Friday, July 07, 2006

Zucchini Parmesan Bread



Last night, I dreamt of zucchini.

I'm trying not to focus on a Freudian interpretation of that, hoping instead that my subconscious was just thinking about this Zucchini Parmesan bread.

I pulled this together last Friday in an attempt to use up some farmers' market items before we left for NY. It's based on this recipe, but I went off the map and changed it quite a bit. (Incidentally, when one modifies a recipe, when does it stop being an adaptation and becomes one's own invention?)

This is a very moist and thin bread -- in fact, I hesitate to use the word bread because it is so moist, but I'm hard pressed to think of another word that fits better.

It's also delicious: the zucchini provides heft and moisture but really, it's the fresh basil and parmesan that shine here. We devoured it in one sitting, fighting over the last piece. It reminds me of something I could have eaten at my Italian grandmother's table.


Zucchini Parmesan Bread

1/2 cup Bisquick
1 tbsp fresh basil, cut in a chiffonade
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp oregano (optional)
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup oil
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 1/2 cups zucchini, grated
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350-degrees F. Grease a 9-inch round cake pan.

Combine all ingredients except zucchini and parmesan, and mix well. Add zucchini and parm, stiring to combine. Pour mixture into pan and bake until set, approximately 20 to 25 minutes. Remove and cut into pie wedges. Serve hot or cold. Yields 8 slices.

Grade: A



6 comments:

barb said...

ya know I had that same question regarding recipe adaption vs invention. But I don't think I would be adapting with this bread recipe......looks quite tasty and anxious to try it.

Lis said...

Tough call on when to call a recipe your own if you've consulted another recipe to get your end result. On one hand, wouldn't it be your creation if you've changed the original recipe so that it's really no longer recognizable? But on the other hand, is it truly yours if you needed to follow someone else's recipe to at least help the process? And then there's the, "I had the best blahblah at so-and-so's restaurant the other night, so I recreated it in my kitchen tonight" scenario. You've definitely ate someone else's recipe, but you have no exact directions or measurements or even a clear view of what the ingredients are, yet you know enough from tasting it that you can make it yourself. Wouldn't that be your recipe since you weren't following someone else's? Or would it be an adaptation because you've tasted someone else's recipe first?

Regardless, your bread looks extremely yummy and yes, I will be adding it to my recipe (adapted and/or my own) book this very evening :D

Anonymous said...

I'm not sure where or when I read this,but somewhere I saw that if you change 5 ingredients/instructions,it becomes yours.
This looks so different and good.

emily said...

It is so nice to see zucchini breads that are savory instead of sweet - and that looks wonderful.
I think I've also heard the rule of 5 changes as mentioned above.

Anonymous said...

o!m!g! yum! Maybe this will be the first thing I eat when I start eating again. :)

Acme Instant Food said...

I'm going to be adding that one to the "To Try" file. Thanks.