One Bowl Easy Vegan Chocolate Zucchini Cake

This fudgy and ultra moist vegan chocolate zucchini cake is made in just one bowl and can be baked as either a sheet cake or layer cake. Topped with a rich dairy free chocolate sour cream frosting, this easy vegan cake is the best way to use up your zucchini!

If you’re looking for a good vegan cake recipe to use up your summer zucchini, then you must try this decadent vegan chocolate zucchini cake. It’s like my vegan chocolate cake, but only more moist and chocolatey!

This chocolate zucchini cake recipe is also just one bowl, making it the easiest of summer cakes to make for a barbecue or summer party (just like my chocolate zucchini bread studded with chocolate chips that tastes just like cake- just in loaf form! You can even bake it into muffins or cupcakes instead!).

And trust me, you won’t even be able to detect any hidden vegetables in this cake.

Make this zucchini cake gluten free as needed to make it even more suitable for all eaters!

Ingredients Overview:

Let’s go over the ingredients you’ll need for this vegan chocolate zucchini cake recipe:

• Shredded zucchini: You can also use grated zucchini.
• All purpose flour: You can also swap in gluten free 1:1 baking flour, such as Bob’s Red Mill in the blue bag. Please use the cup measurements, however, as that will be most accurate. Bob’s Red Mill is my preferred gluten-free flour blend. I DO NOT recommend using the Namaste flour blend.
• Dutch-process cocoa powder: I like dutch-process cocoa powder for cakes over all other cocoa powders. It will also help our cakes to rise a bit better.
• Dairy free yogurt: You can also swap in applesauce or pumpkin puree instead. This is my all time favorite vegan egg replacement to use in baking cakes, however. It’s so lovely!
• Vegan buttermilk: This is just dairy free milk mixed with apple cider vinegar: I highly recommend soy milk, almond milk or pea milk here, as these will help curdle the milk more since they have more protein than other dairy free milks.
• Vegan butter: You can also swap in coconut oil.
• Hot coffee: The one ingredient to not have at room temperature! This is because hot liquid helps to bloom the cocoa powder even more, and coffee helps to amplify the flavor of chocolate. Use decaf or herbal coffee if you’d prefer!
• Leavening agents: Of course, the baking soda and baking powder!

Now, let’s get to work on this layered zucchini cake!

Overview: How to make chocolate zucchini cake

The cake

What is so wonderful about this chocolate zucchini cake is that you only need one large mixing bowl, a sifter, a whisk, and a silicone spatula.

You’ll start by whisking together the wet ingredients, including the zucchini. Then simply sift in the cocoa powder, followed by the flour, and the leavening agents. Add in the vegan buttermilk, and gently whisk together, followed by the hot coffee.

Then pour the batter into the cake pan. You can also use three 8″ cake pans or three 6″ cake pans. Bake the cake until a toothpick comes out clean. Then allow them to cool completely before frosting the cake.

How to make vegan chocolate sour cream frosting

For this vegan chocolate zucchini cake, we’re using a vegan chocolate sour cream frosting- based off of my classic chocolate frosting. It’s so easy to make and quite similar to making classic chocolate buttercream. But I think that the sour cream (dairy free, of course!) adds a really nice tang to balance out the sweetness!

You’ll need:

• Vegan butter
• Cocoa powder
• Vegan sour cream (I like Forager Project)
• Powdered sugar
• Dairy free milk ​​​​

I recommend using a stand mixer with whisk attachment, but you can also use a hand mixer.

Tips for making Chocolate Zucchini Cake

Making a healthy chocolate cake is one thing, but making a healthy chocolate zucchini cake that you wouldn’t even know contained a speck of a vegetable?!

Now that’s another.

It’s definitely easy if you follow this recipe, but here are a few extra tips that I think really add to making the best vegan chocolate zucchini cake that even non-vegan eaters will go ga-ga over!

• I recommend using a box grater to shred the zucchini. This will save you some arm work (and hopefully be bit safer!) than using a handheld grater.
• Dry the zucchini before folding it into the vegan chocolate batter: If there is one thing you do, please please please make sure that you’ve pat the zucchini! It doesn’t have to be completely dry, but if it’s still leaving a paper towel sopping wet, it’s too wet. This is key for texture. Cassava flour generally likes moisture, but too much and you’ll get a gooey inside- not what you want for a chocolate zucchini cake!
• Use coconut sugar for a refined sugar free chocolate cake and frosting! To do this, I pulse the coconut sugar in a mini food processor until it’s a powder. This takes about 2-3 minutes tops, and it fluffs up just like powdered sugar! It honestly makes for the ultimate Paleo chocolate zucchini cake.
• You can make this a three layered or a two layered chocolate zucchini cake instead of a sheet cake: If you go for a two tier cake, I recommend using two 8-inch cake or springform pans.

Every single person who tried a slice (we have many people who come through this house- kids, adults, friends, extended family!) was shocked when I told them that this healthy chocolate zucchini cake was indeed vegan and gluten free!

Let me know if you give this cake a go in the comments below, and as always, I’d absolutely love to see your beautiful recreations on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me there!

Happy chocolate cake baking!

Want to save this recipe for later? Add it to your favorite recipe board on Pinterest!

Print

This post contains affiliate links. This means that when you make a purchase from these links, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. All recommendations are based on my personal experience and preference! Thank you for supporting The Banana Diaries!