She’s healthy! She’s cute! She’s popular to boot! For reals though, you’re about to meet (or reintroduce yourself to) the most delicious chocolate cake ever that celebrates ZUCCHINI in our AK Summer Series: my zucchini chocolate cake. I had to re-share this beauty because it’s like a mix between a brownie, a cake, and a chocolate molten cake omgggg. To be honest I nailed this recipe the very first time I made it and I couldn’t stop spooning it out of the pan straight into my mouth.
But here’s the deal: not only is this chocolate zucchini cake pretty healthy, but it’s also gluten free, includes a good amount of protein thanks to yogurt, is naturally sweetened with pure maple syrup + coconut sugar, and made with nutritious almond flour and oat flour. The best part though? The melted chocolate + sea salt on top when it’s all finished. It’s like biting into a fudgy, gooey brownie and I am HERE FOR IT.
Do yourself a favor and make this cake ASAP, all my taste testers LOVED this one and I know you will, too! Don’t forget to come back and leave a comment + rate the recipe to tell me how you liked it!
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Welcome to the AK Summer Series
For the rest of the summer, we’ll be dedicating each week to select summer produce! Week 4 is HERE and we’re celebrating beautiful zucchini continuing with the best chocolate zucchini cake. Stay tuned on the blog and on Instagram for each week’s produce highlight, fun videos, and more.
Your fav chocolate cake just got a healthy makeover
That’s right, this chocolate zucchini cake is made with better-for-you ingredients that you can feel good about! Yet it still tastes SO decadent. This chocolate zucchini cake is:
- Packed with vegetables. You won’t even be able to tell, but there’s a whole fiber-packed zucchini baked right into this cake!
- Gluten free. Oat flour and almond flour keep this chocolate zucchini cake gluten-free, and almond flour gives it some healthy fats.
- Naturally sweetened. We’re using some pure maple syrup and coconut sugar to give the cake the perfect sweetness.
- Filled with protein. A small container of yogurt makes the cake super moist while boosting the protein! Siggi’s actually has more protein than sugar per cup, so you know we’re working with the goods.
What you’ll need to make this healthy chocolate zucchini cake
This healthy chocolate zucchini cake is made with plenty of fridge and pantry staples for a fun, easy dessert you’ll want to make again and again. Here’s what you’ll need to make it:
- Zucchini: this little veggie is the star of the show! Zucchini gives the chocolate cake moisture without having to add a ton of butter (like in regular cakes). Check our tips for baking with zucchini in the post below!
- Eggs: you’ll need 2 eggs in this recipe to help it bake up. We haven’t tested this recipe with flax eggs, but let us know if you do!
- Sweetener: we’re naturally sweetening the cake with pure maple syrup and coconut sugar. You’ll also need some vanilla extract.
- Yogurt: I love baking with siggi’s yogurt because it doesn’t add a ton of excess sugar and it gives baked goods the perfect amount of moisture. I used the vanilla siggi’s in this one for a little boost of flavor!
- Coconut oil: to keep the zucchini chocolate cake nice and fudgy.
- Flours: as I mentioned, we’re using almond flour and oat flour to make the cake gluten free. See below for making your own oat flour!
- Cacao powder: gotta have that rich chocolate flavor (+ a boost of antioxidants!). So much better than regular cocoa powder (though you can use that instead!)
- Baking staples: don’t forget the baking soda and salt.
- Topping & add-ins: I love mixing in chocolate chips and creating an epic chocolate drizzle with more chocolate chips and coconut oil. Wanna get fancy? Add some fresh raspberries and a sprinkle of sea salt to the top, too!
Simple ingredient swaps
I recommend sticking with the recipe the best that you can, but here are some easy ingredient swaps that should work well:
- For the coconut sugar: feel free to use regular brown sugar instead.
- For the yogurt: I love using vanilla yogurt, but plain yogurt or even plant-based yogurt will work as well.
- For the coconut oil: melted and cooled butter or vegan butter are great alternatives.
- For the cacao powder: unsweetened cocoa powder works perfectly, too!
Can I use a different flour?
Unfortunately, no, I can’t recommend a substitute for the almond flour or oat flour here as they give the gluten free chocolate zucchini cake the perfect texture.
Make your own oat flour right at home
That’s right, if you’re out of oat flour you can easily make it with just one ingredient! Check out my tutorial on how to make homemade oat flour right at home to use in this gluten free chocolate zucchini cake. So easy!
Remember these tips when baking with zucchini
- Use the small side of your box grater so that you get perfect shreds of zucchini. No one will be able to tell there’s a veggie in the cake! Honestly, a simple cheese grater will also work well.
- Squeeze out your zucchini shreds as much as possible using a cheesecloth, clean dish towel or paper towel to get all of the excess liquid out. This is VERY important so that the cake has the right texture.
- Shred zucchini first, measure it out then squeeze off excess moisture.
- Feel free to shred a bunch of zucchini and freeze it for later! Follow my tips and tricks here.
Fun ways to customize this chocolate zucchini cake
- Make it extra fudgy. If you want this cake to be super fudgy, feel free to store the cake in the fridge! It will taste just like a brownie and gets even more moist and fudgy by the day.
- Choose your fav frosting. I love creating the simple drizzle as a chocolate frosting for this cake but feel free to try my strawberry frosting or peanut butter frosting for a unique twist. Just remember to halve those recipes!
- Celebrate a birthday! If you want to make this a fun birthday cake, feel free to add some pretty rainbow sprinkles on top of the melted chocolate. I love this brand of natural sprinkles!
How to store this cake
Feel free to keep the chocolate zucchini cake recipe covered at room temperature for about a day or so, then place it in the fridge covered for 5 days.
Freezer-friendly chocolate zucchini cake
Yes, this one bowl chocolate zucchini cake freezes well for up to 2 months! I prefer to freeze the cake without the chocolate topping. Here’s how to do it:
- Let the cake cool and then wrap it well in plastic wrap and aluminum foil.
- Place the full cake in a zip-top freezer bag.
- To serve it, thaw the cake in the refrigerator overnight, then let the cake come to room temp before adding the chocolate topping and serving it.
More zucchini recipes you’ll love
Get all of my zucchini recipes here!
I hope you love this wonderful healthy chocolate zucchini cake! If you make it be sure to leave a comment and a rating so I know how you liked it. Enjoy, xo!
Chocolate Zucchini Cake (healthy + gluten free)
Incredible, fudgy chocolate zucchini cake that’s deliciously moist thanks to vanilla yogurt and naturally sweetened with pure maple syrup & coconut sugar. This gluten free chocolate zucchini cake is made with a mix of almond flour and oat flour and can be made in one bowl for the perfect, easy summer dessert!
Ingredients
- Wet ingredients:
- 1 medium zucchini, shredded and squeezed of excess moisture with a paper towel (1 cup shredded zucchini)
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup coconut sugar (or sub brown sugar)
- ⅓ cup pure maple syrup
- 1 (5.3 oz) container siggi’s 0% vanilla yogurt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup virgin coconut oil, melted and cooled
- Dry ingredients:
- 1 ½ cups packed fine blanched almond flour
- ½ cup oat flour
- ½ cup cacao powder (or sub unsweetened cocoa powder)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup chocolate chips
- For the topping:
- ½ cup chocolate chips
- 1 teaspoon coconut oil
- Maldon sea salt, for sprinkling on top
- Raspberries to garnish
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8×8 inch pan with parchment paper and spray with nonstick cooking spray.
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First, measure out 1 heaping cup of shredded zucchini, then place shredded zucchini in a paper towel or cheese cloth and squeeze out all of the moisture/water. This is very important!
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Add shredded zucchini, eggs, coconut sugar, pure maple syrup, siggi’s yogurt, vanilla extract to a large bowl and whisk together until well combined. Finally stir in melted and cooled coconut oil until well combined.
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Next, add dry ingredients: almond flour, oat flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Mix together with a wooden spoon until well combined. Fold ½ cup chocolate chips into the batter.
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Pour batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until a tester comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool for at least 30 minutes in the pan on a wire rack before topping it.
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Next make the topping: add chocolate chips and coconut oil to a medium bowl; microwave in 30 second increments, stirring in between, until chocolate is melted. Alternatively you can melt the chocolate in a saucepan over low heat. Once chocolate is melted, pour over the cake and tilt the pan side to side to help evenly distribute the chocolate and coat every inch of the cake. Finally, sprinkle a little sea salt on top if you’d like.
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Cut the cake into 12 slices. Serve with fresh raspberries or strawberries and enjoy! Store cake in the fridge after a day.
Recipe Notes
Feel free to use a different frosting to make it your own. You could halve either my strawberry frosting or peanut butter frosting for a unique twist.
If you want to make this a fun birthday cake, feel free to add some pretty rainbow sprinkles on top
To store: Feel free to keep the healthy chocolate zucchini cake covered at room temperature for about a day or so, then place it in the fridge covered for 5-7 days.
See the full post for freezing instructions!
Nutrition
Serving: 1slice (based on 12)Calories: 323kcalCarbohydrates: 36.4gProtein: 6.6gFat: 19.5gSaturated Fat: 9.6gFiber: 4.6gSugar: 25g
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by The Mindful Hapa
This post was originally published on August 6, 2021, republished on August 7, 2022, and republished on July 31st, 2023.