Super Duper Chocolate Zucchini Cake

This year, for the very first time, I am growing zucchini in my garden.

Nobody ever told me that you get harvestable zucchinis in early July!  This is amazing!

We returned home from our big trip, and I went to check my garden.  There, nestled in the greenery was a baseball-bat sized zucchini.

This picture was taken after I chopped off the lower portion
to grate three cups for a recipe.  

As was this one...

I needed three cups of grated zucchini to make zucchini cake, which prompted this conversation...

David:  Who in the world would ever think to make chocolate zucchini cake?

Laura:  There was once a man who hated zucchini.  He told his wife that there was no way he would ever eat zucchini in any way, shape or form.  She invented chocolate zucchini cake, and he ate zucchini.  The end.

David:  Oh.  Well, you could take this to a potluck dinner and tell everyone, "This has no sugar, no fat, and 50 grams of protein per serving!"  They would all say, "Wow!!!  Really???"  And you would say, "No.  But it has zucchini in it." 

My zucchini cake was really, really good.  The Best Ever.  And I will even share the recipe with you.

Super Duper Chocolate Zucchini Cake

2 cups flour

2 cups sugar

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

4 eggs

3/4 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cup applesauce

2 tsp. vanilla

3 cups grated zucchini

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Sift together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt.  Set aside.  In a large mixing bowl, gently beat eggs, oil, applesauce and vanilla.  Beat in dry ingredients.  Stir in zucchini and chocolate chips until evenly mixed.  Pour into greased and floured 9x13 pan.  Bake at 350 for 50 -60 minutes, until a kebob skewer poked into the cake comes out clean.

Cool for about an hour.  Frost with...

Chocolate Frosting for Zucchini Cake

1/4 cup butter

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 cups powdered sugar

2 tsp. vanilla

1/4 cup sour cream

Melt the butter in a glass measuring cup in your microwave.  Stir in the cocoa powder.  Add to powdered sugar in a large mixing bowl.   Add the vanilla and sour cream.   Beat until smooth and spreadable.

Serve slightly warm the first time you serve this.  It will be moist, melty and delicious.  Then chill it.  When chilled, the chocolate chips firm up and become more noticeable when you bite down on them.  Either way, it is fantastic, and people who hate zucchini will not taste anything except luscious chocolate.