Okay, so I have been a tad (or a lot) slow when it comes to updating the new site. Let me fill you in on our latest happenings though. Keith and I got married (obviously), and became the Buys family. Then we bought a house, which has taken up a lot of our time. That also means lots of material to post here! It really is amazing how much we have updated this house in a short amount of time. It hardly looks like the same place, and I can’t wait to show you all the before and after photos. To put it simply, I have been doing tons of buying, and Keith has been doing tons of building. I have helped some, but he is the true talent behind the remodeling. I just have the eye for the vision and design. He gets to make it happen.
Between all of the construction, we have done quite a bit of traveling. We went on a honeymoon cruise to the Mexican Riviera, we took the kids to Florida for a week (boy was that fun), and we just got back from a weekend in Tahoe. Busy family we’ve been. I don’t have a building project for you today, but I do have a recipe to help you use up some of that zucchini you might have growing in your garden. Zucchini Brownies anyone?
If you struggle with getting the kids to eat their veggies, I can pretty much guarantee there will be no struggle when you sneak zucchini into brownies. For the most part, you don’t even see the green, and from the taste, nobody would ever guess there are vegetables in the brownies. This is one of those brownie recipes that lends itself to frosting very nicely, and I even recommend it.
* Be sure to use at least 2 cups of shredded zucchini, as this is what adds the moisture. The egg is optional for a more cakelike brownie, but if you're going for moist fudginess, omit the egg. I used the egg, because I wanted the brownie to rise.
Ingredients
- Brownies:
- 1/4 cup coconut oil
- 1/4 cup (or a whole 4oz individual serving cup)
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 1 cup all purpose flour (or all of one or the other)
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 egg (optional for more cakelike brownie)
- 2 cups shredded zucchini
- Frosting:
- 6 Tbs unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup salted butter
- 2 - 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1 tsp vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°. Spray a 9 x 13" baking pan with non-stick spray
- 2. In a large bowl, mix together the coconut oil, applesauce, sugar and vanilla, blending well.
- 3. Combine the flour and other dry ingredients, then stir into sugar mixture.
- 4. Fold the grated zucchini, which has been lightly blotted with a paper towel, into the brownie mixture. It will seem very dry, but will moisten as the zucchini releases its moisture.
- 5. Lighly press the mixture into the prepared baking dish.
- 6. Bake for 25 - 30 min, or when finger pressed in middle springs back. Be careful to not overbake.
- 7. Let cool
- Frosting:
- Melt the butter in a microwave safe dish along with the cocoa powder. Let cool.
- With a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat 2 cups of powdered sugar with the milk and vanilla.
- Stir in the cocoa mixture and continue to beat until smooth.
- If the frosting is not a good spreading consistency, gradually add up to 1 cup more of powdered sugar, until it's the desired spreading consistency. I prefer a firm frosting for brownies, so they are easy to eat by hand.
- Cut into squares and serve.
Gonna try this and i think so its rally tasty. after i can add in my restaurant menu. Giving you feedback after testing.