With snow in the forecast for Tuesday, this may be the last zucchini recipe for awhile. Don’t rush to your tissue box yet, these brownies will leave you smiling, I promise!

Zucchini Brownies

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1 1/3 cups coconut sugar
• 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. salt
• 3 cups finely shredded zucchini DO NOT DRAIN
• 1 1/4 cups semi-sweet chocolate chunks (optional, i omitted and opted to be naughty on half with peanut butter chips)

1. Preheat oven to 375°F and prepare a 9×13 pan with butter or line with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl combine oil, sugar, and vanilla until fully incorporated.
3. Add flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Mix until combined. Batter will be very dry.
4. Fold in zucchini by hand. Allow batter to rest for 5 minutes.
5. Optional: Add in chocolate chunks and stir again. Batter should appear more wet. (if not, let it rest for 5 more minutes and stir again)
6. Spread brownie mixture into the pan and bake for 25-35 minutes. Brownies are done with an inserted toothpick is removed with crumbs. There should not be wet batter on the toothpick.

What makes whole wheat better?

Wheat has three parts to it—the bran which is packed with fiber, the endosperm—the largest part of the seed and made up of mostly starch, and the germ—the nutrient-rich embryo of the seed. It is downright delicious but unfortunately white flour is made up of only the endosperm portion of the wheat, eliminating many of the grain’s nutrients. Whole wheat flour includes the bran, endosperm, and germ of the wheat grain, which gives it a slightly darker color and makes it more nutritious.

Why are whole grains important in preventing type 2 diabetes?

The exact reasons why whole grains are an important mechanism to prevent type 2 diabetes aren’t crystal-clear, but there are several theories:¹

• Whole grains improve insulin sensitivity, which means that the body uses blood sugar more effectively and efficiently.
• Whole grains are digested more slowly which leads to a far slower increase in blood sugar levels after eating.
• The nutrients in whole grains plus the fiber content help to lower our body’s level of inflammation which is strongly associated with type 2 diabetes.
• The fiber in whole grains is incompletely digested in the gastrointestinal tract which produces short-chain fatty acids which decrease insulin sensitivity.

Are certain types of whole grains more effective in preventing type 2 diabetes?

Recent research with 55,000 participants over 15 years from the Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, and the Danish Cancer Society Research Center confirms decades of previous research findings on the importance of whole grains for prevention of type 2 diabetes. In this study, any type of whole grain provided similar benefits.¹

How many servings of whole grains per day are necessary?

In the Swedish and Danish study, each serving of whole grain was associated with an 11% lower risk of type 2 diabetes for men and a 7% lower risk for women.¹ A large meta-analysis of 16 studies recommends consuming 2-3 servings of whole grains per day to decrease risk of developing type 2 diabetes.²

References

1. Cecilie Kyrø, Anne Tjønneland, Kim Overvad, Anja Olsen, Rikard Landberg; Higher Whole-Grain Intake Is Associated with Lower Risk of Type 2 Diabetes among Middle-Aged Men and Women: The Danish Diet, Cancer, and Health Cohort, The Journal of Nutrition, Volume 148, Issue 9, 1 September 2018, Pages 1434–1444. https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/nxy112
2. Aune D, Norat T, Romundstad P, Vatten LJ. Whole grain and refined grain consumption and the risk of type 2 diabetes:  a systematic review and dose-response meta-analaysis of cohort studies. Eur J Epidemiol. 2013 Nov;28(11):845-58. doi: 10.1007/s10654-013-9852-5. Epub 2013 Oct 25.