Zucchini Chocolate Chip Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

I wanted to bake something today that wasn’t too involved and didn’t plan for a bread.  I looked through my recipes that I have saved on my iPad and decided to make this zucchini cake.  The zucchini isn’t something that you’ll taste, but it adds fibre and liquid to the batter since you do not dry it out after grating it.  I love chocolate so the chocolate chips interested me.  finally, I still had some cream cheese in the fridge from my last cake that called for it so it was easy to decide on this cake.

The cake is lovely and moist with hints of cinnamon and flavourful chocolate chips.  The icing might be the star.  I sometimes find cream cheese frosting overbearing, but this frosting is delightful.  The addition of whipping cream to it makes it much lighter yet it still has that cream cheese tang.  The part that took the longest was waiting for the cake to cool to frost it.  This cake is a great way to use up from excess zucchini from your garden or the store.

IMG_1376.jpeg

IMG_1375.jpeg

IMG_1377.jpeg

IMG_1378.jpeg

Ingredients

2¼ cups (281 grams) all-purpose flour 

1 teaspoon (3 grams) kosher salt 

3/4 teaspoon (3.75 grams) baking soda teaspoon (1 gram) 

1/2 ground cinnamon 

1/4 teaspoon (1.25 grams) baking powder

1¼ cups (250 grams) granulated sugar (I used only 1 cup)

1/2 cup (112 grams) neutral oil

1/4 cup (55 grams) firmly packed light brown sugar 

2 large eggs (100 grams), room temperature 

1 teaspoon (4 grams) vanilla extract 

2 cups (319 grams) shredded unpeeled zucchini (about 2 large zucchini)

3/4 cup (128 grams) semisweet chocolate chips

Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe follows)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Spray a 9-inch round cake pan with baking spray with flour. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, and baking powder.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together granulated sugar, oil, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla until well combined; whisk in zucchini. Gradually stir in flour mixture just until dry ingredients are moistened. Stir in chocolate until mixture is well combined. Spread batter into prepared pan. Tap pan on a kitchen towel-lined counter a few times to spread batter.
4. Bake until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 50 minutes to 1 hour. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove from pan, and let cool completely on a wire rack.
5. Spread Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting onto cooled cake. Cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

WHIPPED CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Makes 2 cups

113 grams cream cheese, softened 

1/2 cup (60 grams) confectioners' sugar 

1/2 teaspoon (2 grams) vanilla extract 

1 cup (240 grams) cold heavy whipping cream

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat cream cheese at medium speed until smooth. Add confectioners' sugar and vanilla, beating until combined; scrape bottom and sides of bowl and whisk. With mixer on medium-high speed, slowly add cold cream, beating until stiff peaks form, stopping to scrape bottom and sides of bowl. Use immediately.

My index of bakes.