What to do with all of that Zucchini!

 I find that at this time of year I have an abundance of zucchini around my house.  If you have ever grown zucchini, then you probably know that it tends to grow fast and furious.  The plant produces new fruit- almost overnight! I harvested my zucchini plants on Wednesday and by Saturday I had to harvest again! I gave away as much zucchini as my friends and family could handle and I still had a basketful on my counter. 

So I grabbed some ingredients and some fun kitchen tools and began to experiment in my kitchen.  I came up with delicious cheesy zucchini cakes! These muffin-like cakes can be enjoyed warm right out of the oven, later on as a delicious savory breakfast muffin with a side of scrambled eggs or even as a healthy mid-morning snack – straight out of the fridge.   These cakes are loaded with fiber and are vegetarian, sugar free, gluten free, and have an egg free option. 
 

Cheesy Zucchini Cakes

1 large zucchini - peeled

4 large carrots-peeled
1 small onion – peeled and chopped fine
2-3 cloves garlic – minced
3 cups shredded cheese – any combination of cheddar and/or Italian cheeses
½ cup sour cream
1 egg – or 1 ½ tsp egg replacer mixed with 1 tbsp water
½ cup brown rice flour
½ cup gluten free oats
1 tsp salt
½ tsp savory
½ tsp thyme

 Preheat oven to 350°.  Prepare 18 muffin tins by spraying with cooking spray.  Set aside. 

Using a grater or food processer, grate the peeled zucchini and drain in colander over the sink.  Using your hands, squeeze as much water out of the zucchini as you can.  Leave grated zucchini in the colander to drain until ready to use.

Grate the carrots and place in large mixing bowl.  Add the finely chopped onion, minced garlic, zucchini (from colander) and shredded cheese. Mix together with wooden spoon or with bare hands. Next add the sour cream and egg (or egg replacer) and mix well. 

Combine the rice flour, gluten free oats, salt, savory and thyme in a separate bowl and mix well.  Add dry ingredients to the vegetable mixture and stir well to combine all ingredients. 
Scoop mixture into prepared muffin tins, filling each muffin cup almost to the top.  Place in oven and bake for 35-45 minutes- until top is slightly brown and crispy and toothpick comes out clean.

Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes.  Run a knife around each muffin cup to loosen the cake and remove from muffin tin.  The cakes will be a little soft so it may be easiest to remove with a fork or small spatula so that the cake does not split or fall apart. Place on wire rack to cool. 

Serve warm or store in airtight container in refrigerator for up to 3 days.   

To re-heat: place on cookie sheet and heat in 350° oven for 10 minutes, until thoroughly heated. 

Enjoy your Cheesy Zucchini Cakes!!

*Note: You can actually use a variety of vegetables for this recipe, but zucchini works great.  The key to a good zucchini cake is that you have to drain the excess liquid from the grated zucchini before you use it in the recipe.