Original recipe of the week: Chocolate and courgette cake with chocolate cream-cheese frosting

We know that it sounds a bit odd to add veggies to a chocolate treat, but don’t knock it until you’ve tried it. Courgettes or zucchini’s as they are also known in the US, work brilliantly in any sweet cake, as their subtle flavour is masked by the sweetness of the other ingredients and they simply work to help keep the cake moist and add to your five a day. Legend has it that courgette cake is actually the original carrot cake as the recipe was brought over to the UK. We don’t traditionally grow courgettes; we substitute them for carrots instead, therefore developing the much loved carrot cake for us Brits.

Why not try our delicious recipe, a yummy chocolate cake great on any occasion; one of your five a day and a great way to make the kids eat vegetables too!

Chocolate and courgette cake

What you will need:

2 courgettes (grated)

300g self-raising flour

300g light brown sugar

175ml vegetable oil

1tsp mixed spice

1tsp vanilla extract

150g cocoa powder

3 eggs

Chocolate cream-cheese frosting

What you will need:

400g cream cheese

200g icing sugar

150g melted dark chocolate

What you need to do:

1. Preheat your oven to 200c and line your cake tin(s). Next, add all of your dry ingredients to a bowl and give a quick mix.
2. Now add in the eggs, one by one, mixing as you go. When combined, you can add the oil, vanilla extract and lastly the grated courgette.
3. Give everything a good mix with a spoon and place into your lined cake tin. You can also use two sandwich tins if you wish to make a sandwich cake.
4. Simply place in the oven for 25 minutes or until cooked through. When cooked, remove from the oven. Leave to cool for five minutes before turning out onto a cooling rack and leave to cool completely.
5. When your cake is cooled all the way through, you can whip up the cream-cheese frosting.
6. Melt the chocolate in a bain-marie until smooth, and remove from the heat.
7. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese and the icing sugar, being careful not to over-whisk; only whisk until firm.
8. Next, stir in the melted chocolate, and voila! Chocolate cream-cheese frosting.
9. Now you are ready to construct your cake. If you are making a sandwich cake, you can add a blob or two to the centre of your bottom layer cake and smooth. Add the second layer of cake to the top.
10. If you are making a single layer cake, simply dollop the icing on top and create the thickness you want. Decorate with anything you desire to make this a choco masterpiece.

Bethany Stone