Chocolate Fudge Bundt Cake

No one has to know that this is made with zucchini!

Chocolate Fudge Bundt Cake

The holiday season is the season for chocolate. It's also the season we start to use all of those fruits and veggies we have canned, frozen or preserved during the summer. This chocolate fudge cake combines the best of both; it has a rich, chocolate flavor, and its incredible moistness comes thanks to the inclusion of shredded, frozen zucchini squash. The squash is undetectable, so even veggie haters will relish this cake.

In addition, this recipe requires only two pieces of equipment: one medium mixing bowl for the dry ingredients and a food processor that holds at least 11 cups. The recipe is a gem when it comes to easy preparation and clean up.

This recipe creates enough batter for a three-layer cake, but because it really needs no frosting, I prefer baking it in a Bundt pan or tube pan. This makes 12 - 16 hefty slices.

The cake freezes well, making it ideal for baking ahead and serving when time is short but the craving for something sweet is not.


Chocolate Fudge Bundt Cake


3 c. all purpose flour
1/2 c. baking cocoa
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
3 c. shredded zucchini
1/2 c. butter (no substitutes), softened to room temperature
1/2 c. sour cream
2 1/2 c. granulated sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Measure flour, baking cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a medium mixing bowl. Whisk together until dry ingredients are thoroughly blended.

Using the blade attachment in the food processor, add the zucchini to the bowl. Puree on high speed. Add eggs, sour cream and vanilla; pulse together until mixture is well blended. Add granulated sugar and butter, one tablespoon at a time; process until butter is incorporated. Add in dry ingredients, pulse to incorporate, then process for two minutes until all of the dry ingredients are incorporated and batter is smooth.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9" Bundt or tube pan with a nonstick spray for baking. Pour batter evenly into pan; shake to eliminate air bubbles. Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until cake tester comes out clean and edges begin to pull away from the sides of the pan. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before releasing from pan.

Buttery Orange Summer Squash Cake

Buttery Orange Zucchini Cake - a tasty way to eat your vegetables
and use up a lot of your zucchini harvest.

It's already August, and that means the start of the Indiana State Fair and the end of the zucchini harvest. This year has been good for squash, as long as the garden was mulched and watered. Squash of all kind thrive in heat and high humidity, and luckily, there were no squash bugs or stink bugs around to ruin things.

With several pounds of zucchini on hand, it means there is a lot of cooking and preserving going on. Zucchini and other squash lend themselves to being put into cakes, breads, muffins, and turned into pickles.

This recipe incorporates the best of all worlds: real butter, lots of shredded zucchini and the bright refreshing flavor of oranges.  The recipe makes enough batter for 3 9" rounds, so if you need a lot of cake or a spectacular 3-layer creation, this is a good bet.  Even though it calls for all purpose flour rather than cake flour, it is light and delicate. It gets an extra leavening boost as well as some additional tang from buttermilk.

I used golden zucchini, so no peeling was needed. Green zucchini will need to be peeled before shredding, otherwise the batter will turn the color of pistachios. I baked mine in a super-large loaf pan (available for sale at Gordon Food Service stores), and was able to get two nice loaves out of it. One was for eating right now, and the other is frozen for later consumption.

The cake stays moist enough to eat without frosting, but for a layer cake, use an orange or vanilla buttercream or cream cheese frosting to highlight the citrus flavor.

Buttery Orange Summer Squash Cake

3 1/2 c. all purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. salt
2 1/2 c. granulated sugar, or combination of granulated sugar and stevia-based sweetener for baking
3 tsp. fresh grated orange zest, or 2 tsp. dry orange zest
1 c. butter (no substitutes), softened at room temperature
1 c. buttermilk
4 eggs
3 c. shredded summer squash or zucchini
1 1/2 tsp. orange oil, or 2 1/2 tsp. orange extract

Preheat oven to 30 degrees. Grease and flour 3 9" cake pans, or 1 13x9 baking pan and 1 small loaf pan.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and orange zest. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter, orange oil and sugar until light and fluffy. Add and eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Alternate addition of dry ingredients and buttermilk, beating well after each addition.

Slowly fold in shredded squash, and pour batter into prepared pans. Bake at 350 degrees until cake tester comes out clean. For 9" rounds or a small loaf, time will be 25-30 minutes. For a 13x9 pan, time will be 45 minutes.

Allow to cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then release onto wire racks to cool completely. Cakes can be bagged and frozen for later use, or frosted with a buttercream or cream cheese frosting.