Delightfully different choc-chip zucchini cake

Recently I was hungry for a sweet treat, but when I went in search of something to satisfy my craving all I could find were a couple of zucchinis. Not to be put off, I madly pulled out my recipe book and flipped to my trusty ‘chocolate cake’ recipe. It’s one of those versatile recipes that have been passed on from generation to generation, but what I love most about this particular recipe is the way you can easily substitute ingredients based on what you have on-hand.

Normally, I’d make a banana cake using this recipe, but on this occasion, I thought, ‘What the heck!’ So now I’m sharing with you my yummy choc-chip zucchini cake.

Serves 16 (or two, if you’re really hungry!)

Ingredients

• 2 cups packed shredded zucchini (approximately, 2 medium-sized zucchini)
• 2 cups plain flour
• 1 cup almond flour
• 4 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 4 large eggs (see below for a vegan option)
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup almond milk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional, but honestly …)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180C. Grease two 20cm x 10cm loaf pans.
2. Place zucchini on paper towels to drain. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, combine the plain flour, almond flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
4. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, sugar, olive oil, almond milk, vanilla and chocolate chips (if using). Gently squeeze excess moisture from the zucchini, then stir into the egg mixture.
5. Add dry ingredients to the bowl and stir until just combined. Do not over-mix.
6. Pour batter into prepared loaf pans and bake for 45 minutes or until a knife comes out clean.
7. Allow cakes to cool before serving.

To make this recipe vegan, follow these steps:

1. Whisk together 1/4 cup ground flaxseeds with 1/2 cup water. Set aside for 10 minutes to thicken. Add wet ingredients instead of eggs.
2. Add 2 tsp apple cider vinegar to the wet ingredients and an additional 1 tsp baking power to the dry ingredients. This helps the cake rise. It also makes the cake quite moist, so be sure not to under-bake.