was home that I don't have a grater. (I had one, I don't any more, it's a long story.) Again with the lazy: instead of going out and getting one, I used my blender on the zucchini. I tossed in a little extra flour to compensate. Not much, but I don't have a measurement, because of course I eyeballed it. This had an interesting impact on the final product: It's very smooth. I think that might be my new thing, because I believe I prefer this texture. I'll need to compare to some regular-style to be sure, but if you think you might dig it, I say go.

So, end result: quite tasty.