I have zucchini up to my ears. My dad’s garden is done producing squash, but right now our plants are flourishing. We have two zucchini plants and we are getting at least 2-3 large zucchinis every week. I have already posted two savory recipes: Crab-Stuffed Zucchini and Cheesy Mushroom-Stuffed Zucchini, so I figured it was time for a sweet zucchini dish. Generally, when I have extra zucchini to use I will make zucchini bread. I was looking for something a little different to try and like magic, I came across this recipe on Chocolate-Covered Katie’s blog. I made a few minor changes to the recipe, and it came out fantastic. This zucchini cake is so moist and fluffy, and it has just the right amount of sweetness. Full disclosure: this is the second time I’m making it this week. The Greek yogurt cream cheese icing is totally optional, but absolutely delicious. One batch of the icing was enough to frost both cakes. I stored the cake and icing separate in the fridge and iced each slice as it was eaten. Feel free to add some chocolate chips, shredded coconut, or walnuts to your cake if desired.
Active Time: 10 minutes Total Time: 45 minutes
Serves: 12
Ingredients:
1 cup finely grated zucchini, loosely packed 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce 1/3 cup vegetable oil 1 1/2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar 1 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 1 cup white whole wheat flour ½ cup all-purpose flour (OR replace all flour with Bob’s gluten-free) ½ teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons turbinado sugar
Greek Yogurt Icing: optional 4 tablespoons reduced-fat cream cheese (or vegan) ½ cup plain Greek yogurt (or vegan Greek yogurt)
1 cup powdered sugar
Directions:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and line an 8-inch square pan with parchment paper. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the first 5 ingredients and let sit at least 10 minutes. Add flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and sugar and stir until just combined. Don’t overmix.
Pour into the 8-inch pan and smooth down evenly. Bake 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for 3-4 days or sliced and frozen.
For the icing, if using: Beat all ingredients in a small mixing bowl. You will only use half of this recipe to frost the cake, so make a second cake or save for later (leftovers are yummy as a fruit dip!).
Nutrition Information per serving (1/12 of cake, without icing):
Calories: 124 Fat: 6 Carbs: 18g Protein: 2g Sodium: 99mg Sugar: 6g
*Nutrition information is based on the products I used personally in this recipe. Different products may yield slightly different information.
Source: Chocolate Covered Katie: Moist Zucchini Cake
