Zucchini Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Frosting

Yes- yet another zucchini baked delicacy. I am loving having zucchini in the backyard.... I picked another 3 zucchini and have been loving adding it to sauces, stirfry's and now...CAKE! This recipe started out as a hopeful brownie recipe and ended up being a pretty nice and fluffy chocolate cake recipe. I am still trying to perfect a brownie recipe that I really like, but for now I will share with you this great VEGAN chocolate cake recipe. Love how this cake is fluffy and full of zucchini. I mean, seriously, who wouldn't want to get a serving of vegetables in your cake? :)

I also have been loving this frosting creation. A bit scientific in the making, and I will have to make it a few more times to maybe perfect it, but for now I am sharing what I got and how it is made in smaller measurements. I am hoping that if I make it in a bigger batch I can get larger measurements that may be easier. But the frosting is definitely lick-your-spoon kind of frosting. I saved the spatula for my husband because he always acts so sad if I wash it before he gets to lick it. I guess cake making is truly for the kid at heart! :)

Can you see those little flecks of green in the cake? It may not be that noticeable, but that is the zucchini skins that show up from the grated zucchini. Zucchini bread is quite common, and as it should be because zucchini is a perfect replacement for moisture in a cake and add flavor and density. This cake is still a bit gluten-free crumbly, but with the chocolate frosting tying it all together you have one special treat. Also, this cake does not contain very much sweetener and with the use of stevia it is sweet but not overwhelmingly rich. I guess these brownie-wanna-be's will just have to do as a yummy piece of chocolate cake. I'm not complaining...try it out and you will see!

Zucchini Chocolate Brownie Cake with Chocolate Frosting

3/4 cup of brown rice flour

3/4 cup of millet flour

1 cup of tapioca flour
1 TB of chia seed meal

1/3 cup of cocoa powder

1 ts. of baking soda

1 ts. of baking powder

1 ts. of sea salt

1/2 ts. of ground stevia powder

5 TB of coconut palm sugar

1/2 ts. of cinnamon and nutmeg

1/3 cup of pure maple syrup

2 cups of shredded or grated fresh raw zucchini

1/2 cup of slightly warmed coconut oil or light olive oil

1 ts. of pure vanilla

3 ounces of melted dark chocolate or bittersweet baking chocolate (check for dairy-free)

In a large mixing bowl, mix together all of the dry ingredients. Then over the stovetop water bath, (or monitored in the microwavable glass bowl), melt the 3 ounces of chocolate and coconut oil together. Then when melted add that to the dry ingredients along with the 2 cups of shredded zucchini and honey and vanilla. Mix well with a spatula and get all the dry parts mixed well together. Then pour into a greased/oiled pan. I used a 9x9 square glass pan, but other baking pans that could be used: a bundt pan, any 9x9 square or circle pans for a thick cake, and a 9x13 pan for a thinner cake. Use what you got and be creative!

Then bake in a 350 degree oven for 50-55 minutes, until you can pick the middle of the cake with a toothpick and it comes out clean.

Pull from oven and let cool. Then when cake is cooled you can leave in pan or knife out onto a platter. Then frost with the following chocolate frosting....:)

Chocolate Frosting Recipe (vegan)

6 TB of very soft Earth Balance (soy-free version) 

2 TB of cocoa powder

4 TB of coconut palm sugar

2 TB of raw honey

4 TB of non-dairy milk 

9-10 TB of tapioca flour (or arrowroot powder)

In a small bowl, mix the softened vegan butter or coconut oil with the coco powder, then add the sugar, honey, and milk.....lastly add the tapioca and add 8 TB and see how thick it is getting by mixing it very well with a spatula. Add more tapioca if you want the frosting thicker- make it to your liking for thickness. This frosting should be creamy and smooth and almost like a Betty Crocker spreadable frosting. If you put it in the fridge though, beware it will thicken up considerably because of the oil. And you can do that, but you may have to warm via stove or microwave to get it movable again. This frosting is my new best friend! I plan to make it in a larger batch and make the measurements easier to measure and make.

Then, lastly, frost your cake and eat it with joy! No dairy, no gluten, and no eggs! Gluten-free vegan goodness. I think this recipe would make a yummy cupcake as well....maybe next time I make it I will do that to see how fun a zucchini chocolate cupcake will have.

Some baking notes:

*I have not tried any specific GF mix yet, but I think that my flour-combination could be substituted for a 2 1/2 cup of another GF baking mix. I do not recommend bean flours or coconut flour as subs though because they act very differently.

*If you want to add 2 eggs to this recipe then got for it... it may make the cake just about the same moisture, and have it be less crumbly. I would add another 1/4 cup of tapioca flour as well if you add eggs.

*I bet you could use frozen grated zucchini in this recipe, but I would just be careful of the moisture levels... you may need to pat the defrosted grated zucchini dry just a bit.

Well friends, that is what I got for today. I hope you are enjoying summer and finding lots of fresh food in your kitchen (or back yard!).

Much love to you!