Aztec Chocolate Zucchini Cake

with Raspberry Sauce … (and Gluten Free options)

When I visited my parents last weekend, they had one of those large zucchini sitting on their counter. They told me I should take it to make something. “It’s perfect for cake,” I said, and gladly took it off their hands, with visions of chocolate cake dancing in my head.

When I had a bit of time last week, I shredded up that big ol’ zucchini and had more than enough to make TWO double chocolate zucchini cakes, so I went ahead and made two of them–one regular, one gluten free. And then I remembered that every time I bring chocolate cake to share with my gluten free friends, my friend Kelly says, “this would be just PERFECT with some raspberry sauce” … so this time I made her some raspberry sauce to go with her cake. And she was SO right … it is just perfect with raspberry sauce.

To give it a little Aztec spin, I gave this cake a tiny bit of tingle with the powdered hot pepper and I added some cinnamon too. Nobody even noticed the pepper until I told them it was there … and then a few of them said yes, they could detect a tiny little tingle, but most people didn’t even notice. If you want more zing with your chocolate, add more of the hot pepper.

Aztec Chocolate Zucchini Cake with Raspberry Sauce

★★★★★ 5 from 1 reviews

• Prep Time: 25 minutes
• Cook Time: 40 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour
• Yield: 1 - 13x9x2 inch cake 1x

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

For the cake:

• 1 cup all purpose flour (or gluten free all purpose flour)
• 3/4 cup whole wheat flour (or 3/4 cup brown rice flour)
• 1/4 cup flaxmeal
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons cocoa
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon powdered Chimayo chile (or cayenne)
• 1 1/4 cups white sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1/2 cup lowfat or nonfat plain or vanilla yogurt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 cups grated zucchini
• 3/4 cup good quality chocolate chips (semi-sweet and/or dark chocolate)

For the sauce:

• 1 cup frozen raspberries
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup raspberry liqueur (Chambord) or cherry brandy
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 – 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 Tablespoon cornstarch

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. In a large bowl, mix the dry ingredients for the cake.
2. Add the liquid ingredients (except the chocolate chips) and stir it all together. Stir in 2/3 of the chocolate chips.
3. Spray a 9×13 inch pan with cooking spray, pour in the batter, sprinkle with the rest of the chocolate chips and bake for 30-40 minutes at 350 or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
4. While the cake is baking, put the sauce ingredients except for the cornstarch in a small saucepan. Stir and cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes or until the raspberries have broken down and released their juices. Remove some of the liquid from the pan and whisk together with the cornstarch in a small bowl. While stirring, add the cornstarch mixture in a thin stream to the pan. Stir and cook for a minute or two longer, until the sauce begins to thicken.
5. To serve: slice the cake into squares. Serve with the raspberry sauce, a bit of light whipped cream, and fresh raspberries for garnish.

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Notes

For a gluten free cake, use gluten free all purpose flour and brown rice flour in place of the regular flour.

RECIPE SOURCE: http://www.sumptuousspoonfuls.com/

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This recipe was shared at Munching Monday, Tuesday’s Table and Treasure Box Tuesday.