Remember when I advised you to very thoroughly grease and flour your bundt pan? This is why: Sad, isn’t it? All that cakey goodness I looked forward to has been smashed to bits in no time flat. Sure, I’ll eat it anyway–it doesn’t change how the cake tastes, after all, and that’s pretty divine–but I’m … [Read more…]
Pumpkin is a tough sell in our house. The kids love it but my husband is not a fan. Can’t stand the smell of it, doesn’t want to look at it, and he better not hear it’s in anything I’ve tried to feed him. He will not budge. This makes it difficult to experiment much … [Read more…]
I’ve never had a bundt pan. I know this is shocking. I seem to have every other kitchen contraption you can think of, from a citrus juicer to a baguette pan, but for some reason, a bundt pan never managed to creep its way into my kitchen. Which is really kind of sad when you think about it–all those delicious bundt cakes I’ve missed out on!
No more! I just happened to see the #BundtaMonth hashtag on Twitter last week and I’m so happy I did. The experience was just the instigator I needed. I promptly visited my coveted Ocean State Job Lot, picked out the best $4 bundt pan I could find, and was well on my way. No looking back now!
So how does this work exactly? An of Baker Street and Lora of Cake Duchess pick an ingredient or theme and we have to make a bundt cake recipe that utilizes it. Every month will be different. This month, they chose zucchini. Great timing with all that fresh zucchini available at the farmers’ markets right now!
Remember my frazzled muffin experience on Monday? Part of what contributed to the frenzy was the intent to bake my bundt cake immediately following the muffins. I figured that if I was going to be shredding zucchini, I may as well multi-task and kill two birds with one stone. Plus I really wanted to make my mom a cake for our birthdays party (we celebrate my three siblings’, my mom’s, and my birthdays all at one party). I had the perfect excuse!
[caption id="attachment_6836" align="aligncenter" width="500"] It came out of the pan in one piece![/caption]
I was very nervous at the end and ran out of time to make a glaze. Despite the time constraints and last minute change to the recipe, it went well. The cake effortlessly slid out of the pan when I plated it at my parents’ house–my grandmother was impressed, I could tell–and looked great after a light dusting of confectioners sugar. Oh yeah, and I found out that chocolate zucchini cake is my mom’s favorite. How did I not know this before? This was kismet!
I was surprised by the taste. I expected it to be kind of…health food-y…given the ingredients. Instead, it’s incredibly rich and multi-dimensional. The confectioners sugar adds the perfect amount of sweetness. No trace of the zucchini aside from the moistness. Even on day two, it’s still really good. I highly recommend this.
Almost “Health Food” Dark Chocolate Chocolate (Zucchini) Cake
Author: adapted from [url href=”http://outoftheboxfood.com/2012/01/20/healthy-chocolate-cake-giveaway/” target=”_blank”]Out Of The Box Food[/url]
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 12
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cups ground flax meal
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cup raw (turbinado) sugar
1/2 cup cinnamon applesauce (I used [url href=”https://poetinthepantry.com/2012/09/13/what-to-pack-for-lunch-slow-cooker-applesauce/”]homemade[/url])
1/2 cup raw milk (you can use buttermilk, too)
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup shredded zucchini (1 large or 2 small)
1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
3-4 Tablespoons confectioners sugar
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a 10-cup bundt pan well and dust with cocoa powder. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, flax meal, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.
In another large bowl, stir the sugar and applesauce until well-blended.
Add to it the raw milk, eggs, and vanilla extract, whisking until smooth.
To the wet ingredients, add half the dry ingredients. Add the zucchini and stir until just incorporated.
Pour the rest of the dry ingredients over the wet, add the chocolate chips, and again, stir until just incorporated.
Pour into the prepared bundt pan.
Place bundt pan on baking sheet and bake for 45-55 minutes, or until the top springs back when lightly touched.
Cook on a wire rack for 15 minutes.
Run a knife around the edges and then place a plate over the top, invert, and gently lift the bundt pan, releasing the cake.
Cool completely before dusting with confectioners sugar.
3.1.02
Interested in joining in?
Here’s how to bake with #BundtaMonth:
Bake your September #BundtaMonth Zucchini Bundt.
Post it before September 30, 2012.
Use the #BundtaMonth hashtag in your title. (For ex: title should read – #BundtaMonth: Chocolate Zucchini Bundt)
Join the Bundt baking party! Share your link it to our blog hop by clicking here or here.
A local free publication recently printed an article about a stay-at-home mom who claims to earn $10,000 a month doing… honestly, I don’t know. I saw the headline, but I didn’t read it–it seemed a fallacy to me. It has become the topic of many jokes at work–“Hey! Today’s my last day! I’m going to … [Read more…]
When An sent us this recipe, I really wanted to make Peanut Butter Twix Muffins. Caramel Twix are just fine, but Peanut Butter Twix hold the key to my heart, being superior tasting and somewhat nostalgic of my college days as my snack of choice. Unfortunately Peanut Butter Twix–like my kids when it’s time to … [Read more…]