A delicious way to eat your greens

Getting a green vegetable into your kids can be tricky, especially if they are fussy eaters like Miss G.  Nearly 18 and she still hates her greens.  Well, I have ammunition.  Chocolate.  How is chocolate going to help Miss G. eat her greens I hear you ask?  By making Chocolate Zucchini Loaf.  

 

Before you turn up your nose and go yuck, how many of you like carrot cake?  Quite a lot I'm sure.  So I urge you to try this delicious recipe, just make sure your fussy eaters aren't around when you are making it so they don't see the zucchini going in.  Get them to take the taste test with their eyes closed if you think they'll protest.  

 

Here it is.  I doubled the recipe to make two loaves so I could put one in the freezer for a rainy day.

CHOCOLATE ZUCCHINI LOAF

90g butter

1 teaspoon grated orange rind

1 cup castor sugar

2 eggs

1 1/4 cups self-raising flour

1/4 cup cocoa

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 cup milk

1 cup grated zucchini (courgette)

1/2 cup chopped pecan nuts 

ORANGE FROSTING

30g soft butter

1 teaspoon grated orange rind

2 cups icing sugar

2 tablespoons orange juice

Grease a 15cm x 25cm loaf tin, line with paper; grease paper.

Cream butter, rind and sugar in small bowl with electric mixer until light and fluffy.  Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Transfer to a large bowl.

Stir in sifted dry ingredients, milk, zucchini and pecans. 

 Spread into prepared tin.

Bake in a moderate oven for about 45 minutes.  Stand 3 minutes before turning on to wire rack to cool.  Spread cold cake with frosting.

 

 Orange Frosting

Beat butter and rind in small bowl with wooden spoon until smooth, gradually beat in sifted icing sugar and juice; beat until spreadable.

Keeping time: 3 days

 Perfect for morning or afternoon tea.

Source:  The Australian Women's Weekly Cookbooks - Cakes and Slices Cookbook

N.B.  I do not include the nuts when I make this loaf.  I have also used olive oil spread in place of butter in the cake mixture successfully.   In Australia try Olive Grove Spread - Classic.  I never make the frosting for this loaf either.  The loaf is incredibly moist and I don't think it needs the icing.  However if you want to make it a little bit special, make the frosting.  It might also be needed to bribe the kids to eat it.  :)

One of the other benefits of making this cake is using up any surplus zucchinis you might have from your summer vegetable garden.  My Dad grows incredible zucchinis, lots and lots of them.  In summer it is certainly a challenge to think of ways to use them all up and besides making zucchini fritters, quiche, grating it into meat dishes or making soup, you can now make cake.  This cake is economical to make too because it uses cocoa powder for that yummy chocolate flavour without using chocolate.

Anne  xx