The Best Chocolate Cake in the Whole Wide World!

Posted by Ethne~

I am about to share with you THE best chocolate cake you will ever have in your entire life.  Don’t quibble with me.  You will not win this argument.

MoJo, PoJo and Little M

This recipe is from Dot’s (college roomie) mom MoJo.  We typically go up to the J’s cabin up north once a summer around Dot’s b-day.  As is family tradition, MoJo makes Dot this cake.  We ended up making a second cake since the first one was gone instantly (in large part due to me eating it as full meals and snacks).  I probably would’ve taken it on the pontoon if we had some Tupperware (note to self...).

Up at the J's cabin - Easy Mac and NH loved the pontoon ride!

KD was not interested in this slow a** jet ski ride

Easy Mac sleeping with KK on a boat ride -
life doesn't get much better, Friends!

The ingredients will surprise you:

½ cup butter

½ cup vegetable oil (I use olive oil or canola for everything)

1-3/4 cups sugar

2 eggs

1 t. vanilla

½ cup sour milk* **

2-1/2 cups flour

4 T. cocoa

1 t. baking soda

½ t. baking powder

½ t. salt

2 cups shredded zucchini (yeah, that’s right!)

*You can make milk ‘sour’ by adding 1 t. lemon juice or vinegar to regular milk.

**You can use kefir yogurt.

Instructions:

Heat oven to 325 degrees.

Cream butter, oil and sugar.  (I use my hand mixer.)  Add eggs and vanilla, beat.

Brown eggs (cage free Friends) have golden yolks.

Sift dry ingredients together and add to egg/sugar mixture in small parts alternating that dry mix with sour milk till everything is incorporated. 

Kefir on left; dry ingredients on right

With a large spoon or spatula, stir in the shredded zucchini till thoroughly mixed up.

Zucchini shreds - they do not have flavor - sneakin' in a veggie!
FOLD the zucchini in - i.e. stir zucchini in gently.

See?  You already can't tell the zucchini is in there

Spread in a lightly greased 9” x 13” pan and top evenly with topping*.

Topped and ready to bake

*DON’T FORGET THE TOPPING~

TOPPING TRIFECTA!

¾ cup MINI semi-sweet chocolate chips (mini chips are key)

1/3 cup brown sugar (I like dark brown sugar)

½ cup chopped nuts or flaked coconut (or both) (I like coconut)

Bake for 40-45 minutes.

O. M. G.

Friends, this cake is so moist, so chocolatey, so AWESOME, you will not even believe it till you make it.  The zucchini, being shredded, is invisible in the cake, but is what makes the cake so moist.  Plus, you’re sneaking in a veggie!!  I like that you have the sweet topping, but don’t need to worry about a frosting.  The topping with coconut kinda reminds me of Girl Scout Samoas/Caramel DeLite cookies.  But if you’re not a coconut person, it’s not overpowering either.

I GUARANTEE that this cake will win you over.  I am NOT KIDDING that this is the best cake EV-ER.  The cake used in these pictures is made for Girls Trip ’11.  Lucky us!  Try it, you'll like it, just take a tip from me (high school cheer)!

SHOUT OUT to BG, whose awesome mother-in-law DG gave me the zucchini fresh from her garden. J