Richly flavored with brown sugar and vanilla, my zucchini cake recipe makes eating your veggies a delight! We spread a smooth, cream cheese frosting overtop for a sweet finish. Recipe includes a how-to video!
Why You’ll Love This Zucchini Cake
- A great way to use up garden zucchini. If you’re up to your eyeballs in this prolific garden produce, here’s a great way to use some of it.
- You don’t taste the zucchini, so you can sneak it in and picky eaters will never know. Instead, the zucchini adds moisture and a lovely texture, but what you’ll taste is the rich flavors of brown sugar and vanilla, accented by the sweet and tangy cream cheese frosting.
- Easy to make. A no-fuss, quick and easy recipe that can be served right in the pan it’s baked in.
- Perfect for summer parties. It serves a crowd and will be devoured by everyone, trust me! I typically alternate between this cake and strawberry shortcake during the summer months.
- Minimal decoration. Sheet cakes are a favorite around here for their no-fuss decoration and simple serving. There’s no leveling, crumb coating, or piping required today!
I think you’re gong to adore this zucchini cake! A sister to my banana cake and carrot cake recipe, it’s similarly simple yet delectable with a moist, tender texture and brilliant flavor.
What You Need
- Zucchini. There’s no need to peel your zucchini before grating it. You will, however, need to blot the zucchini with paper towels after grating it, as it is a bit too wet otherwise. If you are using a scale, make sure you weigh it before blotting it.
- Brown sugar. I prefer dark brown sugar in this cake. Dark brown sugar has more molasses than light brown, so it imparts a stronger flavor that accents the cake nicely. You can light brown sugar if that’s all you have on hand though–don’t let that stop you from making this cake!
- Sour cream. Similar to buttermilk, sour cream adds fat and richness to our zucchini cake. You’ll notice that this cake is incredibly moist and tender, and you can thank the sour cream for that! You could alternatively use full-fat, plain Greek yogurt.
- Vanilla. This flavors our cake and our cream cheese frosting. Feel free to use homemade vanilla extract here–yum!
- Cream cheese. As with my cheesecake, I recommend using brick-style, full-fat cream cheese for the frosting. I cannot guarantee good results with the spreadable or low-fat versions–they tend to be too soft and runny.
SAM’S TIP: If you’d like, you can top your zucchini cake with some chopped toasted pecans or walnuts. These add a nice texture, and they pairs well with the brown sugar in the cake.
As always, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Zucchini Cake
Prep the Zucchini
- Shred the zucchini using the shred blade of your food processor first, then switch to the normal blade. Pulse a few times to chop the zucchini into bits, but don’t go too far, or you’ll end up with a zucchini puree that’s too wet to use.
- Blot the zucchini with paper towels until you’ve removed most of the water. When it’s ready, the zucchini will start to stick to the paper towels.
Make the Cake
- Whisk the dry ingredients together in a large bowl, then set aside.
- Combine the wet ingredients in a separate bowl, then gradually fold these into the dry ingredients until about 50% combined.
- Fold in the zucchini until the batter is cohesive. Do not over-mix, which could make the cake rubbery and dense.
- Spread the batter into your pan and bake until lightly golden on top. Let the cake cool completely before frosting it (otherwise the frosting will melt).
Frosting
- Beat the cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer until smooth.
- Gradually add the powdered sugar until incorporated, then stir in the vanilla and salt.
- Spread the frosting over the cooled cake, then slice and enjoy!
SAM’S TIP: This cake should be incredibly moist. If yours isn’t, there’s a very good chance that it was over-baked. Every oven is different (and many run hotter than they indicate), so know your oven and keep an eye on your cake.
Frequently Asked Questions
Of course! Some alternative frostings that would work well here would be my brown butter frosting, lemon frosting, ermine frosting, or vanilla frosting. If you want to go the chocolate route, then I’d recommend making my chocolate zucchini cake instead.
Yes, it does. Because of the moisture in the cake and the cream cheese in the frosting, you will need to store this cake in the fridge. As usual, make sure to use an airtight container (or cover it tightly with plastic wrap) so it doesn’t dry out!
I would recommend you make my zucchini bread instead, as that recipe is designed to be baked in a loaf pan. You can always leave out the cinnamon if you want to flavor your bread like this recipe.
If you want to top your zucchini bread with cream cheese frosting, I’d make a quarter batch of the frosting below (for ease, you can half the recipe but you likely won’t need all of it).
If you are in the thick of zucchini season, try my zucchini muffins or zucchini roll next!
Enjoy!
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Zucchini Cake
Ingredients
For the cake
- 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- ¾ cup (150 g) dark brown sugar firmly packed (you may substitute light brown sugar)
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoon table salt
- 1 cup (226 g) sour cream
- 10 Tablespoons (140 g) unsalted butter melted
- 2 large eggs lightly beaten (room temperature preferred)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups (225 g) grated zucchini patted dry (weigh before patting dry)
For the frosting
- 8 oz (226 g) cream cheese softened
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter softened
- 2 ½ cups (315 g) powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon table salt
Recommended Equipment
- 13×9” metal baking pan
Instructions
For the cake
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and lightly grease and flour a 13×9 metal baking pan. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugars, baking soda, and table salt.2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour, 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar, ¾ cup (150 g) dark brown sugar, 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda, ½ teaspoon table salt
- In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together melted butter, sour cream, eggs, and vanilla extract.1 cup (226 g) sour cream, 10 Tablespoons (140 g) unsalted butter, 2 large eggs, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry and use a spatula to gently fold together until about 50% combined.
- Add zucchini and continue to fold together until all ingredients are well-combined (don’t over-mix as cake could be dense or rubbery if you do).1 ½ cups (225 g) grated zucchini
- Spread batter evenly into prepared baking pan and transfer to center rack of 350F (175C) preheated oven. Bake for about 27-30 minutes – until cake is lightly golden on top and is baked through and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. Allow cake to cool completely in pan before frosting.
For the frosting
- Combine cream cheese and butter in a large mixing bowl and use an electric mixer to stir until smooth and creamy.8 oz (226 g) cream cheese, ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter
- Gradually, with mixer on low-speed, add powdered sugar until completely combined.2 ½ cups (315 g) powdered sugar
- Stir in vanilla extract and salt. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure ingredients are well-combined.½ teaspoon vanilla extract, ⅛ teaspoon table salt
- Spread evenly over cooled cake. Slice, serve, and enjoy!
Notes
Baking pan
A metal baking pan is my preference. Glass will work but the cake will take longer to bake.Storing
Cover cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. This cake also freezes well.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
JJ
Made this cake exactly as instructed. The zucchini combined beautifully with other ingredients. It was moist and fluffy (didn’t over mix) and the frosting is a perfect compliment to the flavor of the cake. I will definitely make this again. Thanks Sam!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you enjoyed it, JJ! Thanks for the review 🥰
Cheryl
Looks Delicious! ive had .. Green Tomato Cake! Yep, is kind of same, people hear that & say Eeew.. Then.. Yumm!
Sam
A green tomato cake sounds quite interesting. I hope you love this one! 🙂
Michelle
can this be made as a layer cake..8 or 9 inch pans.. just curious..
Sam
Hi Michelle! This is a very light cake, but I don’t see any reason why it wouldn’t work in 8 or 9 inch pans. I’m not sure on a bake time though. Let me know how it goes! 🙂