Zippy Lemon Ginger Zucchini Cake
Servings: 15
Made with olive oil, almond and AP flours, ginger in two forms, and loads of lemon zest, this bright rustic cake makes good use of excess garden zucchini. It's the perfect reason to use the oven on a hot summer day.
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Ingredients
Lemon Ginger Zucchini Cake
- 3 cups zucchini or other summer squash, finely grated if large, remove seeds before grating and gently squeezed some of its water off over the sink
- 4 lemons, zested grated reserve juice for glaze
- 3 Tablespoons fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
- 1¼ cups almond flour, finely ground
- 2½ cups all-purpose four
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 eggs, room temperature
- 1¾ cups granulated sugar
- 1¼ cups extra virgin olive oil
Cake Glaze
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup confectioners (powdered) sugar
- ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
Instructions
For the Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350°. Generously butter a 9" springform pan, 9" x 2" round pan, or three 6" round pans. Dust the pan/s with flour and tap out any excess.
- Grate the zucchini, lemon zest, and ginger and set aside.
- Combine the flour baking powder, baking soda, ground ginger, and salt in a medium bowl and whisk together well. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer with paddle attachement or with a handheld mixer, beat together the sugar and eggs until creamy and slightly fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Again turn the mixer to medium speed and add the olive oil in a steady stream. Continue mixing in the olive oil until fully incorporated and quite fluffy, another 3 minutes. Again scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- With the mixer at low speed, quickly add the flour mixture one cup at a time, not waiting for it to fully incorporate. Turn the mixer off and remove the mixing bowl.
- Add the grated zucchini, lemon zest, and ginger to the bowl, and gently stir with a rubber or silicone spatula, folding up from the bottom, until the grated ingredients are evenly mixed through the batter.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cakepan/s and smooth the top and bake. For the 9" pans, bake for 50-60 minutes until the top springs bake when gently pushed and the edges are just beginning to pull away from the pan, and a bamboo skewer or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. for the 6" pans, bake 35-45 minutes. It is easy to underbake this cake, especially the larger pans, so take extra care to make sure they are done in the center.
- Allow the cake to cool 15 minutes before inverting on a cooling rack. While the cake is cooling, make the glaze.
For the glaze:
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk the granulated and powdered sugars to break up the powerded sugar clumps. Whisk in the lemon juice until smooth and no tiny bits of powdered sugar remain. Invert the cake onto the cooling rack and place a peice of parchment, wax paper, or a large plate directly under it to catch the glaze drips and make cleanup easier. While the cake is still warm, generously paint on the glaze with a pastry brush. Allow the cake to completely cool before slicing.