Triple Chocolate Zucchini Cake
You may be familiar with the saying, “You can put lipstick on a pig, but it’s still a pig.”
Well, this summer, friends, zucchini is our pig.
There are at least four monstrous squash in our CSA box every week.
And the CSA farmer gives us more from his truck.
Then, the cute little neighbor boys come door-to-door with a basketful, knocking and offering it up like they are backwards trick-or-treating. I’d tell them, “No, thanks!” but I’ve seen their cute little eyebrows turn into cute, angry V’s as they throw rocks at their dad’s truck.
Sure, I’ll take some zucchini!
So I’m dressing it up any which way I can. And hauling it to church potlucks, where it has to compete with M&M covered monster cookies and cupcakes that come in clear plastic vessels to protect inches and inches of buttercream.
Luckily, I have all sorts of cosmetics for my pig.
Concealer.
Mascara.
And of course, lipstick.
What pig?
Triple Chocolate Zucchini Cake
Makes 1 9×13 cake
- 1 1/2 c. oat flour (finely ground old-fashioned oats)
- 2/3 c. cocoa powder
- 2 t. baking powder
- 1/2 t. baking soda
- 3/4 t. salt
- 1 1/2 c. shredded zucchini (approximately 2 medium zucchini, shredded and squeezed to release moisture, and drained)
- 1/2 c. unsweetened applesauce
- 1 c. maple syrup
- 2 t. vanilla extract
- 2/3 c. chocolate chips
Frosting:
- 8 oz. non-dairy or organic cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 c. non-dairy margarine (i.e. Earth Balance) or organic butter, softened
- 1/2 c. maple syrup
- 2 t. vanilla extract
- 1/2 c. cocoa powder
- pinch of salt
- sprinkles
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large bowl, combine oat flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
In a separate bowl, mix together shredded zucchini, applesauce, maple syrup and vanilla.
Add wet ingredients to dry, stirring until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips.
Spread batter into a 9×13 pan that has been lightly greased or sprayed with cooking spray.
Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Set aside to cool.
For frosting, beat cream cheese, margarine or butter, maple syrup, and vanilla together using an electric or stand mixer. Gradually add cocoa powder and salt until incorporated and frosting has thickened.
Spread over the cooled cake.
And don’t leave the house without your lipstick.
I didn’t tell anyone the cake had zucchini in it.
I also wasn’t surprised when both of my girls went for those plastic-encased buttercream cupcakes.
And later whispered in my ear later during our closing prayer, “Can I have an M&M cookie?”
But, they wanted to lick the cake pan on the way home.
Because save for a few crumbs, it was empty.
And why not?
Moist chocolate cake.
Studded with chunks of chocolate.
Thick, creamy frosting with a bit of pizazz.
That’s some pig.
YUM!!! I need to get some more zucchini now!
We have so much zuchinni in our garden and this would be a perfect way to hide it from Hubby
He’ll never know, Bobbi!
Omg this is so perfect because my birthday is the end of next month, and you’ve always told me how much you love making me cake….
Whadya mean you never said that?
But I WOULD say that. And if it meant getting rid of a few zucchini, I would also make you this cake.
That is certainly a novel way to deal with zucchini!
Possibly the best looking zucchini cake ever! So dark and rich and moist and fudgy and dense. Everything a dessert should be! And of course, frosting and sprinkles
Oh, you should have seen the sprinkle excitement in this house (I rarely buy them…).
I am SOOOO pinning this and making all my other fellow pinners jealous
This looks amazing, MP, but I am not at all surprised with yet another creative and yummy recipe!
Thanks, Emilia
I too am drowning in zucchini from our backyard garden. I leave it on the next door neighbors porch like some kind of zucchini fairy…
I’ve made pie, chocolate zucchini muffins, zucchini lasagna, zucchini noodles…will have to try cake! Thanks!
Oooh, this recipe would make great muffins. And I have zucchini pie on my radar too!
Yum! Looks amaZing! Do you need to peel the zucchini first or is it fine as-is?
I don’t peel it! I suppose you could if you really are averse to the skin.
I just bought 5 zucchini today. A sign??
I guess we will have cake this weekend
If you try it, let me know what you think!
Looks fun and tasty! Thank you for the cool idea. I’m already eying the two giant zucchini in the fridge…
I have a sudden urge to send the hubby out for zucchinis..it’s 8pm on Friday night…not sure it’ll fly but I NEED this cake my belly ASAP! Looks amazing
I so wish I could give you some of mine!
Earlier this week my grandmother sent me a pile of zucchinis (or courgettes, as we call them this side of the pond!) from her garden ACROSS EUROPE – crazy, huh? I am definitely going to try this recipe, it looks yummy!
i love you even more for making this wheat free. I could use GF oats and make it gluten free. Yes, it will be done! thanks mama!
Yup, I used GF oats from Trader Joe’s (the only oats I buy!).
I love that you used oat flour too! Looks very yummy. Will definitely have to give this a try.
I’m going to make this for my parents for their wedding anniversary next month!
They had chocolate zucchini cake at their wedding back in 1985!!
That is awesome! I hope they love it!
Wow! That looks amazing and now I want it…all of it…at 7:15am
I am so excited to try this! I already have 10 bags of shredded zucchini in the freezer (and have made numerous batches of bread and cookies). I know it sounds odd, but I actually put zucchini in my oatmeal. Obviously I am determined not to waste any zucchini this year;-)
I love the idea of shredded and freezing. I assume you squeeze as much moisture from it as you can? Any other technique tips?
Yummm! I saw your pinterest photos of the mixture and figured you were making zucchini cake, but I didn’t think it would come out looking as glammed up as this!! I absolutely love zucchini and have been eating my weight in spiralized zucchini noodles lately. I think I actually like them better than real pasta!
That’s saying a lot…you must sauce them up something good.
Aah, this is awesome! Best looking zucchini I ever did see. And that icing — it’s 8am and I’m drooling. If it goes on top of a vegetable cake, it’s healthy, right??
Well, duh.
Would I be able to substitute anything for the maple syrup in the cake? Another type of sweeetner?
Any liquid sweetener (agave, honey, brown rice syrup) should work!
oh, Wilbur…
Seriously. That’s a pig I could get down and dirty with.
Can there be a substitute for maple syrup? I’m plum out….
If you do agave or brown rice syrup, both would work fine.
Wow, thank you so much for such a wonderful recipe- it looks delicious! I better go see if I have any more zukes lurking in my garden! Thanks Mama Pea!
Will definitely be trying this!
This sounds divine! It is my husband’s birthday next week too!
We are inundated with tomatoes!!! I think we will be grilling up a giant batch of salsa this weekend.
Have a terrific weekend!!! Thank you SO much for the recipe! (Love the Charlotte’s Web reference!)
Hope you have a great weekend too! I’d trade you zucchini for tomatoes (or better yet, salsa) if I could!
What a clever way to present your zucchini ‘problem!’ You really have a gift.
I don’t know about that. I’ve just learned chocolate solves any problem.
YUM! I’m going to make this for my own birthday cake on Sunday! We are also inundated with zucchini from the CSA, so this will use at least two of them.
By the way, the cherry sorbet “bombs” were a big hit with my husband for his birthday! They were so easy!
Oh good, I’m so glad he liked them!
Zucchini was made for baking! Thanks for the recipe. All I usually do is zucchini bread, but this looks like the task of shredding will be even more worth it!
If you are like me, you’ll do both. About 5 times. And have a full freezer and about 8 more zucchini to use up.
Stop it. Just stop! I haven’t even made it past the header yet! That pic! The words “triple chocolate” and the fact that I have two huge zucchini in my refrigerator right now…..Great day in the mornin’!
ok let me read….
MMM. Nothing beats a moist chocolate cake that’s dark as pitch!
(*takes out grocery list and adds trader joe’s cocoa powder*)
Thank you! Now what to do with all these beets…
Chocolate beet cake is amazing and moist!
Yum!!! This looks amazing and doesn’t have anything I’m allergic to in it! Score! Gotta get some zucchini today for sure. The kids don’t need to know…
oh SNAP! this looks amazing!!! I would love to make this for the Boy’s fam!
thanks Mama Pea for all of the amazing recipes!
Also, I love being Instagram pals!
Hugs,
gc
Love you!
One of our favorite ways to use “zukes” is zuchinni crisp. We just seed the zuke and then substitute it for the apples.
Hmmm, not sure if I could get that to fly. Maybe if I did 50/50 apples and zucchini?
My mother in law claims to not like zucchini. I made it into apple crisp without the apples. She ate some and said how good it was and asked if I used granny smith apples. I put a little lemon juice on the zucchini. I think the original recipe came from taste of home
A friends mom, who’s cooking is delicious, told me recently that she has made “apple pies” with all zuchinni and no one can tell the difference. She always get raves reviews when she makes it (just doesn’t offer the info that it is zuchinni up front because then people won’t try it). I don’t see why a crisp wouldn’t work the same way.
All right…I’ll take your word for it…
WOW. I love that this is food allergy-friendly for my son. Can’t wait to make it. thanks!
So… maybe a stupid question but do you grind the 1 1/2 cup oats or do you grind and then measure?
Not stupid. I was wondering the same thing.
It actually ends up about the same, but I measure before grinding!
Thanks! If it ever cools down here (90′s and humid) I will turn my oven on and try this! I’d love to sneak some green veggies into my 5-year old…
oh that looks incredible! and sneakily “healthy!” I could go for a slice right now!
Looks yummy and I love the cute addition of the sprinkles! I want to make it this weekend- did you peel your zuchinni first or is it okay to leave the green skin on? Also, did you shred the zuchinni by hand with a grater or did your shred with a food processor? I just want to know how finely shredded it should be. Thanks!
I did not peel it and I used a shredder attachment for my KitchenAid. The finer the better! Good luck!
This looks AMAZING!! I just baked zucchini bread and I am kicking myself for not holding out for this recipe!
I have never liked zucchini, although throw enough makeup on there and maybe….
I LOVE chocolate zucchini cake! And zucchini bread and roasted zucchini so feel free to send me some:):):):) My sister absolutely hates zucchini so my mom would always blend it up and add it into the chocolate cake but somehow she always sensed it was there;)
Oooh, I too love roasted zucchini. At least I did about 10 zucchini ago…
Don’t forget about zucchini bread and a willing neighbor to test it for tastiness!!! It can be your own pay it forward campaign
I’m not sure if I’ll get to the zucchini bread today, but I’ve got some marionberry jam cooking that could potentially have your name on it…
genius.
perfection on a plate!!
we would devour that whole thing
Never would have guessed there was zucchini in there from that gorgeous picture of the cake. Sounds fantastic!
I am going to make this right now. Like NOW. 2 year old is napping and the older 3 are watching TV and I need chocolate! Yum! I can’t wait! Thanks for making it gluten free! Yippee!
Hope you all love it…let me know!
They cake is in the oven. I’m tempted to make the frosting now so I can lick the bowl while I wait…
It does make a LOT of frosting, so go right ahead. Spread some on some graham crackers, a banana, your finger while you wait…
Half the cake has already been devoured. It was a yummy pre-dinner dessert. I think the smaller you can shred the zucchini, the better. My frosting was a little runny, but I added some more cocoa powder to stiffen it. Thanks for the recipe!
Oh good! Hope the second half gets better in the fridge
Kids are nappin n’ momma’s bakin’….it’s in the oven, can’t wait for dessert tonight! So we are in line at Trader Joe’s & my 2 toddlers squeal with delight to the cash regsiter girl that we are making zucchini chocolate chip cake today…these kids love their veggies as much as chocolate. The girl was less than impressed & asked me “for real? you’re making that”? YEP, I said proudly
Nice! Let me know if your kiddos are just as excited after they eat it!
For any doubters or chocolate cake purists…zucchini in chocolate cake totally rocks! So this cake tasted amazing… moist, rich chocolate yumyum dessert. The cake recipe is a keeper, a definite do-over but next time I will skip the frosting (and calories) by just doing a light sifting of powdered sugar to make it pretty.
This is so great. Love that saying, and I love the sprinkles!
I’ll take a pig like that any day! I think I may be the only one on the planet who doesn’t have zucchini pouring out of my ears!
Well I know what I am making for a treat this weekend-thank you for such a wonderful recipe. I happen to have zucchini laying around that needs to be used anyways
Wow! All I can say is, “yum!” Can the cake be made without maple syrup? If I used liquid stevia, do I need to replace the liquid with water? How much?
Also, is there an alternative to the vegan frosting for the ice cream? I can only find ones that have soy in them and I am allergic to soy, dairy, and gluten! Think Geek style coconut or almond yogurt would work?
Thanks!!!!
Wow, Chris, those are tough substitutions. If you are wanting to eliminate the maple syrup, I wouldn’t add straight water. Maybe more unsweetened applesauce that you’ve added the liquid stevia directly to? And with the frosting, you could try the non-dairy yogurt or even an avocado! (sounds strange, I know, but it works!) Hope that helps. Good luck!
I will definitely try! It is so hard with food allergies…eggs, dairy, soy, gluten….you help though!
You could try brown rice syrup instead of the maple syrup or agave nectar.
This looks so amazing! We are definitely making this- our little garden is bursting with zucchini!
This sounds incredible! I love zucchini cake and this one loaded with chocolate would be perfect!
I just made these as cupcakes! Got about 16 cupcakes and baked for 22 min. Will do the icing tomorrow, but the cake itself is delicious!
Oh good! Thanks for the info on baking time!
The beauty of zucchini! I’ve got it coming out of my ears right now too. I’ve made zucchini bread, chocolate zucchini muffins, zucchini brownies…I feel like Bubba Gump except with zucchini!
This looks great; thanks for sharing it! Do you suppose it would work with yellow summer squash? I used all my green zucchini yesterday making a WONDERFUL zucchini/pesto soup (receipt from Susan V’s FatFreeVegan blog).
I’m not sure…I think yellow squash tends to be seedier/wetter.
I just made this tonight- turned out amazing!!! Much better than the high oil, high sugar zucchini cake I always make. I used whole wheat flour instead of the oat flour and had to double the applesauce to make it a smooth batter. It was so dense and moist when I took it out of the oven that I just drizzled a light glaze over the top- no frosting needed! Thanks for a great recipe!
Thanks, Ana! I have a non-chocolate version in mind too…
Thanks for the great recipe!! I made it tonight and it was awesome!
So glad you liked it, Mindy! Thanks for the feedback.
YUM. I am totally making this if my zucchini plants ever yield any squash. Or if I buy any at the farmer’s market. Because I always do that and then my plants yield ten thousand more zucchini.
Yes, the chocolate concealer works well…no one is wiser as to why the cake is so moist! I’m sure you know the old joke, “If you live in the country in July, don’t leave your car unlocked, t will be filled with zucchini!”
I hadn’t heard that joke! I’m now going to go around with a basket of squash, checking for unlocked doors…
Just had my piece for my birthday, and WOW, was this good! I used your butterless buttercream recipe and added cocoa powder to it for the icing. My husband had 2 pieces!
Excellent! I’ve got to bake another one for company this week, so maybe I’ll go your frosting route instead. Thanks for the feedback!
Wow this cake looks amazing!
I just made a big batch of zucchini salsa yesterday a la this recipe: http://www.food.com/recipe/zucchini-salsa-canned-11217. It sounds weird, but tastes just like hearty tomato salsa. And uses 10 cups of zucchini! Dontcha just love summer?
Thanks, Julia, that sounds interesting!
I made this last night. It was pretty good…. But really really moist. Almost runny. I misused everything very carefully, drained the water from the shredded zucchini, but mine was more like wet fudge than cake. Is that how yours was? The liquid/flour ratio seems high, with a full cup of syrup plus applesauce plus zucchini in just a 9×13 pan? The family said they felt like they were eating undercooked brownies. Suggestions would be appreciated as I love the ingredient list and want to make this work
Did you “wring out” the zucchini? That makes a HUGE difference in the moisture content. I’d shred it and then literally take handfuls and squeeze it out in the sink. I hope that does the trick!
Ha that was supposed to say I measured everything carefully, not misused! Thank you autocorrect
So I’m pretty sure my mom’s zucchini bread or muffins never looked this amazing…is it wrong to casually leave this recipe open on her browser as a little hint?
I just made this as cupcakes. SO GOOD! Hello breakfast dessert! =)
Love the cupcake idea. I got more zucchini yesterday, so I think that’s gonna happen.
I read the title as “Triple Zucchini Chocolate Cake” and was very curious to see how you managed to fit in zucchini in three different ways.
I wish! I have 8 huge squash in my fridge right now.
This cake is cooling on my counter, ready for the frosting to be whipped up! I can’t wait to try it tonight!! I have 3 tough critics to win over – my husband, his father, and my father all staying for dessert tonight. Wish me luck! I plan on wearing my prettiest lip stick.
Good luck, good luck, good luck! (that’s triple good luck)
oh my goodness! I’m craving these right now, but it’s 10:41, and i probably shouldn’t
but I will be heading to the Farmer’s Market tomorrow, so i can make them tomorrow evening!! YUM!!
I made these last night! Thank you God for the bounty and thank you Mama Pea for making it delicious! These are sooooo good!- I haven’t even made the icing yet
I just made this for dessert tonight, it was SERIOUSLY dense and chocolate-y! That’s a very good thing, of course. Thanks for the recipe, and thanks to my CSA I now have tons of zucchini waiting to be grated and frozen so I can make this yummy cake year-round!
That’s great, Sara! And you’ve inspired me to get grating and freezing. Thank YOU!
I made this last night for my family and my brother (who stays away from anything healthy), declared it a keeper and devoured the leftovers for breakfast! Thanks for another great recipe–I love your daily devotions on twitter, too! (*^^*)
Thanks, Courtney. I’m so happy your family enjoyed it! (and thanks for the encouragement!)
If you and I knew each other and were talking, I wouldn’t be speaking to you right now.
I have made this recipe twice and these are SO AMAZING that I have LITERALLY fought with my kids over every last morsel!
WHAT KIND OF MOTHER FIGHTS WITH HER OWN KIDS OVER FOOD?!
Me—when it comes to this recipe—-that’s WHO!!
I used agave nectar in place of the maple syrup and cut the amounts in 1/2 (in recipe and frosting) and made ‘mini muffins’ instead of sheet cake.
Less calories in ‘mini muffins’, right? So I can fight with kids—er- eat more, right?
Right!
THANK YOU for this-I’ll be thinking of you during the mega miles I’ll add to my running routine because of all of the the mini muffins. ~Oink-Oink~
I was worried when I started reading this comment that you really were mad! I am relieved that you are just caught up in the deliciousness of this cake. I am so glad you all are enjoying it!
oh goodness darlin-i’m SO sorry to have alarmed you!! I just LOVE LOVE your blog-your recipes-the blessings you bestow on us all with your beautiful gift of writing-and your daily Twitter devotionals—-you’ve really helped me start off the day focused on feeling blessed, giving thanks, ready to serve others! So, Thank YOU!
My neighbor just brought over a zucchini the size of a small child and I SQUEALED thinking of how many batches of this cake I’m going to crank out! Hopefully no more arm-wrestling the kids for the last morsels! Happy Day to You and Yours!!
Thank you, sweet lady. <3
I made his and my husband said it was “awesome and are you sure there is really zucchini in it!” I am gonna make it again next week and take it to a church potluck. I love you blog!
Yay! Thank you, Deb!
Yummy, Ive been looking for a great healthy cake for my daughters first birthday!
Thank you
i made this last night and got rave reviews from men ranging in age from 25-70. and i didn’t even have sprinkles on hand!
Nicely done, Jody! Thanks for the feedback.
I just made this and it’s delicious! Thank you so much for this amazing recipe. For anybody on the fence about making this, don’t be- get in the kitchen and make it asap, you won’t be sorry! My vegan, gluten-free daughter will be eating this tomorrow at a friend’s birthday party and I don’t think she will feel like she’s missing out on not being able to eat the standard birthday cake. I read the comment where someone mentioned freezing shredded zucchini for future use and I tried that with my surplus zucchini tonight. I used my mesh nut milk bag to squeeze the water out of the zucchini and it was way easier than trying to use towels. Also, I didn’t have maple syrup as called for in the recipe, so I used agave and it was great!
So glad you liked it, Melody, and I always feel a little proud when kiddos with allergies can still enjoy their treats. Thanks for the really sweet feedback.
Was looking for an apple zucchini chocolate recipe and stumbled across this very entertaining blog. Love it!
A little late to the party, but this was really yummy. Question though: Is it intended to be almost brownie-like in texture? I’ve made it 2 times and both times I would say the height of the cake portion was no more than 1-1.25 inches tall. And I was using a 9×13 pan and my baking soda/powder was no out of date. I mean, clearly not impacting the taste (as I’ve now made it twice), but just wondering. Thanks.