“I want to make a cake that looks like a donut.”
A bundt tin, a couple of summer squash and a couple of leftover roast beetroot later…
Don’t be perturbed by the vegetables — I promise nobody will even know they’re there (until you tell them).
Recipe adapted from Epicurious.
Gather:
1 cup grated zucchini*
1 cup grated beetroot**
1/2 cup walnuts (roughly chopped)
1 cup dark chocolate chips
3/4 cup white chocolate chips
2 + 1/2 cups plain flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
225 g butter (room temp.)
1 cup dark brown sugar (packed)
1 tsp vanilla
3 eggs
For the glaze
1.5 tbsp Cointreau (or other sweet liqueur)
1 tsp coconut essence (but vanilla would work too)
A few drops of pink food colouring
Mini M&Ms (or rainbow sprinkles)
Then:
- Preheat the oven to 176º C, and butter the inside of a bundt tin.
- Grate the vegetables, then put them in medium bowl with the walnuts and chocolate chips, mix gently with a wooden spoon, and set aside.
- Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt into another medium bowl. Set aside.
… - In the bowl of your stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until pale and thick — about 3 minutes.
- Still mixing, add the egg and vanilla, and mix until fully combined.
- Mixing on the slowest speed, gradually add in the flour mixture a few tablespoons at a time until fully combined.
- Switch to a wooden spoon and stir in the gated vegetables, walnuts and chocolate, making sure everything is evenly distributed.
- Spoon the batter*** into your prepared bundt tin, making sure the tin is filled evenly and the surface is relatively smoothed out.
- Bake for 40–50 minutes, or until a bamboo skewer comes out clean when you stick it into the deepest part of the cake.
- Remove the cake from the oven and leave it to cool completely in the tin before inverting it onto a plate. (If your tin is non-stick and you buttered well, you shouldn’t even need to jimmy the cake out with a knife.)
… - For the glaze (once the cake has cooled completely)
Whisk together the icing mixture, Cointreau, essence and food colouring until you have a smooth, flowing liquid — about the consistency of craft glue. Add a tiny splash of water if you need to loosen it up a little. - Carefully spoon or pour the glaze over the cooled cake, allowing it to run down the sides and into the middle hole.
- Before the glaze sets, decorate with mini M&Ms or rainbow sprinkles.
- Serve to unsuspecting grown-up friends, and delight in the looks of disbelief when you reveal the secret ingredients.
Notes:
*I used three large summer squash, but two regular-sized zucchini would do the trick.
**There were two medium-sized roast beetroot left over in my fridge, but since you’re grating and baking them I reckon raw beets would work too.
***It will be quite lumpy and heavy — don’t worry, it will transform into a smooth, moist, surprisingly light crumb cake in the oven.
