Capuccino biscotti

Weird looking, aren't they?  I can explain...

This recipe is similar to the ones I like to use by Lou Seibert Pappas, so I didn't muck with it much other than where necessity called for improvisation.  For the coffee powder, I used a single-serve packet of Taster's Choice hazelnut-flavored instant coffee, which imparted a surprising amount of the imitation hazelnut flavor to the dough, not necessarily in a bad way.  (Made me wish I had hazelnuts to add to the dough.)  As for chocolate, the only "mini" chocolate format I had was mini M&Ms--- not a good choice, in more ways than one.  I also substituted half white whole wheat flour, also perhaps not a good choice.  In short, these cookies were not a raging success.

To make about 3 dozen cookies, here's what I used:

3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1 cup flour
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
Rounded 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 rounded teaspoon instant espresso powder or instant coffee powder3/4 cup granulated white sugar
Rounded 1/2 cup chocolate chips, mini or regular
Cinnamon and sugar for sprinkling (1 tablespoon sugar + 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon), optional

Preheat oven to 300°F (150°C) and place the rack in the center of the oven. Grease and flour a large baking/cookie sheet. In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs and the vanilla extract. In a large mixing bowl, soft together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and coffee powder/granules; add the sugar and whisk to combine well. If using mini chocolate chips, blend into the flour mixture now.  Gradually add in the egg mixture and beat until a dough forms. If using larger chocolate chips, stir them in now. Divide the  dough in half and, with a spoon, dollop each half into a log on the cookie sheet about 10 inches long and 2 inches wide. If you like, dust the surface with cinnamon sugar. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until firm to the touch, 35 minutes for more tender biscotti, 40 minutes for crisper biscotti. Remove from the oven – do not turn the oven off – and allow to cool for a few minutes. Transfer the logs to a wooden cutting board, and with a good, serrated knife, cut each log crosswise on the diagonal into ¾ inch-wide slices. Arrange the slices on the lined baking sheet, cut side up, and bake for 10 minutes. Flip all of the slices over and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool.

Note to self:  never use cheap chocolate.  This was just gross.  I've had M&Ms in cookies before and they tasted fine, but not in these cookies.  Maybe the dough isn't rich enough to support a weak chocolate. 

I like hard biscotti for dipping in coffee, but I think the cooking times were a little long here, as they ended up rock hard.  I also think they could have risen just a little big more---perhaps I should have added a tablespoon or two of water to the dough to compensate for the more-absorbent whole wheat flour.  I wish I had thought to use some coffee flour to enhance the coffee flavor (and add nutrients.)

Conclusion:  These were a FAIL.  They were too sweet, tasted too wheaty, and the poor-quality chocolate was apparent.  They had no coffee flavor, and little cinnamon.  They tasted like a cheap breakfast cereal.  (I wonder how much the hazelnut coffee affected the taste.  I couldn't detect it, but it might have added to the overall commercial undertone.)

Recipe:  Capuccino Biscotti via Isolation Baking by Jamie Schler

Peanut butter oatmeal cookies

I made these to address a craving.  Part of #quarantinebaking  They hit the spot, although they could have used a little more chocolate.

Here's what I used to make 15 cookies:

1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1/4-1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup oatmeal
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 - 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Cream together the butter and peanut butter, then add the sugars and cream together until light and fluffy.  Add the egg and the vanilla extract and beat until well blended.  In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt; add to butter mixture and beat until well blended.  Add the oatmeal, walnuts, and chocolate chips and stir to incorporate evenly.  Scoop by heavily-heaping tablespoons onto a greased cookie sheet and bake at 350F for about 10-12 minutes until lightly golden brown.  Allow to cool a few minutes on the pan, then remove to a cooling rack to cool completely. 

I used 1/4 cup chocolate chips, which wasn't enough, even for me.  One half cup might be too much, although it was the perfect amount of walnuts.  There was also the perfect amount of salt.  I didn't measure the peanut butter--- I put in two big tablespoons, which didn't look like it was quite 1/4 cup, but seemed like plenty.  They have a mild peanut butter flavor, so for more intense flavor, use more peanut butter.  (I'm just not sure if that's a full 1/4 cup or more than that. I set the recipe as up to 1/2 cup.)

Conclusion:  These were delicious, and just what I needed.  For breakfast cookies, I'd add some whole wheat or wheat bran, reduce the sugar, and increase the chocolate.  (I'd rather the sweetness come from chocolate or fruit.)  Dried cranberries or tart cherries would be good too.

Original recipes:  Chris' Kicked up Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies and Twisted Oatmeal Raisin Cookies, both via Emeril Lagasse

Coconut flour banana bread

The grain-free banana bread I've been making uses mostly almond flour.  This one uses strictly coconut flour.  I modified it to suit my taste and cut the recipe way down.  (I have to question any recipe that uses huge quantities of expensive items--- 8 eggs, 8 bananas, 1 cup coconut oil--- only to find it's for TWO loaves.  This recipe in particular is very easy to reduce.  And don't even get me started on the random capitalization.)  I made one quarter of the recipe as a test, but what I've posted here is for one full loaf.

Here's what I used:

4 very ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup coconut oil
4 organic eggs
1 tablespoon molasses
1 teaspoon butter flavoring
1 tsp vanilla
3 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup coconut flour
2 teaspoons ginger
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 F.  Mix together the bananas, oil, eggs, molasses, and flavoring.  Sift together the flour, ginger, baking soda, and salt, then stir into the wet mixture along with the chocolate chips.  Pour into a greased pan* (9x5") and bake for 45-50 minutes until golden brown.

Okay, I've already realized I made a huge mistake in that I used the full cup of coconut flour called for in the original recipe, which, remember, was for TWO loaves, and I made half a loaf.  So I've got four times the amount of coconut flour in there baking at the moment.  (I wondered why the mixture was so pliable, but these "alternative" recipes are usually strangely textured anyway.)  Well, I'll certainly be getting my fiber, anyway.

The original recipe doesn't state what size pans to use.  Frequently, wheatless recipes don't rise very much because they don't have the structure.  This recipe has all those eggs, plus baking soda, so it probably would rise some.

Conclusion:  Well, this is going to have to wait until I make the bread again, properly.  I won't mark it as a "fail" yet.  The flavor was good, but the texture sort of powdery, no doubt from the excess of coconut flour.  It was very filling too.

Recipe:  Paleo Banana Bread via Healthy Holistic Living

June ABC challenge: Oatmeal Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Scones

Damn trying to bake on a warm evening.  I was trying to make these for a bake sale fund raiser, so I hope they turn out, but although my butter started out frozen, by the time I was mixing in the chocolate chips it had melted.  I also had to use a buttermilk substitute; I was a little concerned when it didn't seem to change consistency, but I suppose all I needed was the acid.  We'll see how it goes.

Since I was using unsalted natural peanut butter, I increased the salt in the recipe.  I figured in this particular recipe, better a little more salty than not enough.  I added extra peanuts as well, but didn't measure them.

My changes are in strikeout and italics.  Here's what I used:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup traditional rolled oats

⅓ cup dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ ¾ teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

¾ cup buttermilk

1 tablespoon white vinegar

1 egg (separated)

½ cup chunky peanut butter

crushed peanuts

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

raw sugar (for sprinkling)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Add the butter and use a pastry blender to cut the butter into the flour mixture until the butter is pea-size (alternately, you could use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour mixture).  In a small bowl, whisk together the buttermilk and the egg yolk. Make a well in the flour mixture and pour the buttermilk mixture into the center of the well, then add the peanut butter. Using a rubber spatula, very gently fold the mixture together until it starts to come together.  Add the chocolate chips and gently knead with your hands (in the bowl) until just incorporated. Be careful not to overmix the dough. Turn the dough out onto a sheet of parchment paper on a cutting board and pat it into a round disk about 8 inches in diameter. Whisk the egg white, then brush the top of the dough with the egg white, and sprinkle with raw sugar.  Cut the dough into 8-12 wedges (do not separate them), slide onto a baking sheet, and bake for 18 to 22 minutes, or until the scones are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with just a few crumbs attached. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes, then re-slice and separate them. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely, or serve slightly warm.

The dough was so soft and sticky, I shaped it and then stuck it in the freezer for about 15 minutes.  It firmed the dough, but I doubt it had any affect on the butter chunks (or smears, as they were.)  Otherwise, these were pretty easy and quick to pull together.

I baked the scones for the minimum amount of time.  The dough was well colored, but the interior was still very soft.  They also spread and rose a fair amount, such that the scones (cut into eights) ended up fairly large.  I recommend cutting them into 9-12 segments.

Conclusion:  I'm not big on scones--- I think it's mostly a textural thing.  They're not quite biscuits, which are nicely short, and not quite cake, soft and moist.  These didn't change my mind.  I don't think the flavors were well suited to scones, the texture was a bit dense (personally I think they could have used another minute or two in the oven, but then they might have been dry), and the oatmeal didn't soften, resulting in what felt like bits of paper.  But a scone lover probably would have found them delicious.  I might try using the basis of this recipe, though, with other flavors (minus the peanut butter and oats) as it baked up really nicely.

Recipe:  Oatmeal Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Scones via Brown Eyed Baker

February ABC challenge: the browniest (salted) peanut butter chip cookies

 

I keep asking, "Why do we keep seeking a cookie that tastes like a brownie? Why not just make brownies?"  I still don't know.  Maybe it's a texture thing?  These chocolate chili cookies and chocolate crackle cookies were good, but no substitute for a brownie.  Anyway, here's another attempt.

I reduced the recipe to 1/4 and changed out the chocolate chips for peanut butter (EXTRA chips too), because peanut butter!  I sprinkled half of them with kosher salt to jump on the salted chocolate bandwagon (even though I'm sort of over the whole salted everything trend.  Enough already.)

For a batch of 6 cookies, here's what I used:

1/2 cup 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 1 ounce unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 1/4 cup dark or light brown granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon molasses
2 tablespoons 1½ teaspoons granulated sugar
2 1/2 large egg
1 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 cup 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, lump-free (any kind)
2/3 cup 3½ tablespoons chocolate peanut butter chips (increased from 2½)
kosher salt, optional

Melt butter and unsweetened chocolate together over low heat or in the microwave until nearly melted. Off the heat, stir until it is.  Stir sugar and molasses into butter and chocolate mixture, then the egg and vanilla, stirring to combine.  Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cocoa, and stir into the batter until completely incorporated.  Stir in the peanut butter chips, making sure they're evenly distributed. In order to maintain the shape while baking, refrigerate the batter until firm but not stiff (about 15 minutes for this small amount.)  

Preheat oven to 350°F.  Scoop batter into about 1½- to 2-tablespoon-sized mounds and space evenly on greased baking sheets, allowing room for them to spread a little. (For a salted chocolate cookie, sprinkle lightly with kosher salt.  These can also be done as a slice-and-bake.)  Bake for 11 to 12 minutes for a fudgy center; they will look underbaked.  Allow to cool a few minutes on the sheet, then transfer to a cooling rack.
 
Conclusion:   As promised, these are very brownie-like.  Very dense, with a rich, dark chocolate taste.  The sprinkling of salt was a nice touch.  They were better after being fully cooled, as I found them somewhat gummy when still warm.  The moistness, even after cooling, made them still a little gummy; I might even have preferred them baked to a drier state.  Very good, but due to the texture, true brownies are still the winner.

Recipe:  the browniest cookies via Smitten Kitchen

Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies

This turned out to be a great little cookie.  I was pleased that it wasn't a hard gingersnap, as gingerbread made with butter tends to be.  But I would definitely decorate them with something else next time, as the sugar pearls were just way too sweet for my taste.  They tasted iced.

Since our brown sugar is just white sugar with molasses added back into it, I never see the point of using brown sugar (which is more expensive) when molasses is already in the recipe, so I changed that out.  Otherwise, I prepared the recipe as written.

Here's what I used (yield 36 cookies):

1¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon Dutch-process cocoa
1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup packed dark brown white sugar
1/2 cup molasses
1 cup semisweet chocolate mini chips
5 tablespoons Swedish pearl sugar

Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, or grease lightly.  Combine the flour, baking soda, spices, salt, and cocoa.  In a separate bowl, beat the butter with the sugar until light and creamy.  Add the molasses and beat until combined.  Beat in the dry ingredients, then stir in the chips.  Scoop the dough a tablespoon at a time; a tablespoon cookie scoop works well here. Roll the top portion of each dough ball in pearl sugar.  Place the unbaked cookies 1½" apart, sugar side up, onto the prepared baking sheets.  Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes, until their surface begins to crack. (I baked them for only 10.  They were still VERY soft and puffed, and just beginning to crack.)  Remove from the oven, cool on the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer the cookies to a rack to cool completely.

Conclusion:  These were good, easy -- something I would make again, but with a different topping.  (Either that or eliminate the ½ cup of sugar in the recipe.)  Perhaps real chocolate or colored jimmies, or LIGHTLY dusted powdered sugar.  I didn't notice the chocolate chips much -- chocolate lovers will want to use more chips.  These were never crunchy, and after a few days they mellowed to a tough-chewy.  Very nice.

Recipe:  Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies via King Arthur Flour

Chocolate Banana Muffins with Cayenne

Having just done a chocolate banana muffin in the January challenge, there was no need to do it again so soon, but ripe bananas beckoned, and this recipe sounded interesting.  It calls for browning the butter, and while I love the idea, and it is probably delicious in plain banana bread, that rich, nutty flavor wasn't detectable over the chocolate and chili.  (Update:  a plain browned-butter banana bread was good, but not unique.  You can read that post here.)  For future reference I have omitted that step from the recipe here.  Other changes I made:  cut the original in half and made muffins from it, reduced the sugar by half, added whole wheat flour, used regular cocoa powder (not sure what "dark chocolate" powder is...  Dutch? higher cocoa content? whatever), added a bit of espresso powder, and reduced the total quantity of chocolate chips.  I also changed the preparation technique to reduce cleanup.  Changes from an exact 1/2 recipe are shown in strikeout and italics.

Here's what I used:

1/4 cup salted butter, browned and cooled to room temperature softened
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 1/4 cup sugar
1½  over-ripe bananas cut into pieces, plus ½ banana sliced for garnish
7/8 1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons dark chocolate cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon espresso powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
7/8 3/4 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Butter and lightly flour muffin tins, or use silicone liners.  (No need to prepare the liners.)  In a medium bowl using an electric mixer at high speed, combine the butter, eggs, salt, sugar, and banana pieces until well blended and there are no large lumps.  (The banana will get mashed in the mixing process, so no need to mash before hand.)  Onto a plate or waxed paper, sift together the flours, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, espresso powder, and cayenne.   Sift a second time directly into the mixing bowl.   Using a spatula, fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until there are still streaks of dry mix, then add the chocolate chips and fold in until everything is evenly blended.  Do not over mix.  Spoon into 7 muffin tins or liners, filling them nearly to the top. Top each with a slice of banana, if desired.  (Why not?  You have that extra half just sitting there.)  Bake on the middle rack for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.  Allow to cool in the tin for 15 minutes before turning out onto a cooling rack.

In general, I liked the changes I made.  I thought these had far too many chocolate chips even with the reduced quantity, and in fact would leave them out altogether.  If you want this as a dessert, I suppose you could leave them in, but for me it was too much.  The quantity of chili heat was good, but I'm not entirely sure it added to the recipe.  Try as I might, I'm still not entirely on board the chili-in-my-sweets bandwagon.  I very much like the chili-mango candies I've had, and I liked the outcome of my pineapple-chipotle scones.  And I finally found a chili-chocolate bar that I really like.  But generally I think too many people are trying to shoehorn chili into places it doesn't belong, or when they don't have the skill to incorporate it well.  Chili should mingle flawlessly into the other flavors and marry with them, but too often it stands separate, not clashing, but not joining either.  This would be one of those times.

Too many chips.

The fresh banana slice on top prevents these from keeping well, so if you're not going to eat them the same day (or within one day, at the latest), omit it.  Or at the very least, store these in the refrigerator, but the tops will get quite soft from the moisture.

Conclusion:  Very good, but I think they could be better.  Perhaps slightly more intense flavor than the ones made for the January challenge, but hard to compare because of the chili and all the chocolate.

Original recipe:  Dark Chocolate Banana Bread with Cayenne at Baker Bettie

Low-sugar, Flour-free Almond Bars

I'm embarking on a new effort to reduce my intake of starch and sugar.  It's been a challenge, to say the least, and is severely cramping my baking habit.  But I found this recipe for almond bars that, while not necessarily sweet, fools my brain into thinking it is.

The first time I made them, I pretty closely followed the original recipe, which resulted in a very dense, fudgy bar.  The second time I made some adjustments that resulted in a more cakey bar.  They're both good.

Fudgey version:

1 cup natural raw almond butter (preferably organic)

1 tablespoon honey or molasses (optional)

1 whole egg

1/4 teaspoon sea salt (if using unsalted almond butter)

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 - 3/4 teaspoon turmeric (optional)

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 square unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped

Cakey version:

1 cup natural raw almond butter (preferably organic)

1-2 teaspoons honey or molasses (optional)

2 whole eggs

1/4 cup (approximately) light coconut milk (recommended:  Trader Joe's brand)

1/4 teaspoon sea salt (if using unsalted almond butter)

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 - 3/4 teaspoon turmeric (optional)

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 square unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 350F and grease an 8″ square pan with butter or coconut oil. In a small bowl, mix all the ingredients together until well combined, then fold in the chocolate.  (The fudgey version will be quite thick.  If using coconut milk, add enough to make a thick, brownie-like batter.)  Dollop the batter into the greased pan, and use a spatula to smooth the top.  Bake at 350F for 20-25 minutes, or until the top is a light golden brown.  Let cool, then cut into squares.

Cakey version

Cakey version

Conclusion:  While not your typical dessert bar, this has the same mouth feel and all the same flavors of one.  It's moist and rich, and my brain says "Chocolate!"  The coconut milk adds a bit of sweetness as well.

Original recipe:  Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Blondies via The Detoxinista

Pretzel & Butterscotch Chocolate-chip Cookies

I sponsored a blood drive today at work, so I brought cookies for the donors.  Chocolate chip cookies are about as close to "American comfort food" as you'll find, but these have a fun difference -- they contain pretzels, browned butter, and bread flour!  (They are an alteration of Alton Brown's The Chewy.)

Blood donors are encouraged to eat salty snacks after donating.  Between the pretzels and the little bit of kosher salt sprinkled on top, I thought these would be a good snack choice.  In addition, the pretzels provide a nice crunch that you normally get from nuts, but since so many people have nut allergies I didn't want to bring anything with nuts.

Midway through smooshing the dough balls.

I missed the part of the recipe that called for a rounded tablespoon of dough for each cookie -- I used a cookie scoop that was about a level tablespoon.  That would explain why I ended up with 66 cookies!

Although to get the stated yield, you'd have to use 3 tablespoons of dough for each cookie.  That's a BIG cookie.

A light sprinkling of kosher salt adds a nice flavor contrast.

Also, they baked up hard and crunchy rather than chewy, probably due to the smaller size.  They were still delicious, though!  The browned butter gave them a flavor that reminded me of a toasted marshmallow.

Delicious!

Conclusion:  Sweet and salty -- a great combination.  For a chewy cookie, I guess they need to be much larger.  At a smaller size, they come out crunchy when cooked as directed, so an adjustment would have to be made to the time and/or temperature.   Overall, though, a very good cookie (and I prefer this smaller size.)

Recipe:  Pretzel-Scotch Cookies via une gamine dans la cuisine

September ABC challenge: Chocolate Zucchini Muffins

 
 Update:  I used this recipe to make these spooky chocolate coffin muffins!

I used to ADORE the giant double-chocolate muffins I got from the grocery store when I was young and working my first job out of college.  To me, a muffin was breakfast food, and it didn't matter if it was loaded with chocolate (and sugar and fat) and bigger than my fist.  And really, it DIDN'T matter, because I was still a twig no matter what I ate.  Well, those days are long gone, and even if I wanted to put something like that in my body, I couldn't.  Not and get away with it.

So here was a chance to make a chocolate muffin that I could eat for breakfast.  (Yes, I made this into muffins.) This recipe is low in sugar, low in fat, and has a lot of zucchini in it (though I'm not sure that's adding any nutritional value to speak of.)  However, it still had chocolate and white flour, so doctoring was still required.  I'm okay with straight cocoa -- that's good for you.  I had to get rid of the chocolate chips, though.  Not for morning chow.  (Besides, you can't judge the "chocolateyness" of anything if it's loaded with chocolate chips.  I wanted to see what kind of chocolate punch this recipe had on its own merit.)  I added walnuts instead, but immediately wished I had used raisins.  I also switched out almost all the white flour for whole wheat.

I keep only olive oil and peanut oil in the house, neither of which was very appropriate for this recipe.  That's what I had, though, so that's what I used:  about 2:1 peanut to olive oil.  Nonetheless, I thought I could taste the olive oil in the batter, and it didn't taste good.  I was concerned.  Besides that, the batter was just plain unsightly.  A ghastly grayish brown, thick with green and white strings.  I was not impressed.

I made half the recipe, which produced 9 moderately-small muffins that turned out surprisingly good.  The weird olive oil taste in the batter was not detectable in the final product.  The whole wheat also went unnoticed.  They were pleasantly sweet without being cloyingly cake-like, and decently chocolatey.  I do wish I'd used raisins instead of nuts, or nothing.  The nuts were okay, but just didn't add anything.  (I usually like nuts to cut some of the sweetness in baked goods and add texture, but it was unnecessary with these.)

Coincidentally, I bought whole wheat chocolate zucchini muffins from a small, local bakery yesterday, and they weren't nearly as good.  They were spongy, and not especially chocolatey.  I felt smug.

Conclusion:  I'll need to play around with this recipe a bit, but I think it has a lot of promise. There's a chocolate muffin recipe on the KA site that is similar, but I think sweeter and more cake-like.

Recipe:  Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread via King Arthur Flour