It’s Zuke Season around here, and the running joke is that if you don’t want any more of your neighbors’ giant zucchinis, you need to lock your car doors.

Truth to tell, we love zukes in this house. I cut them up for pizza topping, put them in salads (chopped up small), make gazpacho, put them in spaghetti sauce, and cook them on the grill.

Zucchinis are great in so many recipes, especially zucchini bread.

Name me any other veggie that’s so versatile.

But of all the ways we enjoy zucchini squash, the favorite it zucchini bread. In fact, that’s the way we preserve it for the winter.

My favorite zuke bread recipe is from the book pictured below, The New Zucchini Cookbook. (I just looked this up on Amazon, and there’s a newer version by the same authors. Highly recommended.)

Here’s my family’s favorite zucchini recipe:
3 eggs, beaten
1 cup vegetable oil
2 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups grated zucchini
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
raisins and nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350. In a large mixing bowl, stir together eggs, oil, sugar, zucchini, and vanilla. Add dry ingredients and mix well.

Raisins and chopped nuts may be added if desired. Pour batter into two well-greased 8×4-inch loaf pans. Bake for 1 hour or until center is set. (Test with a toothpick.) Cool in the pans for 10 minutes before turning it out.

This loaf freezes very well. We wrap them in waxed paper and then foil, pop them into a recloseable bag, and hope they make it to February. (Though they rarely do.)