Buche de Noel... what, no, it's like a big HoHo.

I LOVE feeding people. It brings me such joy to cook and entertain, and what better time of year than Christmas!? (OK, I'm not fooling anyone, every holiday and non-holiday is an good excuse to bake...)

To date I've tackled a few excellent cookie recipes, but what about that one big SHOWSTOPPER dessert that you roll out after the holiday feast!? That's when you announce to your dinner guests that you've prepared a Buche de Noel; a classic French Christmas roulade of chocolate sponge cake filled with buttercream or whipped cream coated in a rich chocolate ganache... Drooling yet?

I've made this gorgeous show stopping dessert in the past with rave reviews.... and LOTS of cream and chocolate. I was eager to make it again this year with the hope that my chocolate loving brother in law and sister in law could bliss out in a chocolate coma after Christmas Eve dinner. Alas, my milk free diet doesn't exactly allow for mounds of pillowy sweetened whipped cream rolled up in a chocolate sponge cake and smothered in chocolate....

As you know I've been hunting down the elusive ideal frosting for my cupcakes and have eagerly been searching for a fluffy sweet sub for my sweetened whipped cream. My experience with the faux cream cheese was borderline traumatic; my experiment with shortening based frosting left me feeling like trans fats weren't exactly a "healthy" substitute for the dairy I had given up; and commercially produced frostings have that unpleasant "hint" of preservatives and plastic. What's left?

Martha Stewart to the rescue!! I don't know where I stumbled upon this recipe... whatever, you know I was on Pinterest, but I was reminded of a fluffy white frosting I'd used in the past called Seven Minute Frosting. Sweet? Check. Fluffy? Check. Milk free? Check. Game on.

MARTHA STEWART'S SEVEN MINUTE FROSTING
Makes 8 cups

• 6 large egg whites
• 2 tbs light corn syrup
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla

Directions:
1. In the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer set over a saucepan of simmering water, combine sugar, corn syrup, 1/4 cup water and the egg whites. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until mixture registers 160 degrees on a candy thermometer, about 2 minutes.
2. Attach bowl to a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat mixture on high speed until glossy and voluminous, about 5 minutes. Beat in vanilla. Use immediately.

Next to tackle the chocolate sponge cake. This too was easily accomplished without milk as the original recipe was already dairy free. The recipe for my favorite Buche de Noel (or Yule Log as it's called here) is from Jenny Hughson on Allrecipes.com http://allrecipes.com/recipe/chocolate-yule-log/detail.aspx

CHOCOLATE YULE LOG

Makes one 10 x 15 sponge cake

• 5 eggs separated 
• 1 cup white sugar (divided)
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup cake flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cream of tartar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 

1. Line a 10 x 15 x 1 inch baking sheet with parchment paper, grease the paper. Place egg whites in a small (medium at least) mixing bowl; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. In a large mixing bowl, beat egg yolks on high until light and fluffy. Gradually add 1/2 cup sugar, beating until thick and lemon-colored. Combine flour, cocoa and salt. (I sifted these together to prevent lumps.) Gradually add to egg yolk mixture until blended. 

2. Beat the egg whites until foamy, add the cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form. Gradually add the remaining 1/2 cup sugar, beating on high until stiff peaks form. Stir a fourth into the chocolate mixture. Fold in remaining egg whites until no streaks remain. 

3. Spread batter evenly in the prepared pan. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the cake springs back (do not over bake it will get crumbly). Cool 5 minutes. Invert onto a linen towel dusted with confectioners' sugar. Peel off parchment paper. Roll up in the towel starting with a short side. Cool on a wire rack. 

4. Unroll the cooled cake, spread the filling (Seven Minute Frosting) to within 1/2 inch of the edges, roll up again and chill. 

Here's where you smother it in chocolate... Typical chocolate ganache involves taking a small amount of heavy cream, heating it just until you start to get small bubbles on the stove top, taking it off the heat and stirring in chocolate until melted. Here's how I prepared my chocolate ganache. 

CHOCOLATE GANACHE

Smothers one yule log 

• About 6-8 oz of dairy free chocolate chips
• About 1/4 cup Silk Original Unsweetened Almond Milk

Directions:

1. Heat the almond milk in a small heavy bottomed sauce pan just until small bubbles start to form. You don't want to boil the milk. 

2. Stir in the chocolate chips until smooth and about the consistency of hot fudge sauce. You can keep adding chocolate until it's thick enough. 

3. Smother your Buche de Noel with the chocolate sauce and refrigerate until firm. 

Show-stopping success! I think we have a winner. I served mine with a handful of fresh raspberries because I love the combination of fresh fruit with chocolate. It was beautiful and delicious!

I hope you've enjoyed a beautiful holiday season with friends and family!

Peace,
Laura

Cookie Swap {Formerly known as Butter Bonanza}

Swapping cookies? Nope! Swapping ingredients? Yes!

In my previous life as a milk-aholic this would be the perfect season for fresh baked Christmas cookies, rich with butter, and washed down with a cold glass of milk. I'd cozy up to watch the snow fly, put on some Christmas tunes, grab a stack of snickerdoodles, cut-outs, peanut butter blossoms, chewy gingerbread, my tall glass of milk (or hot cocoa, or egg nog or... sigh, I really have a problem) and settle in for a long winter's nap.

I guess if it's currently pushing 50 degrees in Ohio in December, and no snow in sight, there's room for adaptation in other areas as well. At least I have my Christmas music!

So I found this recipe on Pinterest (Surprised! No, I'm sure you're not) and it sounded delicious! So I fired up the oven.

CRANBERRY ORANGE OATMEAL COOKIES
from http://trickschefs.com/showthread.php?tid=1056

Makes 4 Dozen

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, softened (I used 1/2 cup coconut oil + 1/2 cup Earth Balance)
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1 tbs grated orange zest (I used the zest of 1 whole orange)
• 1 tsp orange extract (I used orange juice)
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• (1/2 tsp salt, I added because I always put salt in my cookies)
• 3 cups rolled oats
• 1 cup dried cranberries

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
In a large bowl, cream the butter (oil/Earth Balance), brown sugar and white sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla, zest, and orange extract (juice). Combine the flour, baking soda and cinnamon; stir into the butter mixture. Stir in the oats and cranberries.
Drop by rounded tablespoon onto an un-greased cookie sheet.
Bake 10-12 minutes (13 worked well for me), or until golden brown. Allow the cookies to cool for 1 minute before moving to a cooling rack.

Wow, these were OUTSTANDING! Chewy and crispy, sweet with a hint of orange. I sent a batch in with Hubby to work and they were DEVOURED! Definitely on the Christmas Cookie Swap list for years to come! As an added bonus I recently picked up some SoDelicious brand Coconut "Nog" and I must say I was pleasantly surprised! So today I can settle in with a cold glass of "Nog" a stack of Christmas cookies, and hope for a White Christmas!

Happy Holidays to ALL!

Peace,
Laura

Chocoholics Unite! Milk Free Chocolate Cupcakes

November; a time for thanks. A time for gathering together to feast on turkey and pumpkin pie with the ones we love. A time to ring in cold and flu season. Sigh....

At this point in my life I accept cold and flu season. I work with kids and hubby works with money so germs are a given in our lives. I despise being sick, so I aspire to make the best of it. Over the years I've devised a tried and true ritual for all that ails.

#1 Watch "The Burbs," my all time favorite Tom Hanks movie. It wouldn't be unusual for me to watch it two or three times in a row while I'm home sick.
#2 Consume as much vitamin C as humanly possible; Zicam, Dole Pineapple Orange Juice, Vitamin C gummy vitamins... it's a good thing it's hard to overdose on vitamin C.
#3 Sinus Rinse (like a Neti Pot); a hot shower for your sinus cavity that soothes and prevents sinus infections. This is like heaven in a squeeze bottle.
#4 Bake. Yes, you heard that right, I bake. The best part? Being Typhoid Mary means I don't have to share any of my goodies.

Today I want chocolate (who am I kidding, most days I want chocolate) and right now I crave a rich, moist chocolate cupcake with piles of whipped cream frosting. Sounds like the cure for the common cold, right?!

The time has come to tackle a milk free adaptation of my FAVORITE chocolate cupcake recipe! Over the years I've tried many, many, many cupcake recipes and some of my favorites are chock full of butter, milk, heavy cream, buttermilk, or sour cream. Thankfully the one I love the most, Martha Stewart's One-Bowl Chocolate Cupcakes, contains only milk which is generally very easy to substitute. Hopefully my milk free sub will live up to the original!  If only I could cross my fingers and bake at the same time....

Here's the original with my substitutions noted from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook (2005):

MARTHA STEWART'S ONE-BOWL CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES
Makes 2 Dozen

• 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/4 cups Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 2 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 large eggs plus 1 egg yolk
• 1 1/4 cups milk (I used Silk unsweetened almond milk)
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tbs  vegetable oil
• 1 1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups warm water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two standard 12 cup muffin pans with paper liners. In a large bowl combine the flour, cocoa, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt.  Add the eggs, milk, oil, vanilla and warm water. Mix until smooth and well combined. 

Divide batter evenly among the muffin cups, filling 2/3 of the way full. Bake 20-25 minutes rotating the pans halfway through. Cupcakes are done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. 

Cool slightly in the pan and then turn out on a wire rack to cool. 

So far so good! Now it's time for the frosting. Typically, my all time favorite way to top a cupcake (or anything for that matter) is with a cloud of sweetened whipped cream. Up to this point I have no solid substitution for heavy whipping cream and I really want to see what is available straight off the grocery store shelf. As I mentioned in my "Comfort Food" post from October 6, 2012 I had discovered that most commercially produced frostings are dairy free, but I was skeptical. Turns out there are a wide array of frostings from Betty Crocker and Duncan Hines that contain no milk. Well hot dog! 

I selected Betty Crocker's Whipped Fluffy White frosting for my adventures in frosting. Right out of the gate I remember why I went back to the tradition of making my own frosting; commercially produced frosting tastes... "preservativy." For the past few years Hubby and I have gradually been weeding out the prepackaged, pre-made, preservative and color laden grocery store staples and replacing them with whole foods obtained close to the source. Sorry Betty Crocker, but if I'm making milk free substitutions to improve my health, I'm pretty sure replacing whipped cream with partially hydrogenated anything doesn't make a lot of sense. 

But today, Betty is all I've got, so I'm going to make it work. I added a tsp of pure vanilla extract and a tsp of instant espresso granules to my frosting. Magically, that "preservativy" taste was mellowed by the vanilla and espresso. Ta-da! 

I brewed myself a hot cup of coffee, popped my copy of "The Burbs" into the DVD player and settled in to try my chocolate cupcake.... ahhhh perfection. The cake was moist and chocolatey with the slightest hint of almond from my substitution, the frosting was sweet and smooth a solid sub for my whipped cream.

In the future I am excited to work on a healthy substitution for my beloved whipped frosting, until that time Betty's not so bad.

In this season of thanks, I am whole heartedly grateful for a simple milk free substitution in my favorite chocolate cupcakes!

Wishing you all health and happiness this cold and flu season!

Peace,
-Laura

P.S. If any of you out there in Blogger Land know of a good dairy free frosting recipe please feel free to share!!

Pinterest Pot Pie

So, I Pinterest. A lot. Before Pinterest I was a lacadaisical internet user; I'd check my e-mail, check my bank account and compile recipe boxes on various sites. Now, I can drain the life out of my lap top battery like a champ. {This is how I know it's time to cut myself off; if I have a full charge when I start and get the "you are now running on reserve power" pop-up I know it's time to walk away.} I'm always compelled to get to the bottom of the page, I mean, what if I miss something, right!?

That's the problem, there's always the promise of something amazing just around the corner, and I'm always chasing that next "amazing" pin. Oh the regret of missing that PIN of the CENTURY!

Originally I joined because I was tempted by the promise of an online idea board for home decorating ideas, fashion, gardening tips etc. However, the allure of an untapped frontier of new recipes is how they hooked me. To date I have over 200 food pins compared to just 56 home decorating pins and a whopping 16 fashion pins. Thank you Captain Obvious.

I had a hearty start on my Pinterest recipe file before my diagnosis and subsequent milk free lifestyle so I've had to make some alterations to recipes that I pinned and just can't seem to let go of. This one has all the good stuff; butter, milk, buttermilk... but it sounded so delicious I just couldn't un-pin it!

Here's the original: From The Runaway Spoon
http://therunawayspoon.com/blog/2012/09/chicken-and-bacon-pot-pie-with-sweet-potato-crust/

"Chicken and Bacon Pot Pie with Sweet Potato Crust

For the Filling:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Olive oil

10 strips of bacon

1 medium yellow onion (to make about 2 cups diced)

2 Tablespoons butter

3 Tablespoons flour

1 ½ cups chicken broth, at room temperature

1 ½ cups whole milk, at room temperature

1 Tablespoon chopped fresh sage

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

Salt and freshly ground pepper

For the crust:

2 sweet potatoes (about 11 ounces each)

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1/3 cup butter

1 egg

1 – 2 Tablespoons buttermilk or milk

For the Filling:

Preheat the oven to 375°.

Drizzle a little oil in a baking dish and place the chicken breasts on top. Rub a little oil on top of the chicken and season with salt and pepper.  Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake until the chicken reaches 165° internal temperature, about 25 minutes.  Remove the chicken to a plate to cool completely.  When the chicken is cool, cut it into bite-sized chunks.

Dice the bacon into small pieces (I find scissors a great tool for this) and sauté in a large skillet until crispy.  Remove the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate with a slotted spoon.  Let the bacon grease cool a little, then carefully pour it into a measuring cup and set it aside.  Let the skillet cool until it is safe to touch, then wipe out any burned bits or dark brown spots.  Return the skillet to medium high heat and pour in 2 Tablespoons bacon grease.  Add the diced onion and sauté, stirring frequently, until the onion is soft and translucent, being careful not to burn or brown the onions.  Pour in 1 cup of water, cover the skillet and cook the onions until they are soft and begin to turn a golden color, about 20 minutes.  Stir occasionally and add a splash more water to prevent sticking as needed. Remove the lid and cook until all moisture is evaporated and the onions are lightly caramelized.

Add 1 Tablespoon of bacon grease and the butter to the onions.  Stir well, and when the butter is melted, sprinkle over the flour.  Stir everything together until there is no trace of flour visible.  Slowly whisk in the milk and chicken broth (measure them together in a four cup measuring jug), scraping the flour from the bottom of the pan.  Add the chopped sage, nutmeg, a generous pinch of salt and lots of ground black pepper.  Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until the sauce is thick and coats the back of a spoon, about 10 minutes.

Stir in the chicken and bacon pieces, making sure everything is well coated with sauce.  Taste and add salt and pepper as needed.  Scrape the chicken filling into a 2 ½ quart baking dish and smooth the top.  Cool completely.  The filling can be made up to one day ahead, covered and refrigerated.

For the Crust:

While the chicken is cooking, prick the sweet potatoes with a sharp knife a few times and microwave until soft, about 10 – 12 minutes.  Hold the potatoes with an oven mitt or tea towel, then cut them in half and scoop the flesh into a small bowl.  Mash the flesh with a fork until you have a smooth puree.  You need 1 cup of mashed potatoes.  Leave to cool completely. (Alternatively, you can bake the potatoes in the oven until soft, about 1 hour).

Mix the flour, baking powder and salt in a large mixing bowl with a fork.  Cut the butter into small cubes and drop it in the flour.  Toss the butter in the flour to coat, and then using a pastry blender, two forks or your clean hands, rub the flour and the butter together until it is blended with a few pieces of pea-sized butter visible.  Add the sweet potatoes and the egg and, using a fork, blend together.  Get in there with your hands and knead the dough together into a cohesive ball.  Dump the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap, pat it into a rectangle, wrap tightly and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 350°.  Roll the pastry out into a sheet that will fit over the top of the filling.  Drape the pastry over the top and tuck the sides around the filling.  Cut a few slashes across the top to let steam escape.* Brush the top with a thin coat of buttermilk and sprinkle with kosher salt.

Bake the pie for 40 – 45 minutes until the crust is golden, the filling is hot through and bubbling.  Serve immediately.

Serves 6 – 8"

Here are my adaptations:

PINTEREST POT PIE WITH CHICKEN AND BACON
Serves 4 to 6

Filling:

• 1 lb of boneless, skinless chicken 
• 3 tbs olive oil
• 5 strips of bacon (diced)
• 1 medium sweet onion (diced)
• 1/2 cup celery (diced)
• 2 cloves of garlic (minced)
• 3 tsp of flour
• 2 cups of chicken stock/broth
• 1 tbs of fresh sage, chopped
• Salt and pepper

Crust:

• 2-3 sweet potatoes (enough for 1 cup mashed)
• 2 cups of flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/3 cup shortening or coconut oil
• 1 egg
• 1-2 tbs rice milk

For the crust:
Clean and dry the sweet potatoes, pierce with a knife and microwave for 8-10 minutes or until the potato gives slightly with firm pressure. Allow to cool.
Peel and mash the flesh to a puree, measure out 1 cup.
Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt, cut in the shortening or coconut oil until it resembles coarse meal. Add the sweet potato puree and egg and gently mix until the dough comes together. If the dough comes together to form a nice crust omit the rice milk, if it's still crumbly add 1 tbs of rice milk at a time. Place the dough on plastic wrap, form the dough into a disk and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Prepare the filling.

For the filling:
Lightly coat a large frying pan with olive oil, salt and pepper the chicken and sauté until done. Remove from the pan and cut into bite size cubes.
Fry the bacon pieces until crispy, drain and remove from the pan. Drain all but 1 tbs of bacon fat from the pan and add the olive oil. Saute the onion, celery and garlic until soft. Add the flour slowly and allow to brown slightly. Slowly add the chicken stock, stirring constantly. Add the sage, salt and pepper and simmer until thickened (coats the back of a spoon) 5-7 minutes. Return the chicken and bacon to the pan, mix thoroughly and transfer to a medium to large sized baking dish.

Roll out the dough to cover your preferred baking dish, or cut into decorative patterns. Cover with the crust and bake.

This dish was AMAZING! Absolutely delicious. Hubby was very concerned about the sweet potato crust, but he really liked it! Even the leftovers were delicious. Definitely a new fall favorite.
Peace,
-Laura

Comfort Food: Dairy Free Pumpkin Cupcakes

So it's officially fall, the weather is getting cooler, the leaves are changing, everything is "pumpkin spiced" {not complaining here} and I start to think COMFORT FOOD. Macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes, lasagna, pizza, cookies, cakes.... nom nom nom.

There's just one problem: how in the heck am I going to cook and bake all of my favorite cool-weather comfort foods without milk?! I guess there's only one way to soothe the pumpkin spiced monkey on my back. Bake it out. 

I left the grocery store with canned pumpkin in my cart and a twinkle in my eye. My quest: pumpkin cupcakes with "cream cheese" frosting. 

It took a little searching, but I was able to find an amazing pumpkin cupcake recipe by Ina Garten (love, love, love her) that was already dairy free (love her more), so I didn't worry too much about the actual "cupcake" part.  

INA GARTEN'S PUMPKIN CUPCAKES 

Makes 12

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeat
• 2 extra large eggs, at room temp
• 1 cup canned pumpkin puree, not pie filling
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Line a 12 cup muffin tin with cupcake liners

Into a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg. In a larger bowl, whisk together the eggs, pumpkin puree, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vegetable oil. Add the flour mixture and stir until combined.

Divide the batter among the prepared tins and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Set aside to cool completely.

The frosting was another story. You see, I've had an 8oz tub of vegetable based "cream cheese" in my fridge just waiting for a project, but I've been apprehensive. This would be just the time to break that sucker out. 

After tasting the "cream cheese" I realized my apprehension was valid. Disgusting. It was disgusting. I didn't even want to waste my powdered sugar trying to turn it into frosting. It was salty and the texture was like pureed cottage cheese. I'm not sure who these people were trying to fool, but anyone who's had real cream cheese is not falling for this mess. 

Down the garbage disposal it went. I kind of felt bad even sending it into our national water-ways but I wasn't brave enough to put it in my compost bin. 

Now what? Well, here's what I came up with: 

CINNAMON FROSTING

• 4 oz of shortening
• 4 oz of coconut oil
• 1/2 cup of powdered sugar 
• 1/2 tsp of cinnamon

Aw, so pretty, so pumpkiny, so "comfort foody" and they were DELICIOUS!! Mission accomplished! However, next time I'll certainly double the frosting recipe! 

Now here's where it gets silly; as I was Googling "dairy free" frosting recipes I discovered that most commercially produced frostings are dairy free. It just figures that I never considered the most obvious source. 

Peace,
-Laura 

Welcome Recovering Milk-aholics: Lemon Zucchini Loaf

Hi, I'm Laura and I'm a milk-aholic. No really, I honestly had some sort of "end of days" reaction to my doctor's advice to omit cow's milk from my diet permanently.

"No more milk" says my awesome doc, "Try it for a week, you'll feel so much better, I promise." Outwardly I proclaim, "Got it, no milk." Inwardly, I die a little inside.

But I LOVE milk! What am I going to do without milk?!!? I cook, I bake, I avidly entertain. I never show up ANYWHERE without a baked good.

I only cried for like a couple hours.

Wouldn't you know it though, my doc was right. I feel amazing.

I'm forever "experimenting" (Hubby prefers the term "messing with") recipes to suit my own tastes. So why not adapt them to be milk free and share the results? Hopefully I can learn from my "experiments" and so can you. 

Let's do this. 

Today I experimented with Lemon-Zucchini Loaf as discovered on Pinterest via "NancyCreative". Here's her original recipe. My adaptations are noted.  

LEMON-ZUCCHINI LOAF WITH LEMON GLAZE by NancyCreative

Makes one 9×5″ loaf

• 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (I used 1 cup unbleached and 1 cup whole wheat)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup canola oil (I used 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce)
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup buttermilk (I used 1/2 cup Silk Coconut Milk + 1 tbs vinegar)
• Juice of 1 lemon/or 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 1 cup grated zucchini 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9×5″ loaf pan; set aside.

In large bowl, blend flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

In medium bowl, beat 2 eggs well, then add canola oil and sugar, and blend well. Then add the buttermilk, lemon juice, and lemon zest and blend everything well. Fold in zucchini and stir until evenly distributed in mixture.

Add this mixture to the dry ingredients in the large bowl and blend everything together, but don’t overmix.

Pour batter into prepared 9×5″ loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean (if your oven tends to run hot, check the loaf after 40 minutes; also, if you make this in an 8×4″ loaf pan, your baking time may be a little longer…about 5 to 10 minutes more). Cool in pan 10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack and cool completely. 

LEMON GLAZE

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• Juice of 1 lemon/or 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
• (Also I added the zest, waste not, want not, right?)

Here are my results: Oh, and don't expect any step-by-step pics, I'm a loose cannon in the kitchen and adding cameras to the mix could be a hot mess. 

This bad-boy was a moist, dense, mildly flavored loaf.  The glaze was delicious, the rest... not so much.

With my substitutions of the flour and oil and the switch from buttermilk to my faux coconut milk "buttermilk" I really think it was the zucchini ratio that made this cake too moist. It's also possible that the buttermilk substitution didn't have the right chemical reaction to create enough lift and lighten up this bread. 

I'm still thankful that I didn't go for the oil and used the applesauce instead, I can't imagine this thing being more moist than it already was. 

All in all, not a terrible adaptation but I'm doubtful I'll be making this again. 

Peace,

-Laura