This gluten free chocolate zucchini cake is the perfect way to put your zucchini haul to use! It’s rich, moist and super chocolatey! The cake itself is not too sweet which makes it a perfect match to go with the creamy chocolate buttercream frosting on top.
Gluten Free Chocolate Zucchini Cake
- The cake is super easy to make:
- Whisk the dry ingredients in a large bowl, wet ingredients in another, combine then add zucchini. Pour into a greased or lined pan and bake.
- You can also make it into an 8-inch, 2 layer cake:
- Instead of using a 9×13 inch dish, use a couple of 8-inch cake pans and decrease the overall bake time to about 30-35 minutes.
- It’s undetectably gluten free and veggie packed:
- This cake has 3 cups of shredded zucchini inside and the only give away are the little specks of green here and there. It’s super rich & moist (as a chocolate cake should be)! You could easily share this with your gluten-eating friends & family without any complaint.
More Ways To Use Zucchini
Bake it, grill it, shred it and sauté it! Before the season is over, make sure you make the most of these shape-shifting summer squash and check out this collection of mouthwateringly delicious gluten free zucchini recipes.
Cake Batter Prep
- Dry ingredients: Whisk the gluten-free flour blend, sugars, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, xanthan gum and espresso powder (if using).
- Wet ingredients: Whisk oil, yogurt, eggs and vanilla.
- Add wet to dry: Pour the whisked liquids into the flour mixture.
- Mix together: Whisk/stir into a thick, smooth batter.
- Add zucchini: Add grated zucchini.
- Combine: Stir until evenly combined and pour into a prepared pan.
↳How do I correctly measure the grated zucchini?
For best results, it’s always best to use a kitchen scale – especially with gluten-free baking. If you don’t have a kitchen scale then using a measuring cup is will still do the trick!
➡ As a general rule of thumb: One loosely-packed and blotted cup of zucchini weighs about 4 oz or 115 grams. This is the amount I use in all my zucchini recipes.
Bake & Cool
- Pan Type: I recommend using a metal baking pan over glass and ceramic baking dishes. Glass/ceramic take longer to heat up which can add extra time to your overall bake and result in soggy middles.
- Bake Time: Total bake time should be about 45 minutes, but you may need a bit more time depending on your oven.
- Cool Fully: After baking, place the hot pan over a wire rack and let the cake cool completely before frosting.
Frost & Finish
- Use softened, room temperature butter. Cold butter is a pain to work with so make sure to start with slightly softened, room temp butter.
- Whip the butter first. This gets the butter nice & smooth for the incoming ingredients and makes for a light and fluffy texture.
- Mix on a low speed first. After creaming the butter, add the remaining ingredients. Start mixing on the lowest speed setting to gently combine the ingredients until it starts looking a bit paste like. Too much speed too soon will force the cocoa and sugar out of the bowl making a huge mess all over your counter top (and face).
- Adjust amounts to get the right consistency. If you frosting is looking a bit too thin at the end, add a bit more powdered sugar or cocoa powder. Too thick? Try adding an extra splash of milk to make it thinner and easier to spread.
More Gluten Free Cakes to Check Out
Enjoy!
Let me know if you try this Gluten Free Chocolate Zucchini Cake recipe! Leave a comment and review with your thoughts. I always appreciate the feedback and serving suggestions that you come up with!
Yield: 12-18 slices
Gluten Free Chocolate Zucchini Cake Recipe
No Ratings
Prep Time
20 minutes
Cook Time
50 minutes
Additional Time
1 hour
Total Time
2 hours 10 minutes
This chocolate zucchini cake is rich, moist and super chocolatey - you'd never guess it's gluten free!
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cup all purpose gluten free flour blend (245g)
- ¾ cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder (80g) - sift if clumpy
- 2 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp ground instant coffee or espresso powder - optional
- 1 tsp salt
- ¾ tsp xanthan gum - omit if your gf flour has xanthan
- 1 cup white sugar (200g)
- ¾ cup light brown sugar (165g)
- 1 cup vegetable, coconut oil, olive oil or avocado oil (240g)
- ½ cup plain yogurt (120g)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs
- 3 cups shredded zucchini, lightly blotted dry (345g | 12oz)
Chocolate Buttercream
- 1 cup room temperature salted or unsalted butter (226g)
- ¾ cup cocoa powder (80g)
- 3 cups powdered/icing sugar (375g)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 4-5 tbsp milk - dairy free if needed (60-75ml)
Need help converting to weights? Check out my cups to grams Conversion Guide.
Instructions
Cake
- Oven prep: Preheat the oven to 325°F (165°C). Lightly grease or line a 9x13-inch metal baking dish. Set aside.
- Flour mixture: In a large mixing bowl add the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, instant coffee (or espresso powder), salt and xanthan gum. Whisk until no lumps remain. Set aside.
- Sugar mixture/ wet ingredients: In a different bowl whisk together the white sugar, brown sugar, oil, yogurt, eggs and vanilla extract until evenly combined.
- Add wet to dry + zucchini: Pour the wet ingredients into the flour mixture and mix into a thick, smooth, even batter. Stir in the zucchini until evenly distributed.
- Bake: Pour then evenly smooth out the cake batter into the prepared baking pan. Place in the middle of the preheated oven and bake for 45-48 minutes or until cooked through. Check for doneness by sticking a toothpick or knife into the center of the cake - if it comes out clean it's done.
- Cool & Frost: Place the baking pan onto a wire cooling rack and let cool fully before frosting. When you're ready, spread the frosting evenly over the cooled cake. Add sprinkles or chocolate chips on top if you want then slice, serve and enjoy.
Chocolate Frosting
- In a large mixing bowl beat the butter with an electric mixer on medium until smooth and cream.
- Add the cocoa powder, icing sugar, vanilla extract, milk and salt. Beat on a low speed until combined then gradually increase the speed to beat on high. Beat 1-2 minutes on a medium-high speed until smooth and fluffy. If the frosting is too thin, add about ¼ cup of icing sugar. If it's too thick add another 1-2 tablespoons milk.
Notes
- Store Leftovers/Make Ahead: Cover the cake and store at room temperature 1-2 days or in the fridge up to 5 days. You can freeze your cake (frosted or unfrosted) up to 3 months if wrapped up and stored in a freezer-safe container.
- Instant Coffee/Espresso Powder: Coffee is a flavor enhancer for chocolate. You don't need to use it, but it will help create a more intense, chocolatey flavor. If using instant coffee granules you must grind them up in something like a mortar & pestle first so it dissolves properly mixes evenly into the batter.
- Pan Type: I recommend using a metal baking pan. They're much better and conducting heat which will help your cake cook faster and more evenly. If you want to use a glass or ceramic pan, increase the bake time by about 10-15 minutes. Cover the cake with foil after about 50 minutes to finish baking so the top doesn't burn.
- Make it Dairy Free: Swap the yogurt for a dairy free/vegan yogurt and butter for vegan butter. Make sure to use a vegan block butter for baking - not spreadable butter from a tub.
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
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