Recipe: Chocolate Spice Zucchini Cake

Chocolate Spice Zucchini Cake

The zucchini plant is pretty, easy to grow and produces a bountiful harvest. Any rookie gardener can grow zucchini. It is the vegetable plant of successful that fills out your garden with big deep emerald fan like leaves that hide its shy peeking bright orange blossoms.

After you have eaten your fill of fresh sautéed or grilled zucchini, get out your grater and grate your extra zucchini into 2 cup portions. Bake up some fresh zucchini cake or bread then and there, or put the grated zucchini into labeled and dated freezer bags and freeze to be used for holiday and winter baking.

I have made this chocolate spice cake recipe many times. It is rich, very moist, keeps well and well worth the effort.

Chocolate Spice Zucchini Cake

½ cup butter
½ cup vegetable oil
1 ¾ cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ cup buttermilk
2 ½ cups flour
4 tablespoons cocoa
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon cloves
2 cups grated zucchini
1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9 X 13 cake pan, or two 8-inch round pans.

In a large mixing bowl cream together butter, oil and sugar. Next add eggs, vanilla and buttermilk.

In a separate mixing bowl, mix together the dry ingredients, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and cloves.

While beating, slowly add dry ingredients to creamed butter mixture. When completely combined stir in zucchini. Once zucchini is completely combined add chocolate chips.

Bake 9 X13 for 40 to 45 minutes, or 30 to 35 minutes for 8-inch round pans.

The cake is done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Frost while warm.

Boiled Chocolate Fudge Frosting

6 tablespoons of buttermilk
1 stick of margarine or butter
4 heaping tablespoons of cocoa
1 teaspoon vanilla
About ½ of a bag of powdered sugar, approximately 1 pound

In a large saucepan on top of the stove, bring buttermilk, margarine and cocoa to a boil. Stir constantly to prevent scorching. Boil for at least one minute. Remove from heat and add vanilla. After vanilla is combined added enough powdered sugar for the spreading consistency. It should be like thickened fudge topping consistency, but still pourable. Pour frosting over warm cake.

Top with chocolate shavings or sprinkles.
Serve cake warm with ice cream or cool as a great snack.