Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread

"After searching for a chocolate zucchini bread recipe that didn't require a lot of oil, I came up with this winner. My four-year-old son, Andrew, really likes it, and it's great to be able to enjoy something that's healthy and chocolate at the same time." -Elizabeth Alcorn, Fort Mitchell, KY

Yield: 16 servings (serving size: 1 slice)

Ingredients

• 3/4  cup  sugar
• 3  tablespoons  vegetable oil
• 2  large eggs
• 1  cup  applesauce
• 2  cups  all-purpose flour
• 2  tablespoons  unsweetened cocoa
• 1 1/4  teaspoons  baking soda
• 1  teaspoon  ground cinnamon
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1 1/2  cups  finely shredded zucchini (about 1 medium)
• 1/2  cup  semisweet chocolate chips
• Cooking spray

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°.

Place first 3 ingredients in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at low speed until well blended. Stir in applesauce.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour and the next 4 ingredients (through salt), stirring well with a whisk. Add flour mixture to sugar mixture, beating just until moist. Stir in the zucchini and chocolate chips. Spoon batter into a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out almost clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes on a wire rack, and remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

161 (29% from fat)

Fat:

5.1g (sat 1.6g,mono 1.4g,poly 1.7g)

Protein:

2.9g

Carbohydrate:

27.3g

Fiber:

1.4g

Cholesterol:

27mg

Iron:

1.2mg

Sodium:

145mg

Calcium:

12mg