Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Cake with Chocolate Avocado Frosting
Thick and moist chocolate zucchini cake with creamy chocolate avocado frosting! It is a great way to sneak in some extra vegetables- yes even at dessert!
Equipment
- 9" glass baking dish
- Parchment paper
- Blender or Food processor
Ingredients
For the healthy chocolate zucchini cake:
- 1 cup applesauce see notes if using sugar!
- 1 cup mashed ripe bananas or pureed dates
- ¾ cup avocado oil or coconut oil
- 3 eggs
- 2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups coarsely shredded zucchini
- 2 ½ cups white wheat flour or 1:1 gluten free flour
- ½ cup raw cacao powder or cocoa powder
- 2 ½ teaspoon baking powder (aluminum free)
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon pink sea salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ cup milk of choice (unsweetened) I used vanilla soy milk
For the chocolate avocado frosting:
- 2 ripe avocados
- ½ cup raw cacao powder
- ½ cup pure maple syrup sub raw honey
- 2 tablespoon softened coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees F and lining a 9 inch square baking dish with parchment paper.
For the chocolate zucchini cake:
- In a large bowl, beat together the apple sauce, mashed bananas, 3 eggs, and ¾ cup oil.Add 2 teaspoons vanilla and 2 cups coarsely shredded zucchini. Don't worry about patting the zucchini dry.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the 2/12 cups flour, ½ cup cacao powder, 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder, 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon cinnamon.
- Add the dry mixture to the zucchini mixture alternatively with the ½ cup of milk until it is all mixed in.
- Pour your batter into the prepared pan and bake for 50-60 minutes. It will be done when a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean or when the top springs back when lightly pressed.
- Allow your cake to cool completely before frosting it!
For the chocolate avocado frosting:
- While the cake cools, blend together 2 ripe avocados, ½ cup cacao powder, ½ cup maple syrup, 2 tablespoons softened coconut oil, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract until smooth and creamy.
- Store your cake covered at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Notes
NOTE: this recipe was updated February 2025 to be more healthy, my original chocolate zucchini cake used 2 cups of cane sugar.
If you are making the original recipe, leave out the apple sauce and bananas in the cake batter and use 2 cups of sugar.
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Nutrition
Serving: 1servingCalories: 495kcalCarbohydrates: 79gProtein: 8gFat: 21gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1.9gMonounsaturated Fat: 14.4gPotassium: 515mgFiber: 6.5g
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!