Zucchini Orange Bread with Caramel Frosting
This is a delightful recipe! Zucchini Orange Bread with Caramel Frosting is one of those recipes that you can enjoy with or without the Caramel Frosting–but it’s better with the frosting if you ask me! The ingredients include using a whole orange–peel and all–ground up in a food processor, along with fresh, grated zucchini. The flavor combination is truly mouthwatering.
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Several years ago I received a cookbook from a dear friend for Christmas. It was a cookbook featuring all sorts of breads with scriptures and life vignette’s added beside each recipe. I’ve been wanting to make this particular recipe for quite a long time. But as it was a little more involved than some recipes, I kept putting it off. Finally, I decided to give it a go.
I added a Caramel Frosting layer, just to give it a little more pizzazz. We loved it with the frosting. I took the bread to one of our Sunday hostess committee meetings at church back in May. Everyone drooled over the icing because I spread it over the bread really thick. 🙂
This zesty bread can be baked anytime of the year these days since both zucchini and oranges are available year round. It’s certainly rich enough and enjoyable enough to make during fall baking or the holidays. The caramel icing was not included in the original recipe. That’s my addition. But I think it blends the zucchini and orange together spectacularly. Enjoy.
Zucchini Orange Bread with Caramel Frosting is fabulous!
This sweet bread uses zucchini and a whole orange.
The Caramel-Orange Frosting on top is to die for!
This Zucchini Bread recipe is terrific for fall baking.
Here’s what I did.
I used these ingredients for the bread.
Wash an orange and then cut it in 8 wedges. (You’ll add a cup of sugar to the food processor with the orange wedges.)
Place one cup of granulated sugar and orange wedges in a food processor. Cover with lid.
Process until the mixture is smooth. The mixture will be thick and pulp-like; set aside.
Wash zucchini; grate until you reach 3 cups zucchini. This will be about 3 small zucchini; set aside.
Combine unbleached all-purpose flour (bleached flour toughens baked goods), remaining 1 cup of granulated sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
Stir mixture very well to combine; set aside.
In a separate bowl, combine eggs, orange pulp, zucchini and oil.
Add vanilla.
Mix with an electric mixer until combined.
Add zucchini mixture to flour mixture.
Mix with low speed of electric mixer until combined.
Spoon zucchini mixture into two regular sized well-greased and floured loaf pans. Fill pans 2/3 full.
Bake at 325 degrees for 55 minutes, or until a bamboo skewer or knife inserted in center of loaves comes out clean. My loaves took 65-70 minutes.
Allow bread loaves to cool completely in pans before transferring to a wire rack or bread board to apply frosting.
I used these ingredients for the frosting.
Wash orange. Grate on a small grate or with a lemon zester until you have enough peel for the recipe; set aside.
Place butter and brown sugar in a saucepan; add half-and-half.
Bring mixture to a boil over medium heat; reduce heat to low and boil 2 minutes, until mixture thickens.
Remove from heat; add orange juice.
Cool mixture to lukewarm.
Add powdered sugar.
Beat mixture with an electric mixer until frosting reaches desired consistency. Be careful NOT to add too much powdered sugar or the mixture becomes fudge-like and hard to spread.
Pour frosting over top of each bread loaf. Quickly sprinkle the tops of the bread with grated orange peel.
If desired, very gently press the orange peel into the icing with your hands so it adheres well to the icing.
Allow the icing to set up before slicing down in slices. I use an electric knife which makes it a lot easier to get even slices.
Transfer slices to a serving dish to serve.
Zucchini Orange Bread with Caramel Frosting is a marvelous concoction for a holiday breakfast or brunch.
The Caramel Frosting makes this bread really rich and decadent. 🙂
Here’s the recipe.
ZUCCHINI ORANGE BREAD WITH CARAMEL FROSTING
(Bread recipe adapted from Abigail Dodd‘s cookbook, Bread of Life, “Not Your Average Zucchini Bread,” pg. 52; Frosting recipe: my own concoction)
Zucchini Orange Bread with Caramel Frosting
Equipment
- 2 regular-sized loaf pans
- 1 large mixing bowl
- 1 medium mixing bowl
- 1 electric mixer
- 1 wooden spoon
- 1 grater
- 1 sharp knife
- 1 bread board
- measuring cups
- measuring spoons
- 1 food processor
Ingredients
BREAD:
- 3 large eggs
- 2 cups granulated sugar (divided use)
- 1 cup avocado oil or canola oil
- 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- 1 tsp. sea salt
- 3 cups zucchini grated (about 3 small zucchini)
- 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
- 1/4 tsp. baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (bleached flour toughens baked goods)
- 1 whole orange peel and all
CARAMEL-ORANGE FROSTING:
- 1 cup light brown sugar packed
- 1/2 cup salted butter (1 stick)
- 1/4 cup half-and-half
- 1 tbsp. orange juice
- 1 1/2 to 2 cups powdered sugar (see note below)
- 1 to 2 tsp. grated orange peel
Instructions
BREAD:
- Preheat oven to 325°.
- Wash orange; cut the unpeeled orange into large chunks (about 8 wedges).
- Place orange wedges in a food processor with 1 cup granulated sugar.
- Process in food processor until mixture is smooth.
- (Mixture will be pulp-like and thick).
- Wash zucchini; cut off ends and grate until you achieve 3 cups.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, remaining 1 cup of sugar, salt, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon.
- Stir until well combined.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine orange mix, oil, vanilla, eggs and zucchini and mix with an electric mixer over low speed until combined.
- Add zucchini mixture to flour mixture and continue mixing with electric mixer over low speed until well combined.
- Grease and flour two regular loaf pans.
- Fill pans about 2/3 full.
- Bake in a preheated 325° oven for 55 minutes.
- Use a knife or bamboo skewer to check for doneness.
- If skewer comes out clean, the bread is done.
- Cool bread in baking pans until completely cool before removing bread from bread pans.
CARAMEL-ORANGE FROSTING:
- Combine brown sugar, butter and half-and-half in a saucepan over medium heat.
- Bring mixture to a boil.
- Reduce heat to low.
- Cook, stirring constantly for 2 minutes, or until mixture has thickened.
- Remove from heat; stir in orange juice.
- Cool mixture to lukewarm.
- Gradually add powdered sugar to mixture and beat with an electric mixer until frosting reaches desired consistency.
- Do not add too much powdered sugar or the mixture won’t spread and drizzle down the sides of the bread loaves.
- Pour glaze over top of each loaf of bread.
- Sprinkle each loaf quickly with grated orange peel, as desired.
Notes
Bread recipe adapted from Abigail Dodd’s cookbook, Bread of Life.
© Can’t Stay Out of the Kitchen
Nutrition
Zucchini and orange flavors are a great combination.
Zucchini Orange Bread with Caramel Frosting is certainly not your average Zucchini Bread recipe!
If you enjoy sweet breads, this one with Caramel-Orange Frosting is fantastic.
Zucchini Orange Bread with Caramel Frosting is heavenly. Everyone will want a slice….or two!
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