The blog has taken a back seat since the turn of the year, and so has baking if I’m being honest. I’m not even going to apologise, I’ve just been busy and concentrating on other facets of my life. I’ve got a whole bunch of stuff planned in though, so do stick with me. First up is something we quickly put together after getting back from a long weekend in Bath. It was mid afternoon on a dreary Monday and we wanted something we could snack on in the evenings that would help satisfy a sweet craving without being too heavy. My girlfriend is also half way through a vegan month, so it had to be something dairy free. A while ago I tried making a courgette loaf that didn’t particularly hold up, but this one works much better.
The key with this one is not to squeeze out any of the liquid from the grated courgette as it’s quite a dry mixture. If you need to add a dribble of extra ‘milk’ as well, then that’s fine, you just want it to come together into a thick cake-like batter. Chop the walnuts up really small before stirring them through, and save some to sprinkle on the top. This loaf is great buttered, or with a dribble of agave or honey over the top.
Do you like baking something at the start of the week to snack on? I love having a cake in a tin or box of cookies waiting for grazing.
- **For the loaf**
- 190g flour
- ½tsp salt
- ½tsp bicarbonate of soda
- ½tsp baking powder
- 1½tsps ground cinnamon
- 200g white sugar
- 90ml vegetable oil or canola oil
- 30ml soy milk or other dairy-free milk substitute
- 1tsp vanilla extract
- 2 medium courgettes, grated
- Handful of walnuts, chopped (optional)
- **For the crumb**
- 1tbsp brown sugar
- 1tbsp rolled oats
- 1tbsp chopped walnuts
- Preheat the oven to 180°C(160°C fan assisted) then grease and line a loaf tin.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and cinnamon.
- In a separate bowl, beat together the sugar and the oil before stirring through the milk, vanilla and finally the courgette.
- Add to the dry ingredients, along with the walnuts and stir to combine. It should come together into a thick batter, add a small amount of liquid if it's too dry.
- Transfer to the prepared tin.
- Combine the ingredients for the crumb and sprinkle over the top.
- Bake, in the center of the pre-heated oven, for 70-80 minutes. A knife inserted should come out clean.
- Leave to cool for about 15 minutes in the tin before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.