Courgette Revisited

I know, I know! I've already done a post about the savoury zucchini bread, but it didn't include step-by-step photos, did it? No! So, HAH! This post is totally justified, and doesn't merely exist because it's still pouring with rain outside and although my walking shoes can cope with mud and the occasional puddle, solid, battering rain is a friend to nothing, man nor footwear, and I've already finished everything else I had to do today.

Anyhoo. I'm out of savoury bread, so this post fills several needs. And hopefully my stomach in a little while. So here it is again: Savo[u]ry Gluten Free Zucchini Bread from Gluten Free on a Shoestring. (The original recipe works in US cups and other measurements; I've converted them to UK measurements below.)

You need:

280 grams basic gluten-free flour

3/4 teaspoon xanthan gum

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt (kosher or otherwise)

75 grams (80mls) vegetable oil

2 eggs at room temperature, beaten

75 grams (70 mls) plain whole milk yoghurt

170 grams grated zucchini (courgette)

75 grams Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, finely grated

60 grams sharp white cheddar cheese, grated (I left a few small chunks in the mix again, not for aesthetic reasons, but because those chunks of cheese are a tasty, tasty surprise!)

Before I go on, though, I HAVE to show you my new matryoshka US cup measures I found on special at I Want One Of Those dot com (sadly I'm not affiliated with IWOOT, but how cool if I was - they have the craziest cookware!!) 

I think the truth that I'm easily amused has already been proven, but for those previous unbelievers, this is probably the final confirmation you need!

So, to begin with, you need to preheat your oven to 175C, then put the flour, xanthan gum, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl and mix them together.

In a bigger bowl add the eggs, oil, and yoghurt and whisk really well to emulsify the ingredients together,

(Excuse the difference in colours; my phone camera is fickle. And possibly lazy. Maybe colour-blind.)

Add half the dry ingredients to the mixture, which will then thicken considerably, and then add the grated courgette, and the cheeses. 

Ah yes, the cheeses. This time I used some grated 'Italian Cheese For Pasta' in lieu of the proper (and way more expensive) Parmigiano, and some good, old Dutch cheese (oude kaas - it's good stuff, man, good stuff) instead of the white cheddar. I reckon you can add any combination of cheese you like, as long as the consistency is at least similar, so probably no soft cheeses unless you really squeeze the courgette dry. (Um, see the next paragraph for an explanation of that...)

Pro :: cough :: tip with the courgette: after grating I put it in a sieve over another bowl and gently squeezed out some of the excess liquid. Why? Because the first time I made this I had to add extra flour because the courgette was rather watery. The second time I added the courgette and squeezed a lot of fluid out, which resulted in a rather dry dough, because I threw the liquid away. Third time lucky and I saved the liquid in case I needed to add some, which I did, but maybe just half. A Goldilocks portion, if you will! 

After this, add the rest of the dry ingredients and mix well (the dough/batter will be thick) then add the finished dough to a greased (or sprayed) loaf tin, and bake it in the oven until golden brown on top (approximately thirty-five to forty minutes) checking to see that it's baked all the way through by poking it with a cake tester, or toothpick, making sure it comes out clean. (I always forget, but the recipe suggests taking a wet spatula and smoothing out the top of the loaf before putting it in the oven. Maybe next time...)

The author suggests that you wait ten minutes before taking the loaf out of the tin to lay it on a cooling rack, and waiting until it has completely cooled down before carving it up. 

Or the matryoshka will find you...