I’m a desperate parent. I’m desperate to make sure I’m doing the best that I can for my kids on a daily basis, as often as possible, so that they can grow up to be happy and healthy young men. Honestly? It can be borderline helicoptor-parenting if I don’t watch myself, although at 3 years old and 6 months old it can be a fuzzy line. One thing that goes without questioning though? Is that these boys need their veggies.
And I’ll be darned if they aren’t both turning into the pickiest of eaters.
I suppose that’s not fair to them though – they love chicken. And all the fruit in the land. But veggies? Other than sweet potatoes with the baby, I can’t get either of them to commit to eating a vegetable unless it’s in pasta (as in the pasta itself is made with vegetables) or if I can trick them into eating it in baked goods. The problem is that the older one is picky on how he likes his food to look too, so “hiding” veggies in baked goods means that they need to truly be hidden. None of this shredded carrot peaking through or zucchini green showing. It has to be H I D D E N.
While we’re working on the heart behind eating healthful meals, sometimes a mom just has to sneak veggies in for peace of mind. Enter this amazing double chocolate zucchini bread. Y’all, I’ll be if this isn’t the best chocolate zucchini bread I’ve ever had, and I actually feed GOOD about all of us enjoying a slice on the daily! I wish I could say that I’ve come up with the recipe, but alas it’s just a slightly modified version of this one from Sally’s Baking Addiction. I’ll note the changes I’ve made below, but if you’re trying to get more veggies into your diet then this is a great way to do it as a treat.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go make another loaf before the boys wake up. That zucchini won’t eat itself!
First, get the recipe here.
Now for my slight changes:
- I use coconut oil instead of vegetable or canola oil. I think it makes it super rich, and I love the added health benefits.
- I use brewed coffee instead of espresso or coffee powder, about 1/4 cup. I think it makes the batter easier to pour into the pan, and the added moisture is good for absorbing the teeny bit of extra flour…
- …that I use for tossing with the chocolate chips. This keeps them from sinking to the bottom of the loaf! I use about 1-2 tablespoons to toss with the chips right before folding them into the batter.
- I use Fage Total full-fat Greek yogurt. This one isn’t a change, but just a note because I think it makes everything ultra rich.
- I’ve been using extra dark cocoa powder because I love all things super dark chocolate. Not necessary, but delicious nonetheless.
- She notes in the instructions that you could use an 8- x 4-inch loaf pan or a 9- x 5-inch loaf pan, but I’ve found that the 8- x 4-inch is absolutely perfect for this recipe. I bake mine for almost exactly 55 minutes and it’s great every time.
Enjoy!
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