The Bread Project- Yogurt-Zucchini Bread with Walnuts

Before leaving for this three months sojourn of food writing, girl book researching, and couch hopping, I wanted to bake some bread to exercise those muscles before what has the potential to be a bread dry spell (which is better than a dry bread spell as that would just be lots of croutons.)

I had wanted to do some sort of luscious yeast bread for a really big hurrah, but that week in San Francisco before coming back to NY was so hurried and frantic that quick bread was all I could muster. That I chose to do a zucchini bread might come as a surprise to those who know me since zucchini has long been one of the few vegetables that I somewhat actively avoid. My distaste is nowhere near that approaching how I feel about bananas, and I will happily eat the suckers with certain preparations or to avoid being rude, but that texture, which is prone to slippery sliminess is just not my thing.

However, when I saw this recipe in b for Yogurt-Zucchini Bread with Walnuts, I was intrigued, and I thought, why not? I'm being bold in my life decisions, I might as well be bold in my bread as well. Here's how it turned out -


Looks good, no? Moist and shiny. That's the jalapeno chutney glaze that I added to give it a little more kick. I also made a few other alterations because when I tasted the batter it was a bit sweeter and blander than I wanted. But the end result was very satisfying. Good for dessert, breakfast, or a little snack. Especially with some of that aforementioned Roquefort spread on it...

Here's the recipe. Adapted from Food and Wine with my alterations in italics.

Yogurt-Zucchini Bread with Walnuts

Ingredients
-1 cup walnut halves
-2 cups all-purpose flour
-1/2 t baking powder
-1/2 t baking soda
-1/2 t salt (I used 1 t salt)
-3/4 cup plus 2 T sugar
-2 large eggs
-1/2 cup vegetable oil
-1/2 cup fat-free plain Greek yogurt
-1 cup coarsely grated zucchini (from about 1 medium zucchini - I used 2 small)
-3/4 cup low-fat grated cheese
-jalapeno chutney (for brushing on top as glaze)
-a dusting of sea salt

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 325°. Butter and flour a 9-by-4 1/2-inch metal loaf pan.

2. Spread the walnut halves in a pie plate and toast them for about 8 minutes, until they are fragrant. Transfer the toasted walnuts to a cutting board and coarsely chop them, then freeze for 5 minutes to cool.

3. In a large bowl, whisk the flour with the baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a medium bowl, mix the sugar with the eggs, vegetable oil and fat-free yogurt. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients along with the grated zucchini and toasted walnuts and stir until the batter is evenly moistened. Fold in the cheese


4. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 1 hour and 10 minutes (in my oven it took about 1 hour and 20 minutes), until the loaf is risen and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

5. Using a pastry brush, brush on about 2-3 tablespoons of jalapeno chutney (any other slightly savory/tangy chutney or preserves would also work). Add a dusting of sea salt if desired.

6. Let the loaf cool on a rack for 30 minutes before unmolding and serving.