Grandma's Best Zucchini Bread

My grandma's zucchini bread recipe is a top-secret family recipe! This spiced moist bread uses dates for a delicious change from ordinary zucchini bread. We like to spread warm slices with softened cream cheese for an extra-special treat.

Prep Time:

20 mins

Cook Time:

1 hr 10 mins

Additional Time:

2 hrs

Total Time:

3 hrs 30 mins

Servings:

Yield:

2 9x5-inch loaves

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Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 pinch ground nutmeg
1 pinch ground ginger
1 pinch ground black pepper
2 cups white sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs, beaten
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups shredded zucchini
½ cup dates, pitted and chopped

Directions

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Grease and flour two 9x5-inch loaf pans.
Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and pepper together in a bowl until evenly combined; set aside.
Beat sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla in a mixing bowl until smooth. Fold in flour mixture, zucchini, and dates until no dry spots remain. Divide the batter between the prepared loaf pans.
Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 70 minutes. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes before removing to cool completely on a wire rack.

Tips

I've used brown sugar in this recipe with excellent results. I've also substituted 1 cup of flax flour for one of the cups of all-purpose flour with fantastic results. Remember that flax expands, so get out a couple of extra loaf pans!

You can add nuts (pecans, walnuts, or pistachios) to the batter when you add the zucchini and dates if desired.