Chocolate Zucchini Bread INGREDIENTS: 1 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 cup cocoa powder 2 ultra-ripe bananas 1/2 cup canola oil 1 cup brown sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup packed shredded zucchini 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon salt 1 cup chocolate chips 1 cup coconut (optional) DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and grease a bread loaf pan with butter. Mash the bananas and combine with oil, vanilla and brown sugar. Beat until smooth. In a separate bowl, sift the flour, salt, cocoa powder, and baking powder. Slowly combine with the wet ingredients. Add chocolate chips and coconut, and stir to combine. Pour into the loaf pan and bake for approximately one hour. A toothpick or fork inserted into the bread will come out slightly chocolatey. Allow the bread to cool on the counter before serving with whipped cream.
HEALTH & BEAUTY HEALTH
Parmesan Zoodles You can whip up zoodles—that is, zucchini noodles— as an easy single-serving meal, or you can create enough for a family dinner. You’ll need approximately one zucchini per serving, plus olive oil, chopped garlic, fresh basil, salt, and parmesan to taste. There’s several ways you can cut your zoodles: USE A VEGGIE SPIRALIZER. This is the go-to method for most people, and the option that will create the most consistently shaped zoodles. You can find spiralizers that work electrically or that can be cranked by hand. USE A JULIENNE PEELER. Like a spiralizer, this will create zoodles that are fairly consistent in shape, though they will be a little bit shorter (but that makes them a nice substitute for penne rather than spaghetti). USE A KNIFE. If you don’t have either of the aforementioned tools but you still want to try your hand as subbing zucchini for pasta, you can use a knife to cut the zucchini into very thin strips. It takes a little bit more time and concentration, but it works. Once you’ve spiralized or cut the zoodles, set them in a colander over the sink and salt them. Allow them to sit for a half-hour to draw the water out of them. Bring a frying pan to medium heat and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil plus 1 tablespoon of chopped garlic. Allow the garlic to brown for one to two minutes. Add the zoodles and cook for approximately five minutes, moving them constantly. Remove from frying pan and top with additional olive oil (if desired), fresh basil, and grated parmesan cheese.
Healthy Traveling Tips for Your Endof-Summer Trip By Dylan Roche
The end of summer is a prime time for fitting in a vacation, just before the kids go back to school and life starts to get a little bit more hectic. Yes, vacations are great, but they can wreak havoc on your body if you’re not careful. Whether you’re visiting a country with relaxed sanitation standards, traveling via germy transportation, seeing your sleep schedule thrown completely off, or just indulging in a little too much alcohol, there are plenty of ways you could wind up not feeling your best. And it’s especially important during the prevalence of COVID-19 to mind healthy habits and best practices, even as travel restrictions are relaxed.
Instead, aim to make your vacay a healthy one with the following tips: whatsupmag.com | August 2020 | What’s Up? Eastern Shore
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