Zucchini tea cake (Vegan MoFo)

There's this amazing project called "Vegan MoFo" that's happening right now, and the whole world should know about it. I'm participating unofficially (I missed the submission deadline), but there are so many blogs participating and so worth a visit during September, if you want to experience vegan awesomeness.

To check out all my posts connected to this campaign, just check out the Vegan MoFo tag!

I have a really, really lovely friend named Angela. I spend a not inconsiderable amount of time discussing food preparation, making preserves, and enjoying vegan treats with her. And most recently, I went to her house and received two gorgeous zucchinis out of her garden, and rekindled my love for zucchini tea cake.

So for those of you who are nervous, don't be. Seriously. If you hate carrot cake, then OK, perhaps you should be nervous. But that's roughly what zucchini tea cake tastes like. It's a moist, sweet quickbread loaded with cinnamon and (if desired) raisins and/or nuts. It's heavenly.

Imagine a new spin on carrot cake. How could that be a bad thing?!

I'm not going to lie and say it's good for you. That's something I'm pretty sure it's not, considering the content of sugar and oil in this baby. But it is nice to have a slice with your afternoon tea when the friends pop by. And besides, you can't live on kale all the time. Seriously.

So here you have it: the most heavenly of zucchini loaves.

Zucchini tea cake
Makes 2 loaves (each slicing into 12)

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
3 egg replacements (I used tofu)
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups whole brown sugar
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
2 cups grated zucchini
1 cup chopped nuts or raisins (or half of each)

Grease two loaf pans and line the bottom and long sides with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 325­°F.

In a small bowl, mix together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the egg replacements, oil, sugar and vanilla. Blend well. Stir in zucchini, and then blend in the flour mixture until just mixed. Stir in the nuts and/or raisins gently, being careful not to overmix the batter.

Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for about 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Let cool 10 minutes before removing from pan. Let cool before slicing for easier slicing. Enjoy!