Zucchini Sheet Cake + Chocolate Malt Frosting
A summer staple but in cake form with the creamiest most delicious chocolate frosting.
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It seems most of my recipes are based off of nostalgia with a modern twist. I think this is where most of my creative juices stem from, nostalgia of my mom or grandmother's baking. Summer meant tender zucchini bread. My favorite was when there was chocolate chips added to the batter and then slathered with butter. Mom would also make a chocolate zucchini bread and that turned into my favorite thing ever! I look forward to it ever summer
" Desserts are the fairy tale of the kitchen- a happily-ever-after to supper."- Terri Guillemets
This summer when planning my annual zucchini bread bake, I wanted to have an added element of nostalgia, and what better way to do that then to make a sheet cake?
Zucchini makes the cake crumb moist and tender. While you don't taste zucchini at all, the trick is to shred it super fine, so you don't have an overwhelming textural bite.
For this cake I like to add the sugar to the dry ingredients. I do this mostly so that things don't get overmixed, and all components stay light. With cake it is really important to mix it as little as possible once the dry and wet ingredients are combined. This is due to gluten development.
Did you know that the gluten proteins form stronger and stronger bonds the more they are agitated? The stronger the gluten bonds the chewier the bite. So that's why cake recipes say to mix as little as possible and why bread recipes call more stirring or kneading for 5 to even 10 minutes.
So, let’s get to the recipe so you can enjoy.
Recipe
Zucchini Sheet Cake:
2 c AP flour
2 c shredded zucchini
2 TBSP buttermilk powder (optional)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/4 tsp salt
1 c brown sugar
8 TBSP butter melted
1/4 c vegetable oil
3 eggs
1/2 c Greek yogurt
1 tsp vanilla
Chocolate Malt Frosting:
8 TBSP room temp butter
1 1/2 c powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 c cocoa powder
6 TBSP malt powder
4-6 TBSP heavy whipping cream
Cake Method:
Start by grating your zucchini on the finest setting- about 1 medium zucchini or 2 small zucchini.
Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C )
In a large bowl add flour, buttermilk powder, baking soda and powder, salt and brown sugar. Mix with a whisk till combined. In a medium bowl whisk together, melted butter, oil, eggs, yogurt and vanilla. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients. Mix together using a spatula as to not overmix the batter. When it just comes together, some flour ribbons, add in the grated zucchini. Mix well till combined. Line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper and spray with oil. Add cake batter to your pan and bake at 350°F (180°C ) for 20-25 minutes or till an inserted toothpick comes out with wet crumbs. Let cool in the fridge completely before you frost.
Frosting Method:
To a large bowl add room temp butter and cream using a hand mixer till smooth. Add in the powdered sugar, salt and malt powder. Cream again till smooth. Add in the cocoa powder, vanilla and heavy cream. Whisk together till light and fluffy.
Frost cake once cooled. Serve with vanilla ice cream and enjoy!