World Bread Day is an annual celebration held on October 16th, bringing together the world's best bread makers, from the little farmhouse and the most professional kitchens. Over the centuries bread has evolved from the basic yeast loaf into artisnal creations by professional bakers and home cooks alike.

Boston, Massachusetts is famous for its Boston brown bread, the French for their wonderful baguettes and the Italians for their rustic bread variations like ciabbata, with twists at every corner adding fruits, nuts and veggies into the mix.

I created this Zucchini quick bread recipe because I had an abundance of zucchini and carrots sitting in the refrigerator. I added some oats, pecans, a little brown sugar and some warming spices to make what I call my "Power Bread". This is a very healthy, on-the-run quick bread that incorporates fiber from the oats - vitamins A and C, folate and potassium from the zucchini and carrots – antioxidants, Omega-6 fatty acids and protein from the pecans.

This quick bread is crunchy on the outside and wonderfully moist on the inside. A good slice of this with your juice or coffee in the morning, will keep you going for hours or as a healthy after school snack for the kids. This is my delicious addition to World Bread Day! My family love it and it’s also great in the toaster for a minute or two. I really encourage you to try this recipe! Enjoy!

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. table salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. allspice
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 cup Quaker instant oats (or your favorite)
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
3 large eggs, at room temperature, beaten
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup olive oil
1 1/2 cups grated zucchini (courgettes), large hole on the grater
1 cup grated carrot, large hole on the grater
1 scant cup of whole pecans, finely chopped
2 tbsp. melted butter
1/4 cup Turbinado sugar (raw brown sugar)

Method

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

1. Sift the first 7 ingredients into a large bowl. Stir in the oats and brown sugar, breaking up any sugar lumps with your fingers.

2. In a separate bowl, mix the beaten eggs with the vanilla extract and the olive oil. Make a well in the flour mixture and add the egg mixture. Stir from the center incorporating the flour into the eggs. This is a thick batter, so you can use your hand to bring everything together. I found this works better for me. Let the mixture rest for 30 minutes on your counter.

3. Grease a 9" x 5" loaf pan with the melted butter (I used a ceramic coated pan for this recipe.) Then, sprinkle a little flour over the buttered pan, shaking off the excess. I turn the pan upside down and tap it on my cutting board. Finally, pour the batter into the pan, mounding it in the center and pushing the edges down.

4. Sprinkle the raw brown sugar all over the top of the batter, pressing down a little. Bake for 60 minutes and then test it with a wooden skewer or sharp utility knife right in the center of the bread. The knife or skewer should come out clean if the bread is ready! Let it cool and then refrigerate.

Cook's Notes and Tips

You may substitute any kind of finely chopped nuts to this recipe and you can use half granulated white sugar and half brown sugar if you wish.