Zucchini Nut Cookies
Hi Friend,
I want to share with you one of my favorite childhood recipes. These cookies are so good they’re comfort food!
I remember mom making zucchini nut cookies when I was little. The kitchen smelled so good, and the cookies had a cake-like texture. Dad would even make these cookies from time to time. I’ve tweaked the recipe for freshly-milled flour and exchanged the shortening for butter, but they have the same great taste.
Prep Dry Ingredients
Like most recipes with soft white wheat flour, you will want to mix the dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately. This decreases the chances of overdeveloping the gluten in your batter. Overmixing will cause your quick breads, cookies, and cakes to be tough and chewy in texture.
Are you ready to make Zucchini Nut Cookies?
Step 1:
Mill your soft white wheat berries. Soft wheat berries are best for soft, moist cookies.
Start by milling your soft white wheat berries. I am milling mine on the finest setting which results in a pastry flour.
Step 2:
Add baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt to your freshly-milled flour.
Dry ingredients are ready to be thoroughly mixed. I recommend shifting or whisking so you don’t get a pocket of salt or baking soda.
Step 3:
Whisk or shift your dry ingredients together. Since we are using freshly-milled flour, whisking will give the same results as shifting (shhh… most of the time I whisk out of laziness). Set your dry ingredients aside.
Prep Wet Ingredients
Step 1:
Cream softened butter, sugar, and brown sugar (or alternative sweetener of your choice) together with a hand or stand mixer.
Step 2:
Add one egg, and mix on low until it is mixed thoroughly. You don’t want any large chunks of butter left by the time you get done.
Step 3:
On low speed, add grated raw zucchini and mix thoroughly.
Add grated zucchini to creamed ingredients. I like to leave the peel on, but you can peel the zucchini before grating if you prefer.
Mix Dry and Wet Ingredients
Step 1:
½ cupful at a time, add dry ingredients to wet ingredient mixture making sure it is mixed thoroughly. If the dough gets too thick, you may have to mix the remaining of the dry ingredients in by hand.
Carefully add the flour to the wet mixture while mixer runs on low or stir.
Step 2:
Gently fold raisins and chopped nuts into cookie dough with a wooden spoon (confession… I don’t like nuts, so I’m not using them today). Cover cookie dough and place in the fridge for about 5-10 minutes. This will make the cookie dough easier to handle and is the perfect length of time to pick up your workspace.
Step 3:
Scoop refrigerated cookie dough onto prepared baking sheets in 1 tablespoonfuls about 1 1/2 inch a part. I like to cover my baking sheets with parchment paper for easy clean up.
Drop chilled cookie dough onto prepared baking sheet. If you want a prettier looking cookie you can roll the dough quickly in your palms or use two spoons to round the mound of dough.
Step 4:
This is the most critical step! Cookie dough made from freshly milled flour is softer than all-purpose, and they will spread. To avoid cookies spreading while baking, place your cookie dough on baking sheets in the freezer for 5-10 minutes before baking. You will want your cookie dough to feel cold and firm, not frozen before baking.
Step 5:
Bake at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes. I usually turn my baking sheets around at about 13-14 minutes so all sides of the cookies are evenly browned.
After 15 minutes, remove your cookies from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheet for about 1 minute. Then remove your cookies from the baking sheet onto wire cooling racks.
These cookies are so good that you will need to freeze them or they’ll instantly be gone!
This recipe makes approximately 2 dozen cookies. I like to serve them warm with milk or coffee. To store, cool cookies thoroughly and store in an airtight container or Ziploc bag at room temperature for 7 days or in the freezer for 3 months.
Recipe:
Ingredients:
Zucchini Nut Cookies
½ cup softened butter
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 cup grated raw zucchini
2 ½ cups freshly-milled soft white wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp nutmeg
½ tsp cloves
¼ tsp salt
1 cup raisins
½ cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
Cream softened butter, granulated sugar, and packed brown sugar together.
Add egg. Mix thoroughly.
Add raw grated zucchini to creamed mixture. Mix thoroughly.
In separate bowl, shift (or whisk) freshly-milled flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt.
Add dry ingredient mixture to wet, creamed mixture in ½ cupfuls. Mix between each addition.
With wooden spoon, add raisins and nuts to cookie dough. Chill in fridge for 5-10 minutes.
Drop cookie dough by 1 tablespoonfuls onto prepared cookie sheet.
Chill cookie dough on cookie sheet in the freezer for 5-10 minutes until the dough is firm, but not frozen.
Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
After removing from the oven, let cookies cool on the baking sheet for 1 minute before transferring to a wire rack.
Enjoy!
For this recipe, I use our farm-fresh, soft white wheat berries available in our online store. They have a mild flavor and wonderful texture that complements the zucchini and spices instead of competing with them. I hope you enjoy these cookies. Feel free to experiment with different types of nuts (pecans would be good) or add more spice if you prepare a spicier cookie.
Best,
The Sieverkropp’s