Michigan Cottage Cook: ORANGE ZUCCHINI BREAD, LEMON ZUCCHINI BREAD, OR KEY LIME ZUCCHINI BREAD PLUS HOW TO PRESERVE ZUCCHINI FOR WINTER BAKING

It's zucchini time. Zucchini Bread is a perennial favorite to make with all the zucchini which grows in gardens or finds its way to Farmer's Markets this time of year. This orange zucchini bread is a fantastic way to use zucchini. With its flecks of the green zucchini skin, it is a pretty bread too. If you don't like the flavor of orange, try the lemon or Key lime variations.

ORANGE ZUCCHINI BREAD

So pretty and so good.

PRESERVING ZUCCHINI FOR WINTER BAKING

This time of year, my friend Nelda in Maine grates the excess zucchini from her garden with her food processor (I use a box grater because my kitchen is so small). She puts the grated zucchini in one-cup measurements into plastic freezer bags and places the bags in the freezer. She, then, has zucchini to make bread the rest of the year. There is no need to blanch the zucchini. It can go directly into the freezer bag. I put the small bags of zucchini into a large freezer bag so I can find them in my freezer. Little bags tend to get lost. Am I the only person with lost items in their freezers?

With a food processor or box grater, grate the zucchini after removing the very top and bottom of the vegetable.

Put one cup of the grated zucchini into a small freezer bag.

Seal the small bag and put all the small bags of zucchini into a large freezer bag. Freeze the zucchini for later use.

ORANGE ZUCCHINI BREAD WITH GLAZE OR LEMON OR KEY LIME

Cousin Martha said, "OMG is this bread good!!" when she tried her first piece of this bread. The loaves disappeared very quickly. For lemon or Key lime bread, substitute lemon or lime for the orange juice and rind. Like most quick breads, this bread is better if it is made the day before serving.

2 c flour

2 t baking powder

½ t salt

2 eggs

½ c vegetable oil OR ¼ c oil and ¼ c applesauce

2/3 c sugar

½ c buttermilk OR milk with a little vinegar or lemon juice added

2 T orange juice

Zest of 2 oranges

1 c zucchini, grated

ORANGE GLAZE

1 c powdered sugar

2 T orange juice

Ingredients for bread: Flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, vegetable oil, buttermilk, eggs, orange, and zucchini.

Ingredients for glaze: Powdered sugar and orange juice. I used the rind off this orange for the bread.

In a large mixing bowl, put flour, baking powder and salt. Mix well and set aside. In another bowl with an electric mixer, beat eggs until a lemony color. Add oil and sugar to egg mixture. Beat well until fluffy. Then add buttermilk, orange zest and orange juice to egg mixture. Stir well with a rubber spatula otherwise the zest might all be caught on mixer blades. Gently fold with rubber spatula, the zucchini into the egg mixture. Add egg mixture to dry ingredients. Mix gently until flour is moistened. Do not over mix. Put batter into 2 (3-1/2 x 7-inch loaf pans) or one larger pan. I like to use the smaller pans for quick breads so I can give a loaf to a friend plus the smaller pans bake quicker so there is not as thick a crust as in bigger pans. Bake the 2 pans in a preheated 350 degree F. oven for approximately 35 to 40 minutes. Bread will be done when bread pulls slightly away from the sides of the pans and a toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean. Remove pans from oven and allow bread to set for 10 minutes on a rack, then remove bread from pans. When loaves are cool, glaze with orange glaze.

Grate the rind from the oranges and juice the oranges.

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

In another bowl, beat the eggs together with an electric mixer. Beat well.

To the beaten eggs, add oil and sugar. Beat well.

Add buttermilk and rind to egg mixture. Mix well with a rubber spatula.

Add the zucchini to the egg mixture.

Gently mix in the zucchini with a rubber spatula until the flour mixture is just moistened. Do not over mix.

Spray two 3-1/2 x 7-inch loaf pans with non-stick cooking spray.

Add batter to loaf pans. Put in a preheated 350 degree F. oven for 35 to 40 minutes. Bread is done when the sides of the bread pull slightly away from the pans and a toothpick inserted in middle of loaf comes out clean.

Cool bread in pans on a rack for 10 minutes until the bread sets.

Remove bread from pans and let continue to cool.

TO MAKE THE GLAZE

Put the powdered sugar in a bowl and add orange juice.

One cup powdered sugar makes more glaze than you need so you could half the recipe. However, serving the glaze on the side for a party makes the bread even more luscious.