I know you’ve been making Zucchini Bread all summer, so now I’m going to give you a much better alternative for fall: Whole-Wheat Dark Chocolate Zucchini Brownies! Yes folks, zucchini does belong in brownies – it gives the brownies moisture and weight as well as vitamins and other health benefits. In fact, you can use any light-tasting squash in this recipe.
Last fall, my home garden sprouted several squash/pumpkin/zucchini-looking plants all on its own, which threatened to overtake all the vegetables I had actually planted! I kept them in check by picking and cooking as many blossoms as I could, but I still had a lot of green, striped and orangeish squash to eat during fall and winter. So they almost all went into brownies (but click the link to see squash risotto).
Dark chocolate morsels make the flavor rich while adding antioxidants and whole wheat flour works beautifully, making these brownies a little cake-like. And I love encountering the surprise bites of salty-sweet afforded by the coarse sea salt. This brownie recipe is so good; it’s the only one I use now.
Whole-Wheat Dark Chocolate Zucchini Brownies – adapted from Meals.com
Ingredients for 16 servings:
- 1 cup white whole-wheat flour
- 1/3 cup baking cocoa
- 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt
- 1 regular-size package dark chocolate morsels
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups grated zucchini (about 3 medium)
Directions:
4. BAKE for 30 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out slightly sticky. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Lift brownies from pan; cut into 16 squares. Store in airtight container for up to 5 days.
