Soft zucchini cake frosted with a rich, tangy cream cheese frosting – the best way to eat zucchini this summer!
Zucchini Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
If you have a garden, you probably have too much zucchini. Even if you didn’t plant it yourself. Overzealous gardening friends and neighbors have been known to leave bags of this prolific vegetable on your doorstep.
They push it into your arms in the church parking lot and Little League games. Don’t leave your car unlocked or you might find a dozen zucchini on the passenger seat. No place is safe at the height of zucchini season. Worst of all nobody’s kids like it. Mine don’t.
That said, zucchini is a versatile vegetable that can up the nutritional status of lots of tasty recipes from quick breads to cakes. And it’s this zucchini cake recipe with its creamy sweet frosting that has converted my zucchini haters into fans.
To be precise, the formerly anti-zucchini members of my household are zucchini fans now when it is baked into this cake, Classic Easy Zucchini Bread, or Peanut Butter Swirled Chocolate Zucchini Bread.
Zucchini Cake Recipe
For most zucchini based cakes, muffins and quick bread recipes, you’ll need to shred zucchini. This can be done by hand with a cheese grater or you can use a food processor with the grating blade attached.
Grated zucchini can be frozen in batches, but just make sure you drain the thawed zucchini well when you use it. Otherwise, it will add too much liquid to the recipe.
This recipe makes an 8×8 cake, but I usually double it to fit a 9×13 pan. Believe it or not, the cake disappears surprisingly fast. I think the cream cheese frosting helps a lot. It compliments the cake so well.
Zucchini Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting just might have you begging your neighbors for more zucchini. Or you might even plant some yourself. Also try my scrumptious Classic Easy Zucchini Bread.
Summertime Baking Recipes
Baking is a fun way to use up all the fresh, in season produce during the summer. If you’re extra ambitious, you can even make extra and freeze some cakes, muffins or quick breads to enjoy in depths of winter. Try some of these fun summer time recipes:
Pineapple Zucchini Bread from Recipe Girl
Lemon Zucchini Bread from Barbara Bakes
Cream Cheese Frosted Zucchini Cake
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 1 cup zucchini shredded
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup oil
- 2 eggs
- 1 and 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
For the Frosting
- 3 ounces cream cheese softened
- 4 tablespoons butter softened
- 1-2 tablespoons milk or cream
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease an 8×8 inch baking pan. In a large bowl, whisk together the zucchini, sugar, oil and eggs. Combine the flour, cinnamon, salt, baking powder and baking soda in a separate bowl.
- Gently stir the dry ingredients into the wet. Spread the batter into the greased baking pan. Bake at 350 F. for 28-32 minutes. Let cool completeley.
- To make the frosting, beat together the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in the milk, vanilla and powdered sugar. Spread onto cool cake.
- This recipe can easily be doubled for a 9 x 13 inch pan.
Nutrition
Medha @ Whisk & Shout says
I love the cream cheese frosting on this cake- especially paired with the zucchini ๐
hรฌnh nแปn desktop tรฌnh yรชu buแปn says
Thank you for this excellent recipe. I just baked this cake, and it is fluffy, light, and delicious just like the picture suggests. Happy Summer!
Tara says
Such an amazing recipe!!!! Easy and delicious! Family said it was the best cake theyโve ever had!
Melissa says
Can I use frozen shredded zucchini for this recipe..
Mallory says
Yes. Let it thaw and drain in a strainer, but don’t squeeze out the juice.
Caela Slaathaug says
I just made this. Does it need to be refrigerated with the cream cheese frosting?
Mallory says
Yes, it should probably be refrigerated
Theresa says
This was a great recipe to use up a bit of zucchini. Lots of great flavor, cream cheese frosting was perfect on this cake. Makes a small enough cake for the 2 of us, or enough to share for 4 people. Itโs a keeper recipe!
Theresa says
Great recipe to use up some zucchini! Easy to make, tastes great, and perfect for 2 people, or to share with 4. The cream cheese frosting is perfect on this cake. This recipe is a keeper for late summer when everyone has too much zucchini.
Sherrie says
Love the cream cheese frosting! I already had made zucchini bread from another site’s recipe and I just needed the cream cheese frosting. So happy with this. I don’t think I’ve ever had a frosting come out so well. I’m going to try your zucchini cake recipe next time because I only used one egg from the recipe I followed and it didn’t rise so well.
Marie Nicole Harrison says
Do you need to squeeze water from zucchini?
Mallory says
Not if you use fresh zucchini.
Ashley says
Can you bake these as cupcakes? If so how long?
Thanks!
Marilyn says
Can this be made into a 9×13
Mallory says
You will need to double it and maybe increase the baking. Never tried it, but good luck!
Sherry says
I will be trying your recipe for sure. It looks so good and I like the frosting.