Zucchini Bread Overnight Crockpot Porridge

Another end of a weekend - sad.  We should focus on starting out the week right with a warm, nutritious, and tasty breakfast!

After making Carrot Cake inspired porridge in December, I was curious to try out another vegetable that often gets tossed into dessert-y situations - zucchini.

I grated the zucchini into two 'sizes,' just for fun, but that's not necessary.  Go with a smaller size if you're trying to truly sneak it in, otherwise a standard size for those not afraid of a little green in their breakfast!

Just like the raisins really finished off the Carrot Cake Porridge, craisins suited this porridge perfectly.  And of course, some chopped walnuts.  Or.... in my case, crushed walnuts.  Walnuts + Ziploc bag + jar bottom = perfectly crushed walnuts.  Seriously, it's WAY easier and tidier than chopping them with a knife and having some skitter away on the countertop or find their way onto the floor.

Another grate usage of zucchini! (Get it... grate?? Grated zucchini??)  Sorry, I'll show myself out... :-)

Zucchini Bread Overnight Crockpot Porridge
Makes 6 servings

1/2 cup steel-cut oats
1/2 cup whole oat groats (found in bulk bins in Whole Foods, otherwise just more steel-cut oats)
1/2 cup short-grain brown rice (or pearled barley or farro)
2 Tbsp wheat germ
2 Tbsp flax seeds, ground
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 medium zucchini, grated (~3 cups)
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
Pinch of salt
5 1/2 cups water

For toppings:
Chopped walnuts
Craisins
Brown sugar or maple syrup to taste

Before going to bed, prepare your porridge.  Place a Slow Cooker Liner in your crockpot (Reynolds makes them, by the Ziploc bags).  It's a necessary item for crockpot usage, in my opinion, particularly for overnight porridge!

In your lined crockpot, pour in your steel-cut oats, brown rice, groats, wheat germ, flax seeds, zucchini, cinnamon, salt, vanilla, brown sugar and water.  Stir.  Cover and set your crockpot to low and cook overnight.

In the morning, stir the porridge, and add in at least 1/2 cup craisins.  Top off your bowl with milk of choice (if desired), chopped nuts and sweetener.  Enjoy!

Grandma's Zucchini Bread

This is the time of year when everyone seems to have an inordinate amount of zucchini squash.  And you're forcing it on friends and family, or sneakily leaving it at work for coworkers.  "Please take some!"  There are lots of savory applications for zucchini, of course, but this classic baked good brings me back to my childhood in a wonderfully nostalgic way.

My grandma had a garden, and therefore ended up with LOTS of zucchini.  Each year she would make this bread and I would swipe as many pieces as possible.  It's a very straightforward Midwestern recipe that everyone can enjoy.

It also freezes VERY well, so feel free to bake many loaves and freeze a couple for the winter when you really are craving anything with produce in it.

Zucchini Bread
(My grandma's recipe!)
Makes 2 loaves

3 eggs, beaten
1 c. oil  (you can substitute half with unsweetened applesauce if you're trying to be a bit healthier)
2 c. sugar
2 c. grated zucchini
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1 c. walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a large bowl, mix together the eggs, oil, and sugar first, and then add in the zucchini.  Then mix in the flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and fold in the walnuts.  Line 2 loaf pans with parchment paper.  Bake at 350 degrees about 1 hour, until a toothpick comes out clean.

Enjoy!

Curried Corn & Veggie Chowder (Vegan)

Have you been enjoying this beautiful summer?  I certainly have.  Today we had a typical rainy Pacific Northwest day, so it's time to catch up on some blog posts!

I've been cooking a lot out of one of my new cookbooks, Appetite for Reduction, and so far everything (but one dish) has been awesome.  I don't think I've ever had such success with a cookbook before... although I will admit I'm not sure I've ever made this many things out of one book.  At any rate - it's fantastic.  Easy, relatively quick, healthy and no funky ingredients - love it!

This particular chowder is really great, and unlike any other I've had before.  It's especially perfect for right now when the farmer's markets are full and you've got corn and zucchini coming out your ears.  It's very flavorful and goes well with a big, crunchy salad.  Or to make it a real meal on it's own, I've taken to adding a bit of cooked brown rice to it.  Perfection.

 Without further ado - make this!

Curried Corn & Veggie Chowder (Vegan)
(from Appetite for Reduction) 
 Makes 4-6 servings

1 tsp canola oil
1 cup shallots, chopped finely
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped finely
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp minced fresh ginger
1/4 - 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (optional, and to your preference of spiciness)
1 zucchini (about 1/2 pound), 1/4 inch dice
1 3/4 cup corn, from 3 ears corn (reserve cobs)
1/2 tsp salt
3 cups vegetable broth
2 tsp arrowroot powder
1/2 cup peeled, finely chopped carrots (I really cheat and get shredded carrots and just roughly chop them from there)
1 heaping Tbsp mild curry powder
3/4 cup light coconut milk
Juice of 1/2 lime, or to taste
Fresh cilantro, for garnish (optional)
Cooked brown rice (optional)

Preheat a 4-quart pot over medium-high heat.  Saute the shallots and red bell pepper in the oil until translucent, about 4 minutes.  Use a little broth, if it's sticking.  Add the garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes, and saute for another minute.  Add the zucchini and corn and sprinkle in the salt.  Cook for about 3 minutes, stirring once.

Measure 1 cup of the broth into a measuring cup.  Mix in the arrowroot with a fork until dissolved.  You do this because it's just easier to get the arrowroot dissolved into smaller quantities of liquid.  Add the arrowroot mixture to the pot, along with the rest of the broth.  Mix in the carrots and curry powder.  boil.  Once boiling, break the corn cobs in half and add them to the pot (they add a fantastic depth of flavor).  Lower the heat to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.  Remove the corn cobs.  Add the coconut milk and lime juice.

Use an immersion blender to blend about half the soup  If you don't have an immersion blender, I'm sorry!  Transfer half of the soup to a blender or food processor and puree until smooth, then add back to the pot.  If the soup is still steaming hot, make sure to either keep the opening on top of your food processor open, or lift the lid often for steam to escape.  If steam builds up in a closed container it can explode the lid off and ruin your day.

Taste for seasoning.  Serve garnished with cilantro, if you like.

Balsamic Roasted Vegetable Pizza

You're probably thinking, "Really, pizza?  You just posted about pizza!"  Well, I had a pizza craving... and I wanted to experiment with veggies and a balsamic glaze.  A sophisticated pizza.  Kind of.  Anyway, the husband was game to try it, so I looked for a recipe, just to see if a fantastic one was already in existence.

I was mildly disappointed.  The recipes that I found required you to roast the vegetables separately, and then assemble the pizza.  Ugh, how time-consuming!  The beauty of homemade pizza is that it doesn't take that long, yet it still tastes amazing.  I was not interested in useless steps, so I stuck with the 'shaved vegetable' technique of the Shaved Asparagus Pizza and just tweaked the ingredients a bit.

With all of these vegetables, it's a healthy meal, right?  We're going to go with 'yes.'

Of course, after making this, we did have some extra vegetables lying about, so I made it again the next day.  Oops.  No complaints from our table, however!

Balsamic Roasted Vegetable Pizza
Makes 1 full size pizza - number of servings is up to you!

1 recipe of your favorite pizza dough (I recommend a Jiffy crust for ease!)
1 small shallot, sliced thinly
2-3 mushrooms, sliced thinly
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
1 small zucchini
1 carrot
1 small bell pepper or a few small, sweet peppers, thinly sliced
4-5 spears asparagus
1/4-1/2 cup grated Parmesan and/or Pecorino
1/2 pound mozzarella, shredded or cut into small cubes
2 tsp olive oil
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 tsp honey
1 Tbsp fresh rosemary, minced
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
Several grinds black pepper
Truffle salt/oil (optional)

Oven: Preheat your oven to the hottest temperature it goes, or about 500 in most cases. If you use a pizza stone, have it in there.Whisk together olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and honey.  Set aside.

Prepare veggies: For asparagus - no need to snap off ends; they can be your “handles” as you peel them. Holding a single asparagus spear by its tough end, lay it flat on a cutting board and using a vegetable peeler, create long shavings of asparagus by drawing the peeler from the base to the top of the stalk. Repeat with remaining stalks and don’t fret some pieces are unevenly thick (such as the end of the stalk, which might be too thin to peel); the mixed textures give a great character to the pizza. Discard tough ends. Peel carrot and then use peeler to create long shavings, like asparagus.  Use peeler in the same fashion for zucchini (I only went partway through it until I got to the seedy part).  I ended up using only half the zucchini, and half the carrot.  Thinly slice the mushrooms and shallot.

Pat veggies dry with paper towel (I noticed my pizza got a bit 'wet' without doing this).  In a large bowl, toss zucchini, carrot, asparagus, shallot, mushrooms, peppers, and garlic with olive oil, balsamic vinegar and honey mixture.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Assemble and bake pizza: Roll or stretch out your pizza dough to a 12-inch round. Either transfer to a floured or cornmeal-dusted pizza peel (if using a pizza stone in the oven) or to a floured or cornmeal-dusted tray to bake it on. IF you're using a Jiffy crust, pre-bake the crust as directed (at 425 degrees).

Sprinkle pizza dough with Parmesan/Pecorino (save a bit for the top) and minced rosemary, then mozzarella. Pile shaved vegetables on top. Top with remaining Parmesan/Pecorino. Bake pizza for 10 to 15 minutes at 500 degrees, or until edges are browned, the cheese is bubbly and the vegetables are lightly charred. Remove from the oven and immediately sprinkle truffle salt or oil, then slice and eat.

Enjoy!