Chocolate Zucchini Cake with Peanut Butter Glaze

17 Jan, 2013

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UPDATE:
Seriously, this looked so great I coudn’t pass it up.  I had to post it again.  Enjoy!

Jen

Written By:  Amanda Sullivan @ The Red Table

There’s really nothing better than nature’s bounty in the summer is there? I mean, when you can plant a little garden in the Midwest and grow a zucchini the size of your arm, how can you not make two quiches and a large bundt cake out of it?

Yes, you read that right. Two quiches and a cake out of one zucchini. On my blog a couple weeks ago, I featured the big-ass zucchini  that I got from a coworker who graciously gave away some gargantuan arm-sized things (mine was not even the biggest off-loaded) and wondered what to do with it (and, also more practically, how to even cut the dang thing). With more than six cups of the vegetable to deal with, I had some serious cooking, roasting, grilling or baking to do.

(I will say with a zucchini that big – the center was a bit more noticeably spongy than usual, so I cut out the center of the slices and just used the outside “ring” of it.)

My boss came to the rescue with a family recipe for Chocolate Zucchini Cake that seemed like just the ticket. The peanut butter glaze is my own touch. I like peanut butter. Especially with chocolate. I mean, especially with everything.

Side note: my friends and I once theorized in college that every food could be complemented by either ranch dressing or peanut butter, but not both. Think about it: Pizza – ranch. Fruit cobbler – peanut butter. Eggs – totally ranch. Oreos – made awesome by peanut butter. Mashed potatoes – I believe some ranch would elevate those boring spuds.

The exceptions to the either/or rule were  sausage, carrots and celery. Those three foods could handle both pb and ranch – but not at the same time, mind you.

What?

You question sausage and peanut butter? Try it. It’s not awful. Ever had a burger with some peanutty Jif on it? No? You’re missing out. Seriously. Try it.

(Okay, so I guess burgers can also be complimented by both ranch and peanut butter, too.)

But I digress. Let’s talk about moist chocolatey bundt cake with sweet peanut butter glaze. Let’s talk about how the cake is still tender five days later (let’s also talk about how the cake is actually still around five days later – it’s not for lack of shoving bits in my face every time I walk by, I’ll tell you that). Let’s talk about how easy the glaze is and how perfectly it complements the decadent cake. Let’s talk about how flipping easy the whole thing is to put together.

Actually, let’s not talk about it anymore. Just go make it.

Chocolate Zucchini Cake with Peanut Butter Glaze

For the cake:

2 c zucchini, shredded in a food processor or blender

4 eggs, beaten

¾ c vegetable oil

1 ½ tsp instant coffee

1 pkg. (4.5 oz) instant chocolate pudding

1 devil’s food cake mix

For the glaze:

1 c powdered sugar

¼ c milk

2 T creamy peanut butter

1 tsp vanilla

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Beat the zucchini, eggs and oil together in a large bowl until well mixed. Add the rest of the ingredients and beat until just incorporated. Spray a bundt pan with cooking spray, and pour the cake mix into it. Bake the cake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

For the glaze, whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl until smooth. Let the cake cool a bit, then drizzle the glaze over the cake.

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