how much zucchini can I pack into zucchini bread?

[ccasanova]

Most of the recipes I've seen call for 1.5 cups to 2 cups of shredded zucchini for probably 2 loaves. I'd like to to put in extra for nutritional value though. More veggies=healthier right? So...how much zucchini do you think I can pack in there before the bread won't come out right? What will happen if I put in too much? Will it be too soggy? Fall apart? I would make sure to press out as much liquid out of the zucchini as possible.

[Drummer's Wife]

Whenever I try to add more than half a cup extra, it seems to take forever to bake, and not taste as good. Maybe there's a trick? or you could just double the recipe and make extra. I love zucchini, and if I grate 2 of them up I end up with too much. So, I add a bit extra and then freeze the rest. I've never actually made more bread with the frozen zucchini, so I'm not sure how that would turn out, but I do add it things like spaghetti sauce.

[ccasanova]

have you been able to take the 2 cups to 2.5 cups in any zucchini bread recipe? Or does it just depend on what the recipe asks for and go a half cup more? I wonder what a pureed veggie would do? Like maybe adding pureed pumpkin to shredded zucchini bread? I'm going to make some zucchini bread today with some zukes that my parents brought me from their organic garden. Yum! :

[cristeen]

Well, what you have to realize is that zucchini often acts like a liquid in a zucchini bread recipe. So by increasing the amount, you're throwing off the liquid/dry balance in the recipe - which is why it can come out really funky. If you want to increase the amount, I'd start by decreasing your other liquid (milk or water) by 1/2 the amount of extra zucchini and see what happens. But it's going to take some trial and error.

And again, if you're going to add pureed pumpkin to the bread, you'll have to decrease the liquid content - usually purees replace the oil, and you can usually get away with replacing up to about 2/3 of the oil content without seriously affecting the recipe.

[Drummer's Wife]

Originally Posted by ccasanova

have you been able to take the 2 cups to 2.5 cups in any zucchini bread recipe? Or does it just depend on what the recipe asks for and go a half cup more? I wonder what a pureed veggie would do? Like maybe adding pureed pumpkin to shredded zucchini bread? I'm going to make some zucchini bread today with some zukes that my parents brought me from their organic garden. Yum! :

The recipe I use calls for 1 cup of grated zucchini. Because we love it (and have 6 people) I almost always double the recipe. But it seems like whenever I add more than say a big spoonful of extra, it doesn't turn out right. Like it doesn't cook all the way even though I cooked it a lot longer.

What cristeen says makes a lot of sense regarding the liquid content of the bread you are baking.

[ChocolateNummies]

When I made my zucchini bread this summer I would increase the zuke and leave out all the liquid called for in the recipe. It came out great. I just added as much zucchini as I needed to get the right consistency in my batter.

My recipe's ratios are 3 c flour with 2 c zuke and 1/2 c milk/liquid for 2 loaves. Oh and 2 cups sugar! Yikes. I think I got that down to like 3/4 cup or something like that.

I usually would grate and use all of a large zucchini - probably about 10" long and 3" in diameter at it's widest. Maybe even a little larger (I didn't measure the actual volume in cups I used. ) Then would add all my dry ingredients and leave out the milk. That seemed to give me the right consistency. I dunno, maybe it ended up being not that much more zuke but it always looked like a lot in the bowl.

I didn't squeeze out the liquid on the zuke so if I had I maybe I could have used more? Just never tried.

[3*is*magic]

I use this recipe, which calls for 2 cups of zuke:

http://tinyurl.com/52xonf

It also has oatmeal in it, and I sub whole wheat flour and add a few tablespoons of ground flaxseed. It's super yummy .

Leeann