Shauna Glenn Design Blog

The Moroccan Diaries

6/27/2023

I knew I wanted to do something really spectacular for my 50th birthday, so I planned a trip to Morocco and Portugal.
I had never been to Morocco or Africa for that matter. Up until then, my global travel experience was limited–I’d been to a few countries in Europe. I did know one thing: I couldn’t wait to go and see and do!
I rounded up a group of my closest friends and we planned the nearly two-week adventure. Most of the group of nine was meeting up in Lisbon (after Morocco), so for the first leg of the trip, it was me, my husband, Jeff, and my girlfriends, Ellen, and Kristin.

Let me say this about Morocco, specifically Marrakech. The people, the food, the hospitality is like none other. They were delightful, helpful and accommodating… just truly the best. That’s why we’re anxious to go back!

Jeff and I had done our research before traveling and read about and learned their customs and culture because it’s important to know what you're getting yourself into so you don’t offend anyone. We heard things like, women need to dress modestly and cover their shoulders, there’s no alcohol, etc.
Don’t worry, we found alcohol AND we kept our shoulders covered.

We stayed inside the city walls or what’s known as the Medina. There are precious boutique-type hotels called Riads. We stayed in this one. Tea service upon arrival.

After we settled into our new surroundings, we ventured out into the city.
OH MY GOSH THE SHOPPING!!

I bought this rug on Day 1! Nothing gets by me!

He was such a great guy! And a good salesman!
See that yellow decanter behind his left arm?
I bought it.
Did I mention everything is SUPER cheap?

Besides wandering around the old medina, we ventured out to ride camels and hike the Atlas mountains.

Also got to pet a baby camel!
(He doesn't look too happy about that part of the job, does he?)

Our guide for the week, Muhammed!

Besides the shopping and the sightseeing, y’all the food. They cook in these ceramic pots called tagines. And the restaurants are GORGEOUS!! Ain't nobody afraid of color here.

A funny note about some of the restaurants. If you ask for a side of fruit you might get this.

A giant bowl of fruit.

This was one of the best moments. We saw this cat sitting in front of the chicken shop, waiting for his turn. The butcher was having none of it.

Yes, there were cobras. A little note about me: I’m TERRIFIED of snakes. Like, if I’m going to have a nightmare, snakes will be involved. So why did I pose so casually in front of this scary dude? Because I was in the moment, living out loud and facing my fears. I’m glad I did this. Now I don’t have to do it again. BUT YOU CAN!

I could go on and on, or you could just go with me and see all of these things for yourself. Come on, let’s go! Wait until you learn what a hammam is.

Click here for more details on joining Shauna on the next Moroccan adventure!

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The SGD Zucchini Challenge

6/14/2023

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Shauna's mom, Deb recently returned from an extended vacation to a garden overflowing with produce. Per Shauna, she doesn't eat her bounty, she just shares it. So when Deb showed up at the office with the biggest zucchini we've ever seen, one for each of us, we decided to make her proud and see what we could cook up.

Thus was born the SGD Zucchini Challenge. Each of us would make a recipe with our zucchini and then invite Deb to come join us on the podcast and judge the dishes. It IS amazing what you can do with zucchini, so if you have an overflowing garden yourself, you can pretty much create an entire meal with these recipes.

Zucchini Feta Frittata

An incredibly easy make ahead breakfast that works for both babies, kids and adults. You'll add this to your Sunday agenda for the rest of time so you have easy breakfasts ready to go during the week
Prep Time 10minutes
Cook Time 15minutes
Total Time 25minutes
Course: Breakfast
Servings: 12 Bites (*note, we cooked this all in one dish instead of individual ones)
Ingredients

1 zucchini cut into a small dice
1/2 onion cut into a small dice
1 cup feta cheese
8 eggs beaten together
2 tablespoons chives
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil for drizzling

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350° F. In a large 10 inch skillet heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Sauté the diced zucchini and onion and saute for about 5 minutes until they are slightly soft. Season with salt and pepper. Add the sautéed vegetables to the bottom of a sprayed regular sized muffin pan.
In another bowl, whisk together 8 eggs and season with salt and pepper and add the chopped chives and feta. Fill the remaining area in the muffin tin with the egg, gently stirring the ingredients together. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes until the eggs are completely set.

Notes: Make these on the weekend to prep for the week. They reheat easily in the toaster oven or microwave.
Recipe courtesy of What's Gaby Cooking

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

PREP TIME 10 mins
COOK TIME 70 mins
TOTAL TIME 80 mins
SERVINGS 16 to 20 servings
YIELD 2 loaves
This recipe can be baked in an 8x4-inch loaf pan (for taller loaves) or in a 9x5-inch loaf pan (for thinner loaves). This recipe also makes 2 loaves; you can easily divide the recipe in half to make just one loaf.
The recipe calls for 4 cups of grated zucchini, which will yield particularly moist loaves. I've made it with 3 cups, which was also very good, just not as sublime as with 4 cups.
Ingredients

4 cups grated zucchini (from about 1 1/2 pounds zucchini)
2 1/2 cups (340g) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (50g) unsweetened cocoa (use natural unsweetened cocoa, not Dutch processed)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 1/2 cups (300g) sugar
2 eggs
3/4 cup (169g) unsalted butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon instant coffee granules
1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Method

Drain excess moisture from grated zucchini:Place the freshly grated zucchini in a sieve over a bowl to catch any excess moisture as it drains, while you work on prepping the other ingredients and preparing the recipe.
If for some reason your zucchini is on the dry side, hydrate the shredded zucchini by soaking it in water first, and then place in sieve.
Preheat oven, prepare loaf pans:Preheat oven to 350°F, with a rack in the middle. Grease two 9x5-inch loaf pans with baking spray or butter.
Whisk together dry ingredients:Vigorously whisk together the flour, unsweetened cocoa, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Whisk until there are no more clumps and the ingredients are well combined.
Beat sugar and eggs, add melted butter, instant coffee granules, almond extract:In a separate large bowl, beat together the sugar and eggs until smooth, about a minute. You can do this with an electric mixer on medium speed, or by hand with a wooden spoon. (I'm lazy and use a mixer but it's easy enough to do by hand.)
Add the melted butter, instant coffee granules, and almond extract and beat until smooth.
Add zucchini to the egg mixture:Mix the shredded zucchini into the sugar egg mixture.
Add the flour to the zucchini mixture in 3 additions, stirring to combine after each addition.
Divide batter into pans and bake:Work quickly, and divide the batter between the two prepared loaf pans. (Work quickly because once the dry ingredients have mixed with the wet ingredients, the leavening has begun.)
Place into the oven. Bake for 50 minutes at 350°F, or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean and easily.
Cool:Remove to a rack. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then run a blunt knife around the edges to separate the bread from the pan. Remove from the loaf pans and let cool completely on a rack.
Note that if you try to slice the chocolate zucchini bread before it has completely cooled, it will be rather crumbly. It's also easiest to slice with a bread knife.
Recipe courtesy of Simply Recipes

Pesto Orzo Pasta Salad

PREP TIME 10 minutes
COOK TIME 15 minutes
TOTAL TIME 25 minutes
COURSE Dinner, Lunch, Side Dish
SERVINGS 8 servings

Ingredients

3 medium zucchini
2 and 1/2 Tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 pound orzo pasta
1 cup pesto
2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 pints (4 cups) cherry tomatoes
8 ounces goat cheese
1/2 cup red onion, finely diced
1/4 cup fresh basil, roughly chopped

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees (F). Slice zucchinis in half lengthwise, then chop into 1/2" zucchini slices.
In a large bowl, combine the zucchini with the olive oil, garlic powder, salt, and pepper, tossing well to coat.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or just until they begin to soften. Don't over bake or your zucchini with the mushy! Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
Place a large pot of salted water over high heat and bring it to a rolling boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente, 8 to 10 minutes.
When the pasta has finished cooking, drain it at once and quickly rinse it under cold water until cool, about 1 minute.
Place cooled pasta in a large mixing bowl and add the pesto and vinegar, and toss well to coat.
Add half of the roasted zucchini, tomatoes, goat cheese, onions, and basil, and toss well to combine.
Top with remaining mix-ins. Then serve at once, or chill until needed.

Recipe courtesy of Baker by Nature

Lemon Zucchini Cake

This Lemon Zucchini Cake is definitive proof that lemon and zucchini belong together! Beautifully moist and undeniably delicious, this easy cake is topped with a lemon glaze that will keep you coming back for one more slice. An excellent way to use up that zucchini from your garden!
Course Dessert
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Servings 10 servings

Ingredients

1 ¼ cup granulated sugar
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil or vegetable or canola oil
2 eggs room temperature
⅓ cup vanilla almond milk or whole milk
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
2 cups cake flour can substitute AP flour following directions here
1 ⅓ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 ½ cup shredded zucchini drained and squeezed dry
2 tablespoons lemon zest

Glaze

1 cup powdered sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons lemon juice

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F.
Spray a loaf pan with baking spray and line with parchment paper. Set aside.
Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl and whisk together. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine the sugar and olive oil. Whisk to combine.
Add eggs and almond milk and whisk together.
Add lemon juice and vanilla extract and stir to combine.
Add flour mixture and stir just until incorporated.
Fold in zucchini and lemon zest.
Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45 to 55 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out with moist crumbs. The top of the cake should look dry.
Place the loaf on a cooling rack and cool for 15 minutes. Use the parchment paper to carefully life the cake from the pan. Let cool completely on rack.

Glaze

In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar and lemon juice. Whisk until smooth.
Drizzle the glaze over the cake.
Slice and serve.

Recipe courtesy of Mom on Time Out

Yummy, right? So, you'll have to tune in to the podcast to find out which dish Deb picked as the winner. AND who made which recipe. Let us know which one sounds best to you or share your own zucchini recipes and we might just feature it on the blog! Thanks to all our fabulous recipe creators for their work. Please be sure to click through the links to see more.

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Because Therapy's Expensive

The Moroccan Diaries

The SGD Zucchini Challenge

Zucchini Feta Frittata

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

Pesto Orzo Pasta Salad

Lemon Zucchini Cake

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