Dark Chocolate Zucchini Cake

This Dark Chocolate Zucchini Cake is incredibly moist, filled with rich dark chocolate flavor, and topped with a fluffy dark chocolate swiss meringue buttercream. The zucchini is absolutely undetectable, but it lends the best texture to the cake. Perfect for using up all of the late summer zucchini!

(This post is sponsored by Chocolove! Thank you so so much for reading and supporting the brands that I love!)

This is truly the best chocolate cake I’ve EVER made and you’d never ever know there was zucchini in it! It’s kind of crazy how undetectable it is. It completely disintegrates into the cake and just creates the most perfect, moist, chocolatey, delicious cake. It’s dangerously good!

Zucchini baked goods are one of my favorite things to make. It creates the best texture and you get your veggies in at the same time!

Chocolate cake with veggies in it that you can’t even taste?

Count me in!

It’s so rich and chocolate and perfect, thanks to my absolute favorite chocolate – Chocolove. It’s rich, velvety, smooth, and melts perfectly into baked goods. And it’s perfect for snacking too, of course! 😉

My very favorite part of this cake is the swiss meringue buttercream. Chocolate swiss meringue buttercream, in fact. If you’re not familiar with it, it’s made by cooking sugar and egg whites together over a double boiler, and then whipping them until fluffy, then adding butter, and whipping some more until it comes together into the most amazing, light, fluffy, silky buttercream.

I love it so much more than regular buttercream, and I’m not really a frosting person at all. But swiss meringue buttercream?! Totally another story.

And the melted Chocolove chocolate added to it?

Game changer.

I’ve only ever made a brown sugar version for this cake, and that was incredible, but this chocolate version is my absolute fave.

Speaking of cakes and swiss meringue buttercream, I’m actually making one of my best friend’s wedding cake this week! SO excited and slightly nervous too. I’ll definitely be sharing more on Instagram this week!

I mean just look at this goodness. 😍

Another thing about this cake that I love, is that it’s not overly sweet. The rich dark chocolate flavor really shines, and I love that. It’s rich, but light. From the zucchini and the fluffy swiss meringue!

Seriously my idea of the perfect cake. It’s not hard to make AT ALL, and it seems really impressive.

If you make this for guests, I guarantee no one would have any idea there was grated zucchini in it. Not just a little, but 2 whole cups!

So crazy.

Just look at that texture! Completely undetectable zucchini-ness.

If you have a ton of leftover zucchini from the garden and you’re sick of making zoodles and other healthy things, you HAVE to try this.

And simultaneously feel good about yourself for eating chocolate cake and vegetables at the same time.

Right?!

I truly can’t say enough good things about this cake. You just have to make it!

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Dark Chocolate Zucchini Cake

This Dark Chocolate Zucchini Cake is incredibly moist, filled with rich dark chocolate flavor, and topped with a fluffy dark chocolate swiss meringue buttercream. The zucchini is absolutely undetectable, but it lends the best texture to the cake. Perfect for using up all of the late summer zucchini!

Course Cake, Dessert

Prep Time 1 hour 30 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 55 minutes

Servings 10 -12

Author Molly | Spices in My DNA

Ingredients

For the cake

• 2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
• 2/3 cup + 2 tablespoons unsweetened natural cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon espresso powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup loosely packed brown sugar
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 (3.2 ounce) bar Chocolove 70% dark chocolate, melted and cooled*
• 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 2 cups grated zucchini

For the chocolate swiss meringue buttercream

• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 5 large egg whites
• 3 sticks (1 1/2 cups) unsalted butter
• 3 bars (9.6 ounces) Chocolove 70% dark chocolate, melted and cooled*
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions

For the cake

1. Preheat oven to 350℉. Grease and flour three 8'' cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper. Set aside.

2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, espresso powder, and salt. Whisk to combine and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, combine the eggs, granulated sugar, and brown sugar and whisk until smooth. Add the vegetable oil, melted and cooled chocolate, Greek yogurt, vanilla, and buttermilk and whisk until combined. Add the zucchini and mix with a rubber spatula until combined.

3. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix with a rubber spatula until just combined. Pour the batter evenly into the pans and smooth out the tops with a spatula. Bake for 23-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let the cakes cool for 10 minutes, then remove them from the pans and let cool the rest of the way on a cooling rack.

For the chocolate swiss meringue buttercream

1.  In a heatproof bowl, whisk together the sugar and egg whites until smooth and combined. Place bowl over a pan of boiling water, (make sure the bottom of the bowl doesn't touch the water!), and cook until sugar has dissolved, 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat. Pour mixture into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, and beat on medium speed for 8-10 minutes, until mixture is cool. (You can touch the bottom of the bowl to test temperature). Switch to the paddle attachment and increase the speed to medium-high and beat until stiff peaks form, another couple of minutes. Gradually add the butter, 2-3 tablespoons at a time, and beat until smooth. Add the cooled melted chocolate and vanilla and beat until smooth and combined.

To assemble the cake

1. To assemble the cake, place one layer on a serving plate, and spread the top with buttercream. Top with another layer and spread top with buttercream. Top with the third layer and spread with another layer of buttercream, leaving a little bit left for the sides of the cake. Use the leftover buttercream to "half" frost the sides, to create a "semi-naked" effect. Use an offset spatula or bench scraper to smooth out the sides of the cake. Use the back of a spoon to create the fluffy/swirled effect on top. Cut into slices and serve!

Recipe Notes

*You can either melt the chocolate over a double boiler, or melt it in the microwave in 30-second increments, stirring in between, until melted. Be sure not to overheat the chocolate, or it will seize up!
*The cake layers can be made ahead of time up to 2 days, and kept covered until ready to use. The buttercream is best made day-of!

buttercream adapted from martha.