A healthy, chocolate cake consisting of cocoa-flavored, fairly dry zucchini and nut layers, filled with delicious, sweet, creamy date caramel and peanut butter. It’s topped with sweet potato and dark chocolate cream and decorated with fresh raspberries and blueberries.
Ingredients:
Zucchini Cake: (Two cakes should be baked in cake pans about 23cm and 18cm in diameter)
- 200 g zucchini (weight after cutting off the ends), room temperature
- 175 g ground almonds (or hazelnuts)
- 3 tablespoons xylitol (or stevia or sugar)
- 20 g chopped nuts of choice
- 20 g cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 50 g coconut oil (or butter)
- 3 eggs (size M), room temperature
Date Caramel:
- 1 cup (250ml) pitted dried dates (the softer, the better)
- 4 tablespoons peanut butter*
- Pinch of salt
Sweet Potato Chocolate Cream:
- 1 medium-sized sweet potato (about 250 g, after cooking, you’ll need 200 g without skin)
- 100 g dark chocolate
For Decoration:
- Several raspberries
- About 100 g blueberries
- Gold powder food coloring + alcohol or vodka (optional)
Preparation:
- Line the bottom of a 23 cm diameter cake pan with parchment paper and secure the rim. Set aside.
- Prepare the cake: In a bowl, combine ground almonds, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, xylitol, and chopped nuts. Mix with a whisk.
- Grate the zucchini using the small side of a grater (on the lateral side) into fine shreds. (Do not squeeze the zucchini).
- Melt the coconut oil in a small saucepan over low heat. Pour it into the bowl with dry ingredients. Add the eggs and grated zucchini. Mix with a spoon.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and smooth it out.
- Bake in a preheated oven for about 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, at 160°C, with both top and bottom heat. After baking, remove from the oven and leave in the pan to cool.
- Line the bottom of an 18 cm diameter cake pan with parchment paper and secure the rim. Set aside.
- Prepare the second zucchini cake as above. Transfer to the prepared pan and smooth it out.
- Bake in a preheated oven for about 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, at 160°C, with both top and bottom heat. After baking, remove from the oven and leave in the pan to cool. Once cooled, cut the cake in half to create two layers.
- Prepare the date caramel: Pour boiling water over the dried dates and let them soak for at least 15 minutes. Then drain on a sieve, without pouring out the water they soaked in. Blend soaked dates, peanut butter, and a pinch of salt in a blender or food processor. While blending, gradually add the water drained from the dates until the mixture reaches a consistency resembling toffee, smooth, creamy, and not too thick.
- Place the larger zucchini cake (from the 23cm cake pan) on a serving platter.
- Spread the bottom layer of the smaller zucchini cake (from the 18cm cake pan) with half of the date caramel. (Turn the bottom layer upside down and spread it). Place it in the center of the larger zucchini cake. Spread the remaining caramel and place the top layer.
- Prepare the sweet potato chocolate cream: Boil the sweet potato in its skin in salted water. Finely chop the chocolate. Peel and measure out 200g of warm sweet potato. Transfer to a bowl, add the chopped chocolate, and blend until smooth.
- Allow the chocolate cream to cool slightly. Then spread it over the entire cake. Transfer the remaining cream (if it’s too runny, refrigerate it briefly) to a pastry bag fitted with a decorative tip (I used a large closed star) and decorate the cake. Decorate with raspberries and blueberries. Chill in the refrigerator to set the cream.
- Dissolve some food coloring in about 2 drops of alcohol and use a brush to create uneven lines on the cake, if desired.
