Orange Carrot Zucchini Cookies with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

My Mom used to make Orange Carrot Cookies when I was a wee lass. I thought of them when Steve brought in carrots from the garden. Besides all of the carrots the zucchini are bountiful so I decided to create my own variation of the original.

3/4 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup shredded carrots
1 cup shredded zucchini
1 orange, juice and rind 7 tablespoons
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 cups all-purpose flour






Preheat oven to 375.

Cream butter. Add sugar, egg and vanilla and stir. Mix in carrots and zucchini. Alternate adding dry ingredients with orange juice.

Bake for 10-15 minutes. Frost after cookies have cooled.

Frosting:
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons cream cheese
2 tablespoons orange juice
powder sugar

Cream butter and cream cheese. Add powdered sugar and orange juice to make the frosting the consistency that you want.

Fresh Zucchini Muffins

Constantly looking for new zucchini recipes since the garden has exploded with them. I made a double batch so that we could freeze some when we are in a rush. I changed the recipe by adding whole wheat flour, using applesauce for oil and adding oatmeal to the cinnamon and sugar for the topping. The original recipe is found here.

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 1/2 cups grated zucchini (about 2 small to medium-size zucc’s)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 teaspoons baking powder
Cinnamon and sugar for topping

Preheat oven to 375. In large bowl, whisk together flour, sugars, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Set aside.

In medium bowl, combine grated zucchini, eggs, vanilla, and applesauce. Stir well to combine, then gently stir into flour mixture. Be careful not to overwork this—it will lead to dense muffins!

Fill lined muffin tins about 3/4 of the way up with the batter and then sprinkle cinnamon and sugar on each. Bake for about 30 minutes or until golden.

Baked Zucchini Sticks

These will definitely be back on the menu. Serve them with Sweet Onion Dip. Recipe from King Arthur Flour.

3 medium-size zucchini, about 9″ to 10″ long
1 cup Panko bread crumbs
scant 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon Pizza Seasoning or mixed Italian herbs
2 large eggs

Cut each zucchini into 3″ sticks about the diameter of your finger. Cutting each zuke into 9 sticks lengthwise, then cutting into 3″ lengths, works well. Place the zucchini sticks in a colander over a bowl, and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of salt. Let them drain for 1 hour or longer.

Rinse them thoroughly; you want to get rid of any excess salt. Then pat them dry.

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment.

Combine bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese and seasoning in a bowl. Beat the eggs in a separate bowl. Dip each zucchini stick in the egg and then roll it in the crumbs. Place on baking sheet.

Bake the sticks for about 12 minutes, until they’re starting to brown. Remove from the oven, and turn them over; you may actually need to do this one by one, or you may be able to turn several at a time using a spatula. Bake for an additional 12 to 16 minutes or so, until golden brown and crisp.

Quinoa Bake

 I found this recipe on Pinterest. I made it for the first time in New Zealand and had a hard time finding canned chilies. So the one can that I could find were hot! So if you don't like spicy foods watch the chilies and chili powder.

1 cup quinoa, uncooked

1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil, divided

2 cups chicken stock

1 cup onion, diced (about 1 medium)

1//2 green pepper, chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 cup zucchini, cubed (about 2 small)

1 15 ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 4 ounce can diced green chiles

1 28 ounce can diced tomatoes, drained

1 cup frozen corn

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon oregano

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 lime, juiced

Salt

2 cups shredded monterey jack cheese

 

Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray. Set aside.

Place the quinoa in a fine mesh strainer and rinse throughly with cool water for at least two minutes. Drain. In a medium saucepan, heat 2 teaspoons olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the quinoa and cook, stirring, for about one minute. The quinoa should begin to dry out and pop a bit. Add the chicken stock. Stir and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to low and cook, covered, for 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let stand, covered, for 5 minutes.

 

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat 1tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and peppers and cook, stirring occasionally until soft, about 7 minutes. Add garlic and zucchini and cook 3 more minutes.

 

Fluff the quinoa with a fork and place it in a large bowl. Add onion mixture, beans, green chiles, tomatoes, corn, cumin, oregano, chili powder, lime juice, and salt to taste. Mix thoroughly and transfer to prepared baking dish. Bake 30 minutes, top with cheese, and bake 10 minutes more or until melted and just beginning to brown.

Crustless Zucchini Pie

I keep reading about people that say they wake up in the morning with a load of zucchini on their porch.  That has never happened to me but my two zucchini plants keep me hopping.  I keep trying to find new recipes and here is the latest. I found this recipe on Skinnytaste and Gentry and I both liked it.  Steve ate it but he wasn't a huge fan.  He isn't a fan of quiche either, go figure.  The few changes I made were green onions for shallots, no chives and regular whole wheat flour.  1/6th of pie is 125 calories if fat free milk is used, I had 2% in the house so the calories increased to 129 for 1/6 of pie.

10 oz shredded zucchini, all liquid squeezed out
1/2 cup green onions, chopped - click on link for green onion tip
1/2 cup part skim mozzarella
2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
2/3 cup milk
1 tsp olive oil
2 large eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp kosher salt
fresh cracked pepper to taste
cooking spray

Preheat oven to 400°. Lightly spray a pie dish with cooking spray. Combine zucchini, onions, and mozzarella cheese in a bowl.
 
Mix flour and baking powder in a medium bowl. Add remaining ingredients, except Parmesan cheese, to the bowl and blend well. Combine with zucchini mixture and pour it into the pie dish.
 
Top with Parmesan cheese and bake 30-35 minutes or until knife comes out clean from the center. Let it stand at least 5 minutes before serving.

chocolate zucchini cake

1 1/2 c. sugar

2 1/2 c. flour
4 Tbsp. cocoa
1 tsp. soda
2 c, grated zucchini
2 eggs
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 c, oil
1/2 c. buttermilk or sour milk w/ vinegar

Mix sugar, eggs and oil. Stir dry ingredients and add alternately with buttermilk. Pour into a 9x13 inch pan. Sprinkle with 2/3 c. chocolate chips and 1/2 c. chopped nuts. Bake at 325 for 35 to 40 minutes.   ( Do not ice)

Zucchini Tots

It's that time of year when zucchini starts multiplying like rabbits and we need 501,432 ways to use it.  This recipe The Curious Country Cook was quick and easy and low in calories, just 23 per tot.  I used Panko bread crumbs because they half the calories of regular bread crumbs. I used my cookie scoop which holds 1 tablespoon and they fit exactly into the mini muffin cups.


2 cups zucchini, grated
2 egg
1/2 cup yellow onion, diced
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs
Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 400F. Spray a mini-muffin tin with non-stick spray, set aside.

Grate the zucchini and then place in a dish towel to squeeze out the excess water- you will be surprised how much liquid comes out but if you skip this part the middle of the zucchini tots will be really soggy.

In a bowl combine, the egg, onion, cheese, bread crumbs, zucchini, salt and pepper.

Using a spoon or a cookie scoop, fill the muffin cups to the top. Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until the top is browned and set.

Kitchen Sink Frittata

I have made these frittatas a couple times now and Beau and I love them! I am not a big egg person so I put tons of stuff in them so they're not "eggy." They're perfect when you have a veggie tray that you need to use before it goes bad :)

In this specific frittata this is what I used:

Frozen Hashbrowns

Precooked Turkey Sausage

Cooked Quinoa

Zucchini

Yellow Squash

Tomato

Red Onion

Red Pepper

Celery

Eggs/Egg Whites

Cheese

- Heat oven to 375 degrees.

- In a frying pan, spray with pam. Heat hashbrowns and sausage. Evenly spread across the bottom of the pan. Add quinoa and veggies. You don't stir so evenly sprinkle each item on top.

- Pour eggs on top. I used 5 eggs and some carton egg whites so all the ingredients are in the egg mixture. I used a spatula and poked all around so the egg would get down to the bottom.

- Top with cheese.

(this is what it looks like when it's ready to go in the oven)

- Bake for 15-20 minutes. Until all eggs are cooked. You can check with a toothpick.

It is good to eat with ketchup, hot sauce and salsa.

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Zucchini Cookies

I have a lot of zucchini and I was trying to figure out what I could do with besides make zucchini bread or bake them like Jamie's Onion Rings.  I did a Google search and came across this recipe on When Harry Met Salad.  Step 2 had you drain your zucchini and I couldn't believe the moisture that came off, I got a 1/2 cup from 1 cup of zucchini.  I do have to admit that I did not press the zucchini between paper towels, I just took a spoon and pushed the zucchini against my strainer.

½ lb. zucchini
¾ c.  lightly packed dark brown sugar
2½ c. old fashioned oats
2/3 c. + 2 T. sugar
1¼ c. flour
¾ t. salt
½ t. baking soda
¼ t. nutmeg
1 c. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temp
1 egg
2 t. vanilla extract
2 c. chocolate chips
2 c. chopped pecans (or walnuts)

1) Preheat your oven to 375°F and lightly butter two cookie sheets.

2) Grate the zucchini using a food processor or box grater to yield 1 c. grated zucchini.   Toss the zucchini with 2 T. of sugar, transfer to the mixture to a fine-mesh strainer and set it over a bowl to drain for at least 30 minutes.  This draws moisture out of the zucchini and prevents the cookies from becoming cakey and slimy, so don’t skip this step.

3) Meanwhile, place the brown sugar, 2/3 c. sugar and ½ c. oatmeal in the bowl of a food processor and process for 2 -3 minutes until the oatmeal is finely ground.  (you could also do this in a blender)

4) In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining dry ingredients and set aside.

5) In the bowl of your food processor (or of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment), process or mix the butter until it’s light and fluffy.  Add the oatmeal-sugar mixture in three stages, mixing well after each addition.  Add the egg and vanilla and mix until well incorporated.  Add the dry ingredients in three stages, mixing just until blended.  If you’ve done all this in the food processor, transfer the batter to a large bowl and stir in the chocolate chips and nuts, otherwise just stir the chips and nuts into your mixing bowl.

6) After the zucchini has drained, squeeze it between several layers of paper towels or cheesecloth or a dishtowel to absorb excess moisture.  You want to remove as much moisture as possible, so you’ll have to work at it a bit.  Fold the shredded zucchini into the cookie batter.

7) Drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto the prepared cookie sheets, spacing them about an inch or two apart.  They’re not going to spread much so they don’t need a whole lot of room.  Bake for 18-20 minutes or until the edges begin to turn golden brown.  Remove the cookies from the oven and cool on the sheets for 2-3 minutes before removing to a cooling rack.

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

I was given the cookbook Chocolate Never Faileth which included this recipe.  It hides the zucchini really well so you can fool your kids and tastes good too!  If you look at the picture closely you will notice that it looks really dry around the edges.  The recipe says to bake about an hour, I would recommend checking at 45 minutes.

1 1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups zucchini, grated and drained (see note)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup cocoa
3 1/2 cups flour
1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.  Coat two 8-inch loaf pans with nonstick cooking spray.  Cream sugar and butter.  Add eggs and mix well.  Mix in sour cream, vanilla and zucchini.  Add all the remaining ingredients except for the chocolate chips in the order listed; mix well.  Add chocolate chips and stir.  Divide the batter between the two loaf pans.  Bake for about an hour.  Remove from pans and cool on a wire rack.

Note: if possible, grate the zucchini ahead of time and let it sit for a while so the moisture settles and drains it off.

End of Summer Harvest Soup

I found this recipe on A Year of Slow Cooking and on $5 dinners. I loved it because almost everything came out of my garden. I made a couple of changes and it turned out really good and the best part was that when I got home from working all day, it was the first day of the month, I didn't have to think about "What's for dinner?" it was done. Next time I make this I will add more squash and maybe some carrots.

4 cups chicken broth (vegetable stock is fine!)

1 cup water

1 medium yellow onion, diced

2 zucchini, washed well and sliced in 1/4-inch rounds

2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved (I had red and yellow)

2 cups green beans

Handful of fresh basil and parsley from the garden

1/3 cup dry Great Northern beans - Cannellini beans were recommended but Albertsons didn't have them

1/2 cup pasta (to add 20 minutes before serving)

salt and pepper to taste

garnish with Parmesan and Romano cheeses - didn't use this but might next time

Wash squashes well and slice in rounds. Place into slow cooker with diced onion, green beans and tomato wedges. Rinse your beans in hot water, and add to cooker. Add broth, herbs, and water. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours, or until beans have reached desired tenderness. 20 minutes before serving stir in raw pasta. Serve with grated Parmesan and Romano cheese.

Zucchini Bread

Mom got this recipe from her friend Gayle that she used to work with. I really enjoyed it the last time she made it but I thought that I would change a few ingredients and make it a little healthier. I have put the changes next to the regular item so you can make you own choice of how you want to make this recipe. 132 calories based on 12 slices per loaf and made with applesauce and no raisins or flax seed.  You save 80 calories per slice by changing the oil to no sugar added applesauce so you have to decide if you want the carbs or the fat.

Combine:
1 cup Sugar
1 cup Brown Sugar
3 Eggs
1 cup Oil - Applesauce

Add:
2 cups peeled and grated Zucchini
1 tablespoon vanilla

Add:
3 cups Flour - 2 cups Whole Wheat Flour / 1 cup White Flour
1 teaspoon Salt
¼ teaspoon Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 tablespoon Cinnamon

Add:
½ cup Raisins – optional
1 tablespoon flax seed

Pour into 2 greased or sprayed loaf pans ½ full. Bake at 325 degrees for 45 – 60 minutes or until done. Remove from pan to cool.

Can be made in 5 small greased loaf pans. Bake at 325 degrees for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean

Chicken Rice Bowl

I took this recipe off of Favorite Family Recipes and made alterations to work for us.

1 bottle Mr. Yoshida's Sweet Teriyaki Original Gourmet sauce
3 chicken breasts - I had the butcher block cut these up into bite size pieces
1 head broccoli, florets only, cut into bite size pieces
1 medium zucchini, diced
2 carrots, sliced
1/4 c. celery, sliced (optional)
1/4 c. red pepper, finely chopped - I omitted
1 tsp ginger - I didn't have fresh so I used ground ginger and sprinkled some on
1 clove garlic, minced
1-2 tsp red pepper flakes - I just sprinkled some on
4 c. white rice, cooked

Marinade chicken with Mr. Yoshida's, at least of 15 minutes. While meat is marinating cut up vegetables. Heat wok, pour in marinade and chicken. Cook until chicken is cooked through then remove. Now stir fry broccoli, zucchini, carrots, red pepper, celery, ginger, garlic and red pepper flakes in a little bit of the Yoshida's sauce until all veggies become tender. Serve by layering 1 cup of rice in each bowl, 1/4 of the veggies and 1/4 of the chicken. Serve with sauce if needed.

Quesadillas

Took this recipe off of Favorite Family Recipes. I didn't add the cilantro because Steve doesn't like it but it was still very tasty.

1 c. frozen corn
1 c. grated zucchini (juices squeezed out)
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
2 Tbsp. diced jalapeno (or more if you like it hot)
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1-2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. cumin
2 c. Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
flour tortillas (if you want to be really healthy, use whole-wheat tortillas)

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except for the cheese (and tortillas of course). Place mixture in a large skillet and fry until hot. In the meantime, heat a medium-sized skillet over medium heat. Place a tortilla in the pan. On half of the tortilla add a few large scoops of the corn/bean mixture and a little cheese. Fold tortilla over, then flip sides. When cheese is melted, cut in half and serve!

Italian Zucchini Crescent Pie

This is a recipe from my friend, Jana Davis. We have found that this doesn't make for good leftovers unless you want to eat just the filling. The crust, crescent roll dough, gets soggy.

4 cups thinly unpeeled zucchini

1 cup coarsely chopped onion

1/2 cup margarine

1 tablespoons parsley flakes

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon sweet basil leaves

1/4 teaspoon oregano leaves

2 eggs beaten well

8 ounces grated mozzarella cheese

8 ounce can crescent rolls

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Saute zucchini, onion and butter until tender. Stir in parsley and other seasonings. Blend egg and cheese; stir into vegetables. Separate dough and place in bottom and sides of 10" pie pan, spread mustard evenly on crust. Pour vegetables into crust. Bake at 375 for 18 to 20 minutes. Insert knife, should come out clean. Let stand 10 minutes. Serve hot.

Tempura

Recipe from Betty Crocker's International Cookbook. Tempura - an assortment of fish and vegetables dipped in batter, fried and served with a special sauce. Do not let the long list of ingredients discourage you from trying Tempura; select, according to personal preference and recipe instructions, those that most appeal to your taste.

We were supposed to eat this last night but elk hunting got in the way so we enjoyed it tonight. We ate Sukiyaki as well as Tempura. I prepared the Sukiyaki and brought it to the table, while we were eating we cooked our shrimp and vegetables. When Steve blessed the food he asked that we would all be safe around the dinner table and we had no mishaps. We also added two vegetables that were not on the list, zucchini and yellow squash.

Shrimp with tails, shelled and deveined
Scallops, cut into halves
Fish fillets, cut into bite-size pieces
1 cup 1-inch pieces asparagus
1 cup 1/4-inch slices carrots or celery
1 1/2 cups cauliflowerets
1 1/2 cusps 2 x 1/4-inch eggplant sticks
1 cup 2-inch pieces green beans, partially cooked
1 cup 2-inch pieces green onions
1 green pepper, cut into 1/4-inch rings
1 medium onion, sliced and separated into rings
1 bunch parsley
1 cup pea pods
1 sweet potato, cut into 1/8-inch slices
Vegetable oil
Tempura Batter (below)
Tempura Sauce (below)

Choose 1 pound seafood (about 4 ounces per person). If servicing shrimp, make several crosswise slits on undersides to prevent curling. Choose 3 or 4 vegetables from selection above. Pat seafood and vegetables dry; arrange attractively on platter. Cover and refrigerate until serving time.

Heat oil (1 to 1 1/2 inches) in wok to 360 degrees. Prepare Tempura Batter. Dip seafood and vegetables into batter with tongs, fork or chopsticks; allow excess batter to drip into bowl. Fry a few pieces at a time until golden brown, turning once, 2 to 3 minutes.

Drain. Serve with Tempura Sauce.

Tempura Batter
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup cold water
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix all ingredients with fork just until blended. Batter will be thin and slightly lumpy.

Tempura Sauce
1/4 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup water
1/4 soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar

Heat all ingredients until hot. Serve in small individual bowls.