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Sliced cinnamon zucchini bread beside a second loaf wrapped for January.
Bread1h 22m20 servings

Grandma-Style Zucchini Bread

The zucchini card was requested by name, and it may be the least mysterious thing in the tin. It is simply good, cinnamon-scented bread built for the week when every garden produces vegetables faster than anyone can be polite about them. Loretta squeezed nothing, so I don't either unless the shredded zucchini is visibly dripping. That moisture is part of the recipe. Her original version uses two full cups of sugar; this tested working copy uses one and a half, which keeps the soft crumb and lets the spice come through. Both quantities remain recorded below because preservation should show the decision, not quietly rewrite it.

Loretta's card

ZUCCHINI BREAD (2) 3 c flour 1 t soda, 1 t B.P., 1 t salt 2 t cinnamon 3 eggs 2 c sugar 3/4 c oil vanilla 2 c zucchini nuts if you have them 350° about 1 hr.

Front notes: The front is in Loretta's blue ballpoint; (2) is added above the title in pencil. Back notes: The back is in Loretta's blue ballpoint.

Ingredients

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour (360 g)
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon fine salt
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar (300 g)
  • 3/4 cup neutral oil (180 ml)
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract (10 ml)
  • 2 packed cups coarsely shredded zucchini (250 g)
  • 3/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans, optional (85 g)

Steps

  1. 1Heat oven to 350°F (175°C); grease and parchment-line two 8 1/2-by-4 1/2-inch loaf pans.
  2. 2Whisk flour, leaveners, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
  3. 3Whisk eggs and sugar 1 minute; add oil and vanilla, then fold in zucchini.
  4. 4Fold in dry ingredients only until no flour pockets remain; add optional nuts.
  5. 5Divide evenly and bake 52–62 minutes until tester has no wet batter and centers are about 200°F (93°C).
  6. 6Cool 15 minutes in pans, then fully on a rack before slicing.

There is something written on the back of this card.

Loretta wrote on the backs of about a third of her cards — a date, a name, who the dish was really for. I have been keeping those, and the rest of what I find, where I can write about them properly.

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