Food 52s chocolate courgette cake

An adapted version! For those that know me, you know that I use recipes as inspiration and most of the time I won’t have all of the ingredients so it’s always quite a good test of a recipe if it still works if I’ve had to tweak it according to the ingredients available. This is the second time I’ve made this cake during lockdown, the first guessing at the amount of chocolate and the with regular flour, the second with just one block of chocolate, gluten free and then buckwheat flour plus no walnuts but instead a bunch of mixed chopped nuts. Both times the cakes been fab.

The process is incredibly easy. And Molly loves helping me whisk the ingredients together, measuring out the cups of flour (yes there’s mess) and sugar. I believe in the process of her joining in, enjoying the textures, learning to taste, sense, smell the ingredients and if it takes a bit longer during these lock down days, then I’m ok with that. Who knows what life will be like when we come out of this and I want her to experience it all.

Here’s the original recipe if you want to follow that but this is my version(s)

3/4 cup buckwheat flour

3/4 cup flour/gluten free flour

1/4 cup Green and Blacks chocolate powder - I would have used cocoa if I’d had it!

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

good pinch of sea salt

1/2 cup walnuts crushed using my fingers 1st time, 2nd time was a mix of chopped nuts

1 bar of dark chocolate bashed up. 1st time I used a block and a half and it was too much.

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

1/2 cup buttermilk - I didn’t have any so i used regular milk with some lemon squeezed in and the second time I used almond milk with some lemon squeezed in.

1 large egg

3/4 cup light brown sugar

a good grind of my vanilla grinder

1 courgette, grated and kinda patted down.

Turn the oven on to 180C and pre-heat. Add all the flours, salt, cocoa, baking powder and soda together. Melt the butter and add it to the sugar, egg and buttermilk - whisk it really well so it’s smooth and there are no lumps. Add it to the flour mix. Add in the nuts and chocolate and fold in the courgette. Pour into a lined and greased baking tin and cook for about 50 minutes. Leave it in the tin to cool.

If you liked this recipe why not add it to your ‘Favourite Cakes’ board on Pinterest and pin the below image.