Zucchini is one of those vegetables I forget about sometimes. For the longest time, all I could think to do with them was slice them thin and roast them. Then I got into sautéing them with onions, which I still do all the time. The zucchini fritters I made recently were something of a breakthrough, and got me curious to try other dishes featuring grated zucchini. Zucchini bread was bound to happen.

The other day I bought Mama Pea‘s new cookbook, Peas and Thank You, on my iPad, and within ten minutes of downloading it decided to turn the two zucchinis languishing in the fridge into chocolate chip zucchini bread. Seriously, you don’t need to be a vegan or a mom to enjoy the recipes, or author Sarah Matheny‘s writing. Her dry sense of humor and personal anecdotes are so refreshing! It’s so nice to read something where the author isn’t all, “One afternoon in the south of France, while enjoying a delightful lunch prepared by the midgets who tend my herb garden, I got the idea to build the yogic pizza oven…”

Another thing I love about the recipes in this book is that you’re not making a ton of crazy substitutions, once you get over the use of tempeh, seitan, and tofu, if that’s a barrier (Hey, Dad!). It’s all delicious, vegan food with ingredients you can actually pronounce and find in most stores. Cheers to making plant-based meals approachable!

Anyway, back to this zucchini bread…I was pretty faithful to the recipe in the book, except I added 1/4 cup of cocoa powder and in place of organic sugar, I used a 1/2 cup of honey. My “good quality dark chocolate chips” actually turned out to be an easter bunny that I took a hammer to (is it bad I found this extremely therapeutic?), but it all worked out in the end.

The bread somehow manages to be moist while at the same time holding together very well. The taste is just sweet enough, with a really pleasing chocolate flavor. For all those veggie haters, you can’t even taste the zucchini. Another thing to love? While it’s by no means a low-calorie food, a healthy slice still has about half the calories you’d get in a hunk of Starbucks loaf.

Before Baking

After Baking

I enjoyed a still-warm slice when we went to see the movie Horrible Bosses Friday night, and a few crumbles made an appearance on my morning oatmeal.

As for the zucchini I had left over? I went with a tried-and-true favorite.

sauteed zucchini with spinach, broccoli, brown rice, and seitan

What’s your favorite zucchini recipe?