Shelly's Recipe

CHOCOLATE ZUCCHINI CAKE

Category: Cakes

2 1/2 cups regular flour, unsifted
1/2 cup cocoa
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon and cloves
3/4 cup soft butter
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 tsp grated orange peel
2 cups coarsely shredded zucchini
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
Glaze (directions follow)

Preheat the oven to 350. Combine the four, cocoa, baking powder, soda, salt, and cinnamon; set aside. With a mixer, beat together the butter and the sugar until they are smoothly blended. Add the eggs to the butter and sugar mixture one at a time, beating well after each addition. With a spoon, stir in the vanilla, orange peel, chocolate chips and zucchini.

Alternately stir the dry ingredients and the milk into the zucchini mixture, including the nuts with the last addition. Pour the batter into a greased and flour-dusted 10-inch tube pan or bundt pan. Bake in the oven for about 50 minutes (test at 45 minutes!) or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan 15 minutes; turn out on wire rack to cool thoroughly. Drizzle glaze over cake.
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Glaze: Mix together 2 cups powdered sugar, 3 Tbsp milk, and 1 tsp vanilla. Beat until smooth. Cut in thin slices to serve.