Protein Zucchini Hazelnut Bread

Vegan Protein Zucchini Bread

Inspired by Lynn Crawford's Pitchin' In: More Than 100 Great Recipes From Simple Ingredients

[Update 1/31/2013] Few notes. I baked it vegan (using flax eggs and vegan protein powder) but a couple of times I made it with egg whites. Honestly, I couldn’t see/feel/taste any difference but for the fact that the non-vegan version tends to raise slightly more.

I like to use hazelnuts because they are sweet and comforting but you can sub them with walnuts for a more pungent taste.

If you like things to be done properly grate the zucchini by hand (not using a food processor) they'll release more water and this improves the moisture of this bread.

Ingredients

1 cup / 4.5 oz / 125 gr whole wheat flour

1 ½ cup / 7.7 oz / 220 gr grated zucchini

½ cup / 2 scoops protein powder (unflavored or vanilla)

¾ cup / 5.2 oz / 150 gr firmly packed brown sugar (or baking Splenda®)

2 flax eggs (or 4 egg whites or 2 eggs)

½ cup / 118 ml olive oil

¼ cup / 1.2 oz / 40 gr hazelnuts

2 tsp vanilla extract

½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

¼ tsp salt

1 ½ tsp cinnamon

pinch of nutmeg

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C), and place a rack in the center. Grease a 9-by-5 inch (23 x 13 cm) loaf pan (or equivalent) and dust with flour to coat completely, tapping out the excess flour.

Using a blender ground the hazelnut, set aside.

In a medium bowl sift the flour, protein powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Set aside.

In a large bowl beat the flax eggs, sugar, and olive oil until the dough reaches a kind-of marshmallow consistency.

Fold in the dry ingredients in two to three batches using a spatula or a metal spoon, making sure not to overmix.

Finally, fold in the zucchini and the ground hazelnut until they are completely incorporated.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with a spatula.

Bake for 40-45 minutes or until when a tester inserted in the centre comes out clean and the cake has begun to pull away from the sides of the pan. You want to get that beautiful color on the cake, but at the same time you don’t want to bake all the moisture out of it.

Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn the loaf out of the pan to cool completely.

The bread will be moist for up to 3-4 days but if you store it properly it will stay fresh for even more time than that.