Joshua Grindle Inn

Mendocino, California

Specialty Recipe

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

This rich chocolaty cake will satisfy that craving in all of us. This is a chocolate cake you can feel good about after you've eaten it. No guilt feelings here!

Ingredients: for one 10-inch Bundt cake

3/4 cup butter

2 cups sugar

3 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 Tablespoon grated orange peel

2 cups grated raw zucchini

2-3/4 cups flour

1/2 cup cocoa

2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1-1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup low-fat milk

1 cup chopped walnuts

Lemon Orange Glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar

1 Tablespoon vanilla

grated orange peel

lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease and flour one 10-inch bundt pan. Cream butter and slowly add the sugar, beating until smooth. Beat in the eggs and mix thoroughly. Stir in the vanilla, orange peel, and grated zucchini and blend well. Mix together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Add to the zucchini mixture alternately with the milk and beat until thoroughly mixed. Pour batter in prepared pan and bake for 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

To make glaze, stir vanilla into sugar until a runny paste is formed. Stir in peel and enough juice to make glaze pourable. When cake is completely cooled, turn out of pan onto serving plate and drizzle glaze over the top. Garnish with fresh flowers.

Serves: 8 to 10

From the cookbook Mendocino Mornings - A Collection of Breakfast Delights from the Joshua Grindle Inn. This wonderful cookbook can be purchased at the Joshua Grindle Inn.

• You found this recipe on 1st Traveler's Choice Internet Cookbook. (www.virtualcities.com)