Introduction: Deliciously Moist Courgette (Zucchini) Cake With Orange Cream Cheese Icing

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While it doesn't look much and sounds rather unlikely, this recipe makes an amazingly moist fruit cake and the walnuts in it give it a great crunch.

It's similar to carrot cake in taste and a bit like bread pudding in texture. It's delicious.

Most importantly it gives me something different and interesting to do with the billions of courgettes I'm overrun with at the moment.

Step 1: Ingredients

For the cake:
  • 250g unsalted butter
  • 250g caster sugar
  • 4 eggs
  • 350g self raising flour
  • juice and zest of 1 orange
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp mixed spice
  • 350g courgette
  • 100g chopped walnuts
  • 100g sultanas

For the icing:

  • 125g cream cheese
  • 50g unsalted butter
  • 300g icing sugar
  • zest of 1/2 orange

Step 2: Preparation

Preheat your oven to 180 Celcius or 350 Fahrenheit.

Grease the sides of a 25cm cake tin and line the bottom with baking paper.

Step 3: Cream the Butter and Sugar

In a large bowl place the cubed butter. Add the caster sugar and cream together until creamy, pale and smooth. This is much easier if you take the butter out the fridge a few hours before you need it.

Step 4: Add Eggs

Add the eggs one by one, mixing them in thoroughly after each one.

Step 5: Add the Flour, Spice and Orange Juice.

Seive the flour and spice into a bowl.

Add the flour and spice to the creamed butter bit by bit, folding it into the butter, sugar and eggs. When it gets too stiff to work, add the orange juice, mix it in then continue adding the rest of the flour.

Step 6: Grate the Courgette

Grate 350g of courgette and pat dry with paper towel or a clean tea towel.

Add the courgette and orange zest to the mixture and stir in well.

Step 7: Nuts and Berries!

Add the chopped walnuts and sultanas and stir in.

Pour the mixture into your greased cake tin.

Step 8: Into the Oven

Place the tin in your preheated oven for 1 hour.

After an hour check to see if the cake is cooked. If a knife comes out with stuff on it it needs a little longer. Mine was already a nice golden colour on top so I turned the oven down so the cake didn't burn.

Once done allow to cool while you make the icing.

Step 9: Making the Icing

Place 50g of butter into a bowl with 125g cream cheese.

Cream these together until they're a smooth consistency. Add the zest of half an orange.

Sieve in 300g of icing sugar and stir in. If your icing is too dry and requires some extra liquid add a small squeeze of juice from the remaining orange.

Cover and refrigerate until your cake is cool enough to be iced.

Step 10: Ice It!

Spread a thin layer across the top of the cake, it's very sweet so you won't need much. Mine was slightly runnier than I'd have liked but I didn't realise this until it was on the cake and too late.

Devour with a hot cup of tea.

Many thanks to scoochmaroo for the title pic that she sent me.