Zucchini Brownies

I was away for a few days visiting mom. My main purpose was just to visit because I haven't been to see her since the Christmas holiday.  I also wanted to clean out her closets and drawers and cull a lot of her old clothing. Her closet and dresser space is rather limited .  She recently got an entire new wardrobe and needed the space to store them. I ordered or made everything myself, labelled them and organized them in her closet and drawers. I also had a chance to do some general tidying and straightening out for her as she cannot really do it herself.

The weather was very cooperative for my journey.  It was sunny on the drive there.  On the way back the weather was a bit overcast but not cold or rainy.  However, the clouds opened and the rain fell on my first day home.  Today if the rain keeps at bay, I hope to finally clean the debris from the garden so I can plant soon.  This year I will plant a variety of hostas.  Half of my small garden does not receive direct sunlight and so I think hostas will do well. I will also plant a lot of flowers in the containers I keep in the area where the sun reaches, and a few vegetables; mostly like tomatoes, hot peppers and herbs.

When the hot weather arrives I won't be doing much baking. Here is a good recipe for cooler days.  I picked this recipe up at a Monday night cooking gathering I join every now and then. I love the recipe because of the large quantity of zucchini in it. In Africa and Europe I think you call this a corgette (summer squash). I also like the crunchy top and moist insides.


Ingredients: 

• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour (I often mix half white, half whole wheat)
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 cup chocolate chip (I used half chocolate chips and half chopped walnuts)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups finely shredded zucchini/corgette

Instructions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 F. and prepare a 9x13 inch pan.
2.  Combine oil, sugar & vanilla extract and mix well.
3.  In a separate bowl, mix together flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.
4.  Add flour mixture to sugar mixture and mix together.
5.  Fold in zucchini/corgette and chocolate chips/walnuts.
6.  Spread brownie mixture into a pan and bake for approximately 25-30 minutes.

Let cool, cut into squares and enjoy! 

Most of us know that vegetables are good for us and zucchini is no exception. It contains manganese, an essential trace mineral, and has a lot of fiber so helps with weight control and lowering cholesterol. It is a good anti-inflammatory, aids in prostate health, cancer prevention, heart attacks and strokes.  Zucchini also has potassium and magnesium which helps in lowering blood pressure. You can see that this summer squash really has so many health benefits.