Zucchini Bread + Cooper’s First Blog Appearance

I don’t really want Cooper to overshadow the zucchini bread in this post, but it is his first blog appearance, so I’ll let you be the judge. Before I start gushing about the joys of puppy parenting, let me tell you that this zucchini bread is really good. This version has a little whole wheat flour, sour cream, raw turbinado sugar, and a good dose of cinnamon and freshly grated nutmeg. It’s the kind of treat that is perfect sliced and toasted with a cup of tea for breakfast or on its own as an afternoon snack.

In the middle of taking pictures for this post, I noticed Cooper’s little face staring at me from under the kitchen table, peaking over one of the benches (which we have in lieu of chairs). He usually hangs out in his crate when I’m working on a blog post, but I guess I didn’t latch the door all the way. And true to his attention-loving personality, he insisted on getting his picture taken. Riley, our older dog, will turn his head any time you point a camera at him, but not Cooper. He loves the spotlight.

Cooper is the crazy one in our little 2 human, 2 dog family and he is constantly getting into trouble. Leave a bathroom door open and you will find all the toilet paper unrolled and ripped to shreds in a pile on the floor. Buy an amazing antique cabinet, look away for 2 seconds, and there will be tiny puppy teeth marks somewhere on it.

He is technically still a puppy (not even 2 years old yet), so we’re waiting for the day when he calms down, but I’m secretly hoping that not all of his craziness goes away. His antics keep me on my toes and I love that about him.

Even though Riley is a little more camera shy than Cooper, he is usually sitting on my lap as I write these posts—a good little blogging assistant. I’m sure at some point he too will make an appearance, but for now you’ll just have to enjoy Cooper and this delicious zucchini bread.

Zucchini Bread

I like baking this zucchini bread in mini loaf pans (I use disposable foil ones), which cuts down the baking time, creates cuter/well-portioned loaves, and makes clean up a breeze. If you prefer, you can bake this recipe in 1 standard loaf pan instead, just adjust the baking time accordingly.

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 cups turbinado sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
4 large eggs, room temperature
1/2 cup sunflower oil, plus more for the pans
1/2 cup sour cream
1/3 cup water
2 cups grated zucchini
Wedge of lemon

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and lightly brush 5 mini loaf pans with a little oil.

In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, turbinado sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.

In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, sour cream, and water. Squeeze the lemon over the grated zucchini, and then stir the zucchini into the egg-mixture. Add the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients and stir until there are no more dry patches in the batter.

Divide the batter among the 5 mini loaf pans, place them on a rimmed baking sheet, and bake for about 45 minutes, until a tester inserted in the center of one of them comes out clean. Cool completely and wrap tightly in plastic wrap to store.

Makes 5 mini loaves.

See more: Cinnamon • Loaves • Nutmeg • Quick Breads • Squash • Vegetables • Whole Grain • Whole Wheat • Zucchini