Dessert: Spiced Zucchini Bread

Recipe by Emeril Lagasse Though we call this a bread, it’s really more of a spice cake that uses grated fresh zucchini as a surprise ingredient. Serve it warm for breakfast, with cream cheese or butter and honey.

This recipe includes fertility superfoods such as:

Cinnamon, Nuts, Walnuts

Health and fertility benefits of Spiced Zucchini Bread

Cinnamon is one of the best ingredients that someone with insulin sensitivity can eat. Half a teaspoon of cinnamon per day has been shown to be very effective at normalizing blood sugar levels. Cinnamon contains hydroxychalcone, which is thought to enhance the effects of insulin. It has also been suggested that Cinnamon prevents post-meal blood sugar spikes by slowing the gastric emptying rate - meaning that food digests slowly. (Reference: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11506060). Nuts are a natural source of Inositol, a derivative of Vitamin B (which is often prescribed in the form of supplements for women with PCOS). Inositol can effectively control the symptoms of PCOS by reducing insulin resistance and improving insulin sensitivity. Walnuts are low on the glycemic index. What’s more, they also lower the glycemic index of other foods that you eat in conjunction with these nuts. Any kind of nuts provide a healthy source of fat and a great way to encourage PCOS weight loss.

Ingredients

3 eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups grated unpeeled zucchini
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup chopped lightly toasted walnuts or pecans
Cream cheese, at room temperature, for serving (optional)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 325 °F, and grease two 8x4×2 1/2-inch loaf pans.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the eggs until foamy. Add the vegetable oil, sugar, zucchini, and vanilla extract and mix well. Add the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, and baking powder, and mix until well blended. Stir in the nuts. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared loaf pans, and tap them gently on the counter to release any air bubbles.
Bake until the loaves have risen and are golden brown and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 55 –60 minutes. Allow the bread to cool in the pans for 5 minutes; then turn the loaves out onto wire racks to cool.
Serve the bread warm, sliced and spread with cream cheese if desired.

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