Being a part of the weight loss surgery community, I’ve been able to build friendships with people from all over the globe. Thankfully before moving to the PNW, I became friends with Anna. She and her hubby are VSG rockstars and I had the pleasure to bake her birthday cake last week for her dirrrrrrty thirrrrty.
This recipe is perfect when you’re looking to make a single cake to frost, but you can obviously scale up the recipe to make a layered cake, if that’s what you want.
But me? One and done.
For now.
Chocolate Zucchini Birthday Cake with Pumpkin Cream Cheese Frosting
CAKE
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon (optional)
- 3/4 cup brown sugar or coconut sugar (packed)
- 1/2 cup coconut oil (melted)
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup Greek yogurt (vanilla or plain)
- 1 cup zucchini (grated; about 1 medium)
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips or butterscotch chips
Frosting
- 8 oz cream cheese (full fat or 1/3 fat is ok, but don't use fat free)
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling!)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 6 Tbsp brown sugar or coconut sugar
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Make the frosting first by mixing all of the ingredients together with a hand mixer. Put it in the fridge until you’re ready to frost the cake.
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Preheat the oven to 350F and prepare an 8-inch cake pan by lining the bottom with parchment paper and lubing it up with non-stick spray and set aside.
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Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon if you’re using it, chocolate chips and mix until combined. Set aside.
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In a separate bowl, combine sugar and oil until well mixed and add eggs one at a time until fully incorporated. Add vanilla, yoghurt; mix and then finally… fold in the shredded zucchini.
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Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, make sure it it completely mixed before pouring into the prepared cake pan. Bake in the preheated oven for 40-45 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.
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Let the cake cool COMPLETELY before slathering on the pumpkin cream cheese frosting; otherwise its going to melt.
ENJOY! Every day can be your birthday when you make a cake with zucchini!