Lemon Sesame Seed Summer Squash Bread

There have been times when I have retreated from this platform, but I always find my way back, and I never regret returning. I hope this return is lasting; I have many things in the works and I’d love to share!

This spring, I grew our first garden in this home. The combination of good soil (I filled one of our terrace beds with mushroom compost), warm weather, and lots of rain has produced loads of vegetables. In particular, June brought a load of yellow summer squash that I had trouble using in creative ways.

The boys and I ate many (many) loaves of banana bread during the early weeks of quarantine, so we steered away from quick breads for a while. But, the bounty of summer squash found me staring down my loaf pans once again. Zucchini bread is a thing, why not summer squash bread?

I had the boys help me with this recipe. They grated the squash, which is, surprisingly, a very gratifying thing to do, added the measured ingredients to the mixer, and manned the mixer controls (one of their favorite parts of cooking, aside from licking the spoons and mixing bowl).

The bread turned out delicious! It tastes like summer and, while, it admittedly tastes more like a dessert than a quick bread, it is good on its own, although a slather of butter never makes anything taste bad. The recipe makes two loaves, so we wrapped the second in saran wrap and stuck it in the freezer for that taste of summer we will crave once the weather starts to cool down.

Lemon Sesame Seed Summer Squash Bread

yield 2 loaves

INGREDIENTS

1 cup melted unsalted butter

2 cups granulated sugar

Juice and zest of 1 large or 2 small lemons

1 teaspoon almond flavor

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 large eggs

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups grated summer squash (I grew Zephyr squash so that’s what I used, I think any yellow summer squash will work)

1 tablespoon black sesame seeds

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Grease or line two loaf pans; set aside.

Place the melted butter, sugar, lemon juice and zest, almond flavor and vanilla extract in a large mixing bowl. Cream together until fluffy and light in color, about 2 minutes.

Add the eggs one at a time, allowing each egg to fully incorporate into the mixture before adding another.

Evenly sprinkle the salt, baking soda, and baking powder over the top of the mixture. Mix well.

Working in batches, add the flour a 1/2 cup at a time; mix in entirely between additions. Fold in the squash and poppy seeds. Divide the batter between the prepared loaf pans. Bake for 1 hour, until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the loaf comes out clean.