Prep: 15 min Total: 1 hr 15 min Serves: 16

1 small zucchini, unpeeled
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 eggs
3/4 cup milk

1 small zucchini, unpeeled 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 cup cocoa powder 2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp salt 1 cup granulated sugar 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature 2 eggs 3/4 cup milk

PREHEAT oven to 350F. Spray a 9x5-in loaf pan with oil.

GRATE zucchini, using the large holes on a box grater, onto a clean kitchen towel. Wrap towel around grated zucchini and squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Grated zucchini should measure about 1 cup.

STIR flour with cocoa, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Beat sugar with butter in a large bowl, using a wooden spoon, until creamy. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, until smooth. Stir in one-third of flour mixture, then half of milk. Repeat additions, ending with flour mixture. Stir in zucchini. Scrape batter into pan, smoothing top.

BAKE in centre of oven until a cake tester inserted into centre of loaf comes out clean, about 1 hour. Let stand 10 min. Then carefully turn loaf onto a rack to cool. Loaf will keep well covered, at room temperature, up to 3 days or frozen up to a month.