Zucchini Bread

Whenever I see humongous zucchinis at the farmer’s market I cannot help but think about my dad. He used to grow so many zucchini plants in our backyard and always beamed with so much pride every time he cut and harvested a squash and brought it in for us to eat for dinner. During the summer our front door was kept open because of the warmer temperature. Dad would walk in and always announce, “home grown!” as if we were learning this for the first time. But no, every time he walked in with a new zucchini he announced it as if he was bringing home a new born baby from the hospital. My dad loved his garden. He was always giving zucchini’s away too. Seriously, the sizes of them were beastly. It wasn’t uncommon for them to be the size of my forearm.

My dad would give zucchini’s to my elderly neighbor Alice. I was named after this sweet woman. She was a gifted home baker, always baking something good for us to eat. Alice would often bake us zucchini bread which disappeared in minutes. With eight people in our family, a whole love equated to one slice per person. I was always amazed by zucchini bread because it seemed so strange people could bake a loaf cake made from a vegetable, albeit it’s technically a fruit because it has seeds.

Needless to say, I love homemade zucchini bread made from those giant zucchinis. Today I am sharing a zucchini bread loaf recipe I love. It’s made with butter, sugar, and all-purpose flour. I am unashamed by this. I am all for healthy eating most of the time but how do you put a price tag on wanting a nostalgic slice of childhood? Dad and Alice are no longer with us but when I eat a slice of zucchini bread, I can’t help but not reflect on my childhood. Impossible.

Farmer’s markets are great places to find these big zucchinis and often at cheap prices. I paid $1 for each one I bought last week. Crazy. Also, if you happen to have a large food processor with a shredding attachment, you can easily shred zucchini in a few seconds.

Lastly, you might consider baking two of these at once because one loaf will probably disappear rather quickly. Enjoy!