Description
This healthy chocolate zucchini cake is gluten free and paleo friendly. It's made with cassava flour and has a rich, fudgy texture.
Ingredients
Cake
- 1 1/2 cups cassava flour (215g) spooned and leveled
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder (46g) spooned and leveled
- 1 cup coconut sugar (145g)
- 1 tsp cinnamon (optional, may swap with instant coffee)
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup shredded zucchini (105g) water squeezed out*
- 2 large eggs
- 1 1/2 cups coconut milk (or almond milk)
- 1/3 cup avocado oil (or another neutral oil)
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
Frosting
- ¾ cup organic palm shortening (126g)
- ½ cup dark chocolate chips (about 3oz)
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line three 6 inch round cake pans with parchment paper and set aside**
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry cake ingredients. This includes the cassava flour, cocoa powder, coconut sugar, cinnamon, baking soda and salt.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients. This includes the zucchini, eggs, coconut milk, avocado oil, vanilla and apple cider vinegar.
- Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture and stir with a spatula until well combined.
- Evenly distribute the batter into your lined cake pans. The batter will be thick, so spread it out so that it's touching the side of the pans.
- Place the cake pans in your oven and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
- After baking, remove the cakes from the oven and let them cool for 15 minutes in the cake pans before transferring them to a wire cooling rack. You can run a butter knife along the edges of the cakes to help release them.
Frosting
- Combine all frosting ingredients in a small sauce pan. Melt over the stove top on low heat, stirring every so often.
- Once the chocolate has fully melted, remove frosting from stove top and cool in fridge for about an hour to thicken***
- Frost cooled cake and decorate as desired.
Notes
For best results, measure ingredients by weight (when given)
*Shred the zucchini with a cheese grater, then squeeze out the water using a nut milk bag, cheesecloth or paper towels.
**I used three 6 inch round cake pans made from stainless steel. They are a great baking option, as they're non-toxic and dishwasher safe. Please note, if your cake pans are a different size or made from a different material, the baking time will most likely change. Keep an eye on the cakes and decrease or increase the bake time as needed.
***It takes about an hour for the frosting to thicken in the fridge. If the frosting gets too solid, then slightly warm it over the stove top.