Today I’m trying something new. I don’t know about you but I love almost all things chocolate. Chocolate cake is one thing that I usually steer clear of though. Recently however, I had a piece of chocolate zucchini cake at a friends house and was completely in love with it. So, today we bake chocolate zucchini cake!
Chocolate Zucchini Cake
Ingredients:
- 2 cups sugar
- 3/4 cup oil
- 3 eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 1/4 cups grated zucchini
In a large mixing bowl combine sugar, oil and eggs until creamy.
In a separate bowl mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa powder, cinnamon, and salt. Gently stir with a fork to combine mixture. This recipe can easily be modified to be gluten free! Just use a gluten free flour substitute such as I did. Gluten free = delicious!
In slow increments add flour mixture to the bowl with your sugar, oil and eggs.
You may wish to use a rubber spatula to mix the flour in because the mixture will become very thick and paste like.
Slowly add in the milk. Mixture will become smooth, like a thick batter.
Next you will need to grate your zucchini. I find that two zucchini usually provide an adequate amount. Add your grated zucchini to the bowl.
Gently fold in the zucchini. The zucchini is going to give your cake a great moist texture.
Now you’re ready to bake! This can be baked in a bundt pan but today I’m baking it in a regular round.
Preheat your oven to 350˚F. Grease your pan and pour the batter in.
Cook for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. If you bake in a bundt pan it may take closer to an hour to bake all the way through. Allow to cool on racks.
Once the cake is cooled you’re ready to stack! I used a regular round cake board. Put one layer of your cake down on the board or stand you are using. Then add as much or as little icing as you want between layers, be sure to leave plenty to cover the cake. Icing is a great way to cover up areas of your cake that maybe didn’t come out of the pan so neatly, just add a little extra icing in that spot. Than add your second layer.
Cover your cake in the remaining icing. The secret to having a nice looking cake if you can’t get a perfectly smooth layer of frosting is to make it look like you wanted it to be waved and dented. It adds texture and creates a cake that is both beautiful and delicious.
Cut and serve with ice cream or a glass of milk. Enjoy!
along the way 