Amelia Freer's showstopper healthy chocolate cake

"This is such a good cake, no one need ever know it’s hiding a good serving of vegetables," says nutritional therapist Amelia Freer, "unless you feel the need to divulge." She shares this recipe from her latest book The Organised Cook: The life-changing way to save time, shop smarter and eat more healthily .

She adds, "This is a showstopper of a cake and perfect for a celebration. Courgette cake isn’t a new idea, but it pairs so well with chocolate and really helps to stop the cake drying out. Plus, I’m always keen for original ways to use up my summer courgette glut. Either way, this is such a good cake, no one need ever know it’s hiding a good serving of vegetables, 

If you like this, try Amelia Freer's cheat's fish pie and one-pot dahl recipe also from The Organised Cook.

Amelia Freer's Chocolate Courgette Cake with Rich Chocolate Icing

Suitable for: VEGETARIAN / (GF) 

• Serves 8–10
• Prep time: 15 mins
• Cook time: 35 mins

Ingredients:

For the cake:

• 100g dark chocolate (with at least 70% cocoa solids)
• 200g courgette, grated
• 80ml mild olive oil
• 2 large free-range eggs
• 50g plain yoghurt (or coconut yoghurt, if dairy-free)
• 70g caster sugar
• 150g self-raising flour (use gluten-free, if necessary)
• 1⁄2 tsp bicarbonate of soda 
• pinch of salt
• 30g dark chocolate chips (optional)

For the icing:

• 100g dark chocolate (with at least 70% cocoa solids)
• 4 tbsp cream cheese (or coconut yoghurt, if dairy-free)
• 1 tbsp maple syrup or honey 
• pinch of salt

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C fan/180oC/gas 4 and line a 18cm round cake tin with parchment paper.
2. Melt the dark chocolate for the cake in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water (or in a microwave if you have one), making sure the base of the bowl does not touch the water.
3. In a large bowl, mix the grated courgette, oil, eggs, yoghurt, melted chocolate and sugar.
4. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, bicarbonate of soda and salt. Stir the flour mixture into the courgette mix until just combined, then stir in the chocolate chips, if using.
5. Pour into the tin and bake for about 30–35 minutes (until a skewer comes out clean). Allow to cool for 10 minutes before turning out of the tin.
6. Meanwhile, to make the icing, melt the dark chocolate as before and set aside to cool for 5 minutes. Stir in the cream cheese, syrup or honey and salt until smooth.
7. When the cake is completely cool, spread the icing over the top and sides and serve.

The Organised Cook: The life-changing way to save time, shop smarter and eat more healthily by Amelia Freer is out now, published by Lagom

Buy now, £12.50