Some guy friends and I were talking over the weekend — and one in particular has an aversion to vegetables.  “You don’t like any vegetables?” I asked judgmentally.  He shook his head “no” and proceeded to tell me how a friend once baked pureed broccoli into brownies to try and get him to eat some greens.

We laughed about it, but the conversation stuck with me and it made me think about two of my favorite things: zucchini bread and carrot cake.  These things are loaded with shredded veggies, which provide sweetness and texture.  But let’s be real — they’re also topped with cream cheese frosting and gobbled up like, well, dessert.  And rightfully so.

Now, this recipe can most definitely be used to make one 9″ loaf of four mini loaves.  I prefer to make it into muffins and top them with cream cheese frosting.  But that’s just me.  Whichever way you prefer, use up the bounty of zucchini that’s preeminent in summer and bake something delicious with it!

Eat your greens, friend.

Zucchini Muffins With Cream Cheese Frosting

Recipe via CuisineNie

You will need:

3 medium zucchini
1 c. packed light-brown sugar
2 T. granulated sugar
2/3 c. vegetable oil
2 t. vanilla
2 large eggs
1 and 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1 and 1/2 t. ground cinnamon
3/4 t. salt

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat a 9-by-5-by-3-inch loaf pan with cooking spray (or line muffin cups with paper liners), and set aside. Grate zucchini on a box grater (to yield 1 3/4 cups); set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together sugars, oil, vanilla, and eggs.

2. Into a small bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Add flour mixture to egg mixture, and stir to combine well. Stir in grated zucchini.

3. Pour batter into prepared pan, spreading evenly. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of loaf comes out clean, 45 to 55 minutes (check on cupcakes after about 25 minutes; mine took between 25 and 35 minutes). Cool in pan 10 minutes; invert onto a wire rack, then reinvert, top side up. Cool completely before slicing.

Easy and Delicious Cream Cheese Frosting
Recipe adapted from Food Network

4 oz cream cheese, softened
4 oz butter, softened
2 c. powdered sugar
1 t. vanilla

1. Cream together cream cheese and butter
2. Slowly incorporate powdered sugar, one cup at a time
3. Add in vanilla