Back to Work Pie 2015 - Part 1 - Chocolate Zucchini Brownies

Hi Folks,

today I started the 2nd week of work after the holiday. Last year I brought a pumpkin-apple-pie for my colleagues. So I decided to start a tradition of Back-to-Work-Cake. Because I had so many zucchini I wanted to do a cake with zucchini. Therefore I had a look or two (who's counting?) at Pinterest for some yummy cake recipes with zucchini. Here's the first I tried.

Zucchini Brownies (I followed the recipe from the yummylife)

Ingredients:

2 cups chopped raw zucchini 
1/4 cup coconut or vegetable oil, or melted butter 
1/2 cup low fat yogurt* (regular or Greek) 
1­1/4 cups sugar 
1 tablespoon vanilla extract 
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour 
1/2 cup unsweetened dark cocoa powder 
1­1/2 teaspoons baking powder 
1 teaspoon kosher salt 

Frosting ingredients: 
1 cup semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips 
1/4 cup canned evaporated milk (may substitute almond milk, if desired) 
2 tablespoons butter (may substitute coconut or vegetable oil, if desired) 
1/2 teaspoon vanilla 
1 cup powdered sugar 
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional) 

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x13 pan. In blender or food processor, puree zucchini, oil, yogurt, sugar, and vanilla. Set aside. In large bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt. Add pureed wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until moist throughout. Pour into greased pan, spread evenly, and bake for 20­25 minutes until toothpick comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. (Overcooking will result in dry brownies.) Remove from oven and place on cooling rack. Cool for 20­-25 minutes and frost while still warm. 

To make the frosting: 
Combine chocolate chips, evaporated milk, butter (or oil) and vanilla in microwaveproof bowl. Microwave on full power for 30­40 seconds. Remove and whisk until chocolate chips melt in and mixture is smooth (return to microwave for a few seconds if necessary). Add powdered sugar and continue whisking until smooth. Spread evenly over brownies while they are still slightly warm. Sprinkle with chopped nuts, if desired. (Brownies may left without nuts, if preferred.)

My colleagues liked the brownies. (Maybe because I didn't tell them that there are zucchini in)

'til next time