Keto Friendly Huckleberry Lemon Zucchini Bread

This recipe is just in time for the plethora of zucchinis being passed on from friends and family; not to mention prime huckleberry picking time.

TIP 1: Gluten free breads already have a tendency to be mushy, and then add wet zucchini; you end up with burnt edges and super soft scrambled egg texture in the center. If you grate your zucchini, lightly salt, and sit in a colander all night (or most of the day), it will pull the majority of the water out, leaving you with all the flavor and fiber you want. This works great for making zucchini noodles to eat and/or freeze.

TIP 2: Gluten holds bread together and traps gas bubbles during fermentation giving the perfect structure and texture. Xanthan gum is used in most gluten free mixes to try to mimic gluten but it has a snotty (sorry) texture that can cause gumminess. Instead of Xanthan or guar gum, use “I’m Free Perfect Gluten Replacement” by Modernest Pantry. A must have for keto and gluten free baking. 

TIP 3: If you want the simplicity of a 1 to 1 ratio of substituting sugar for monk fruit,Lakanto Monk Fruit with Erythritol is a great option. Neither monk fruit, nor erythritol can match the sweetness of sugar by themselves. Monk fruit is much too sweet, being about 200X sweeter than sugar; and Erythritol is only half as sweet, at about 50-60% the sweetness of sugar. Because of this, the combination of the two (in a very special recipe) is where magic happens in matching the flavor of sugar. The combination of the two gives the correct proportion of bulk and sweetness in baking.

Makes two loaves – One for you and one to share!

Recipe:

1 cup ghee

3/4 cup Lakanto Monk Fruit with Erythritol

6 large eggs

Zest from 1 lemon – approximately 1 tablespoon

Juice from 1 lemon

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 teaspoons organic lemon extract (optional)

3 1/2 cups almond flour

1/2 cup coconut flour

1 tablespoon Expandex Modified Tapioca Starch (not regular tapioca)

1 tablespoon  “I’m Free Perfect Gluten Replacement” by Modernest Pantry

4 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

4 cups unpeeled zucchini (grated and drained well, see Tip 1 above). If you do not drain, reduce to 2 cups and wring out excess moisture

1 ½ cup frozen huckleberries or your favorite berry. Fragile berries like raspberries do better if added when frozen. If using large berries, cut them up to keep from having pockets in your bread.

Directions:

Heat oven 350 degrees

Step 1 - Cream together butter, sugar and eggs until light and fluffy.

Step 2 - Add lemon, lemon zest, vanilla, and lemon extract and mix in with step 1 ingredients.

Step 3 - Mix together flour, baking powder, and salt.

Step 4 - Add your dry ingredients from step 3 to your wet ingredients (step 1 & 2).

Step 5 – Add zucchini and berries. Gently stir until thoroughly covered in batter.

Step 6 – Oil and line bottom of two bread pans with parchment paper

Step 7 – Split batter between two pans.

Step 8 – Bake 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick placed in center comes out clean.

Remove from pans while warm. Cool on baking rack. Enjoy!