I just killed a magical zucchini.
It lived to be a ripe old age of 5 months. Truly ancient, in zucchini years. I don't know how this zucchini kept so long and the real tragedy is that I don't know it's variety. It could be one of two kinds that I planted this year, neither of which were very prolific compared the the never-ending supply last year.
This zucchini sat for months, patiently waiting on our dinning table with the thick-skinned butternut and a widowed potato squash. Every week she changed a little in colour and every so often I would stop to give her a gentle squeeze. I would confirm that she was still eatable and my sense of wonder would grow. By December, I stopped wanting to eat her out of pure curiosity! Her skin changed from a green so dark it was almost black to softer shades of emerald and orangey yellow. A friend was over and upon her inspection I stated "it's going bad." She said, "Oh no, I think it's ripening."
About 2 weeks ago I moved the zucchini, now a little softer and a bit sensitive, to a place on the kitchen counter. I was preparing her, without realizing, for a better fate than rotten mush. Today when I woke, I knew it was time. I couldn't hold out much longer without chancing it becoming heartbreakingly unusable.
I grated her up--she was slightly soft and a buttery yellow in the middle but her skin was tough and she smelled like the end of summer. I carefully measured out my ingredients and mixed her up in a fragrant, gooey mess. She slid willingly into a bread pan and I popped her into the oven with a the same sense of wonder I had when I first noticed how special she was many months before.
In less than an hour I will eat her, slathered with melting butter and still warm. She lived a good life and died an even better, deliciously smelling death. Rest in peace magical zucchini.
The recipe I used is from the lovely book, "Grazing: Portable snacks and finger foods for anytime, anywhere" by Julie Van Rosendaal. My mom got this for me years ago and it's filled with wonderful low-fat recipes that you would hardly guess to be low-fat since they are so yummy.
Zucchini Lemon Walnut Bread
2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional)
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup canola oil
2 large eggs
grated zest of 1 lemon (optional)
2 cups grated, unpeeled zucchini
(about 1 large zucchini)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
Preheat oven to 350 F.
In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.
In a small bowl, whisk together the milk, oil, eggs, and lemon zest and add to the flour mixture along with the grated zucchini and nuts. Stir by hand just until combined. Don't worry about getting all the lumps out.
Pour into a 8" x 4" loaf pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray and bake for one hour, until golden and springy to the touch. Cool in the pan on a wire rack.
Makes one loaf, about 16 slices.
*I made some variations to this recipe since I didn't have all the right stuff. I used raw sunflower seeds in place of the nuts and I used grapefruit zest instead of lemon.
