I was going to post a recipe from the magazine this week - but there were sooo many I made and loved tat I thought it made the most sense to just tell you to go out and BUY this magazine, ASAP.  The good folks at America's Test Kitchen, who put out the lovely and highly technical Cook's Illustrated magazine each month, created this seasonal issue that is absolutely full of wonderful ideas for high summer meals that will make the most of your CSA box. GET IT you won't regret it, I promise. If you know me - or you've been to my place for a festival, field-to-table dinner or bed and breakfast stay - you know that I'm addicted to cookbooks. I even use stacks of them for end tables. I LOVE them! But I am rarely tempted by cooking magazines. My daughter Maggie was on a short visit home from college and had bought this for herself to read on the bus trip here. Lucky for me, she left it - whether it was on purpose or not I don't know because I don't want to confess that it is here yet! I've been cooking through it and can't believe how pretty, how useful, how precise, how informative and how TASTY the recipes are. Really - go get it. It'll be on newsstands until October.

I almost can't believe I'm about to post yet ANOTHER zucchini treat recipe. But there you have it - I love zucchini! In sautes, with eggs, spiralized and used instead of pasta, and shredded into all manner of baked things. This recipe, though, is really not my fault. First, my crew keeps sending me zucchini cake recipes on pinterest and facebook because they know I'll make them for lunch. And second, my good friend and farm member Isabella, gave me some lovely mini-Bundt pans last week during a work day and they were just begging me to bake zucchini in them.

So this recipe is a combo of many lovely things - a basic Joy of Baking recipe for Zucchini Bread, a facebook link to a recipe for Raspberry Chocolate Cake, and a giant bag of Craisins that appeared in my pantry  when my eldest son was recently moving from one apartment to another.  I think it turned out great, the crew agrees, and we'll see what our neighbors think when I sample them at market this Saturday. Try it out and let me know how it goes. 

I made these without the dried cranberries for a special visitor I'm having at the farm tomorrow, because I'm going to serve them with some Aronia Berry Sauce drizzled over and some of our very first ripe raspberries arranged in the dent on top.  I will tell you that the visit is going to be televised on PBS - more info on that soon! And I will also tell you that you are going to get Aronia berries in your box very soon - from our good friends and neighbors at Barham Gardens. Bon appetit, farm friends!

CHOCOLATE ZUCCHINI CAKE

1 1/2 c shredded raw zucchini (Lately I've been shredding zucchini ahead of time for baked goods, and leaving it in a colander for a few hours to drain.  I squeeze the moisture out before I measure it.)

1/2 c white whole wheat flour
1/2 c buckwheat flour
1/2 c almond flour
1/2 c cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 c olive or coconut oil
1/4 c yogurt or buttermilk
3/4  c sugar
2 lg eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 c chocolate chips
1/4 c dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray grease a round cake pan, a loaf pan or one pan of mini-Bundt cakes.  This also works well for muffins. Whisk together dry things in a medium bowl. Blend wet things in your mixer.  Fold in zucchini, chips and cranberries.  Gently add the dry mixture until just mixed. Bake about 10 minutes for mini-cakes, 45 minutes for a loaf pan, 30 minutes for a cake pan. Watch carefully! Cool for about 10 minutes on a rake, then gently remove to cool completely.