Zucchini Bread, Dutch Oven Version
A garden loaf rebuilt so it bakes in coals with no fridge and no mixer.
- calories
- 290
- weight
- 3.2 oz
- cal / oz
- 91
- protein
- 4 g
- serves
- 12, scales
- prep
- 20 min
- cook
- 50 min
- total time
- 70 min
- water
- 180 ml cold
- cost
- $
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Breakfast
- Snack
- Dutch oven
- Campfire coals
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Dairy free
- Real dishes
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Actual cooking
Ingredients
| All-purpose flour | 3 cups | |
|---|---|---|
| Sugar | 2 cups | |
| Ground cinnamon | 3 tsp | |
| Salt | 1 tsp | |
| Baking soda | 1 tsp | |
| Baking powder | 1/4 tsp | |
| Powdered whole egg | 6 tbsp | equals 3 eggs, rehydrated with 6 tbsp water |
| Dried shredded zucchini | 1 cup | dehydrated at home, rehydrates to about 2 cups grated |
| Neutral oil | 1 cup | or swap half for shelf-stable applesauce cups |
| Vanilla extract | 3 tsp | |
| Raisins or chopped walnuts | 1 cup | optional |
Method
- Pour 180 ml of cold water over the dried zucchini in a cup and leave it 15 minutes. It should go limp and dark green.
- Build a fire and let it burn down. You want coals, not flame.
- Whisk the egg powder into the zucchini and its soaking water until no lumps remain. Stir in the oil and vanilla.
- Add the premixed dry bag and stir just until there is no dry flour left. Fold in raisins or nuts.
- Oil a 10-inch dutch oven, scrape the batter in, and level it.
- Lid on. Eight coals under, sixteen on top, which runs near 325°F. Rotate the oven a quarter turn every 15 minutes and the lid the other way.
- Check at 45 minutes with a twig in the center. It comes out clean or it goes back on for ten.
- Pull the coals off the lid and let it sit 15 minutes before cutting or the middle tears.
Home zucchini bread runs on two things a campsite does not have: a grated fresh squash and a thermostat. Dried shredded zucchini fixes the first. It weighs almost nothing, and when you soak it the water it gives back is the same water the batter needed anyway, so the soaking liquid goes into the bowl instead of down the ground. Powdered egg handles the second problem, which is that three eggs in a cooler is three eggs you will eventually sit on.
The coal count is the whole recipe. Sixteen on top and eight underneath puts most of the heat above the batter, which is what a quick bread wants, and it keeps the bottom from scorching before the center sets. Rotating the oven and lid in opposite directions cancels out the hot spot in your fire. The oil is not optional richness here, it is what keeps the loaf edible on day three.
Packing
Flour, sugar, cinnamon, salt, soda, and baking powder go in one gallon bag at home. Egg powder, dried zucchini, and the add-ins each get their own small bag. Oil in a leakproof bottle inside a second bag.
Variations
- Swap half the oil for two applesauce cups. The loaf gets softer and about 200 calories lighter overall.
- No dutch oven: divide the batter into two foil loaf pans, cover with foil, and bake in a covered grill over indirect coals.
- Cut the sugar to 1 1/2 cups if you are eating this as breakfast rather than dessert.
https://mealswithmaria.site/the-best-zucchini-bread-recipe