This Browned Butter Chocolate Zucchini Cake is the perfect thing to make with those gigantic zucchini that are overtaking your garden. The crusty, sugary topping is amazing!
I hope you’ll bear with me here while I finally share my first (and probably last) Zucchini recipe for this summer. I’m a little late jumping on the zucchini recipe bandwagon, but I couldn’t let summer officially end without sharing a recipe with that dear old squash that grows in plethoras here in Utah.
I didn’t plant any this year, but my cute friend came to my rescue and sent me home with two gargantuan zucchini last week, so I had no choice but to make bread, cake, more bread, more cake . . .
This Browned Butter Chocolate Zucchini cake is amazing. It’s so moist and so delicious. I’m not going to lie, the topping is what completely takes this cake to the next level. A crusty brown sugary topping with chocolate chips. . . so fabulous! I’ve made it twice in the last week. I still have one huge zucchini left which means I may just make it a third time.
Just look at that crusty, sugary, scrumptious topping. Isn’t it just heavenly looking? It’s my favorite part of the cake!
So if you’re lucky enough (or maybe unlucky) to have zucchini left, you really should try this cake. You won’t regret it, your hips and thighs might, but your tastebuds won’t.
Print
Browned Butter Chocolate Zucchini Cake
- Total Time: 40 minutes
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
- 1 3/4 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 2 cups shredded zucchini
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 2 1/4 cups flour
- 1/3 cup cocoa
TOPPING:
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup milk chocolate chips
Instructions
- Place butter in a medium skillet or saucepan and melt over medium heat, swirling it in the pan occasionally. The butter will foam, continue to swirl the pan often. Remove pan from heat once the butter starts to brown and smells nutty. There will be small brown bits on the bottom, make sure you scrape them up and use them. Pour butter into a small bowl and cool in fridge for 20 minutes.
- In a large bowl mix browned butter, oil and sugar together until mixed well. Add eggs and vanilla, beat until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). Add zucchini and mix well.
- Add salt, baking soda, cinnamon, flour and cocoa. Mix well and then stir in buttermilk.
- Spread into a greased 9 x 13 pan and sprinkle with one cup brown sugar and one cup chocolate chips.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Cakes & Cupcakes
Recipe Source: Adapted from a recipe my friend Melanie gave me. Thanks Mel!
What Temp for oven?
Sorry I forgot to include that, I fixed it. It’s 350 degrees.
Great cake. I baked the cake at 350. Let me know if its different. I had to bake my cake closer to 40 minutes. It was still goo at 30. 1 cup of brown sugar was way to much for me. And it didn’t melt at all. After I scraped most of it off the top it looked kind of like your picture. I think next time I will try 1/2 or even 1/4 C br. sugar. Do you put the chocolate chips on before or after the brown sugar? Thanks.
– Love your blog. I was searching some recipes off Pinterested the other day and someone referenced your zucchini cake recipe. I thought that was pretty cool!
Everyone’s ovens are different. I baked mine about 35 minutes. Not sure why your brown sugar didn’t melt, I’ve never had that problem. It should just kind of sink into your cake as the cake rises and bakes. Maybe just try 1/2 a cup next time. If your cake was still goo after 30 minutes, maybe your oven cooks a little lower. I put the brown sugar on first then the chocolate chips. Thanks for your nice comment!
I made mine without cocoa. Only because I forgot to add it. ♀️ However, it was still super yummy!! This was the first dessert I’ve tried from your website. I have yet to try a bad recipe. I have six boys and so far all recipes have been a hit! Thank you!
Hi Jenn! Well I’m happy to hear this still tasted good without the cocoa, now you need to try it with the cocoa and tell me which is better (lol). Thanks for the sweet comment. I’m so happy you’ve been enjoying my recipes. If you have any yummy ones I should try, send them my way. Six boys. . . wow! What is the age range? Mine have grown up way too fast. My youngest is 15 and my oldest is 25. Enjoy every second with them. Take care.