Sheet Pan Chocolate Zucchini Cake

I think that zucchini has to be one of the most versatile vegetables there is. I add it to a lot of my savoury dishes to boost the veggie content (read boost - not hide, they are different things!). Did you know it is excellent in cakes too? It helps make your baked goods really moist and of course bumps up your veggie intake for the day. Get the kids involved in making this recipe and help teach them that veggies don't always have to be a savoury dish. Helping to finely grate the zucchini is a great task for little hands. Touching, smelling and squeezing the shredded zucchini are all great sensory experiences for young kids that can help them learn to like (or at least feel a little more confident trying) zucchini. 

I'm never one to hide veggies in dishes from my kids. If the kids work out what you've hidden, you can really loose their trust, meaning that they become more fussy and more suspicious about the foods you're putting in front of them. 

I created this sheet pan recipe so that you can easily slice it up to fit any lunch box compartment that you might be using. 

Sheet Pan Chocolate Zucchini Cake

Ingredients

1.5 cups finely shredded zucchini (about 1 very large zucchini or 2 smaller ones) and juice squeezed out

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup castor sugar

1/2 cup coco powder

1 cup self raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 cup light olive oil (or a neutral flavoured oil like canola - Extra virgin olive oil is too over powering for this recipe)

2 eggs

Choc-chips to decorate

Directions:

Line a baking tray (we used a 30 cm x 18 cm tray, any larger and you won't have enough batter). Heat oven to 180 ℃ or 160 ℃ if fan forced.

Add sugars and oil into the bowl of your electric mixer. Beat to combine. Crack eggs into bowl and continue to beat until creamy looking. Sift in flours, coco powder and baking powder and fold through the wet ingredients. Add in zucchini and stir through batter. 

Pour onto prepared baking tray and scatter with choc chips. Cook for about 25 mins at 180 ℃ or until a skewer comes out clean when inserted into the cake.

Allow to cool then slice into appropriate sizes for your lunch box. Freezes for up to 3 months. Or store in a an air tight container on the bench for up to 3 days.