anyone who knows me, knows that I love birthdays. I especially love my own birthday….
isn’t that the truth! photo via
although I must note that today isn’t ‘exclusively’ MY day. oh no, I share this day with a very special man – my (not-so) little brother Travis. so happy birthday bro! we are 6 years apart but it has always been an extra special day being able to share it with someone I love.
today is actually going to be pretty quiet since it’s a game day in my house. the husband is actually injured right now, but of course he still goes to work 
since there isn’t much that we could do today he treated me to a very lovely dinner last night at Gentile’s in Syracuse. it was sooooo delish!
NOW onto the heavenly baked creation that got your attention in the first place. since my mom and/or grandma’s aren’t here to make me a birthday cake I made this yesterday as an early birthday gift to me – from me 
I stumbled across this recipe a couple weeks ago and finally made it. I don’t eat a lot of baked goods and those that I do consume often come from my own kitchen. THIS loaf of goodness will win you over – it is amazingly yummy.
I adapted this recipe to suit what I had in my own kitchen + pantry.
Ingredients:
- 2 cups flour–I used a sprouted grain whole wheat flour
- 3 tbsp hemp seeds
- 2 tsp aluminum free baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 t himalayan sea salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 cup sugar (I used coconut sugar but sucanat would be a great choice too)
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1/3 cup chopped, raw walnuts
- 1 egg
- 1 1/4 cup shredded zucchini (wash it, but leave the skin on)
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 1/4 cup almond milk
For the topping:
- 2 tbsp flour
- 2 tbsp sugar (I used sucanat)
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 1/2 tbsp butter
Method:
- preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- combine your dry ingredients – flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, sea salt, hemp seeds, raisins, walnuts, cinnamon + nutmeg. using a fork combine the mixture.
- grate your zucchini.
- in a separate bowl lightly beat your egg then add zucchini, maple syrup + almond milk. gently stir to combine ingredients.
- add the wet to the dry ingredients. using a spatula fold the mixture together until everything is combined.
- grease your baking pan with coconut oil + fill with zucchini batter.
- make your crumbled mixture by combining the above ingredients + sprinkle on top of your zucchini mixture.
- place in the oven on a middle rack + bake for approximately 50 minutes to one hour.
- remove from heat + let cool a bit before serving.
top it with a bit of butter + voila!
well I am off to enjoy my birthday in true self loving style – I hope you have a glorious day as well!
