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The best and (easiest) Chocolate Zucchini Banana Cake with Vanilla Coffee Frosting. No fuss, super quick to mix up, and SO DELICIOUS! Yes, that pretty much sums up this zucchini banana cake. It’s the perfect simple cake to bake up this weekend and use up all that summer zucchini! With over-ripe bananas, zucchini, salted butter, and a good amount of creamy vanilla coffee frosting this is sure to become a favorite. Perfect as an afternoon snack or a late-night dessert.
I’ve been holding onto this recipe for of couple weeks now, waiting for just the right time share. And today is the day! I wanted to wait until late August, when all of the garden fresh zucchini was at its peak harvest.
If you’re growing zucchini in the garden this year, my hope is that you have plenty on hand to bake up in this banana zucchini cake. And if you’re not a gardener, the grocery store should still be able to meet your needs.
Either way, you guys have to bake this cake this weekend. It’s one of my favorites of the summer.
The inspiration
First up, some of you may remember my banana cake from a few years back. It’s a reoccurring staple in my kitchen. And a recipe that’s so simple and easy to make, we just love it!
Secondly, summer zucchini. I love my recipes for zucchini bread that I’ve shared, but I’ve never tried making a zucchini banana bread. Once I had that idea it quickly shifted into more of a zucchini banana cake, since I really, really wanted to add a frosting.
And finally, the frosting. It was really my reason behind wanting to bake a cake. It’s a frosting recipe I developed for another recipe back in the fall of last year. And it’s one that I LOVE so much. Anything vanilla coffee is always a favorite.
I put the cake and the frosting together and something magical and delicious happened. This cake is so good!
Here’s how I make my zucchini banana cake
The first step is the zucchini. Here’s the thing, when baking with zucchini it’s really important to remove any excess moisture (so the water). You want to do this so your baked goods don’t end up super dense and watered down. Simply shred the zucchini, then ring the zucchini to squeeze out all the excess water. It’s really easy, the drier you can get the zucchini, the lighter your cake will be.
The rest of this recipe is VERY easy. The cake itself is made in just one large bowl!
Find yourself some very ripe bananas, I’m talking practically black bananas everyone. Very, very brown bananas are KEY. They keep this cake, flavorful, sweet, and incredibly moist.
Mash up the bananas and then mix with a little coconut oil, honey, a couple of eggs, and a splash of vanilla. Next, add the dry ingredients: flour, a pinch of cinnamon, and a dash of salt. Stir in some shredded zucchini and then fold in lots of chocolate chunks. The chocolate isn’t needed, but it certainly takes the cake to a whole new level.
Bake and 30 minutes later your house is going to smell incredible. Nothing smells better than a sweet banana based dessert baking away.
Now, on to that creamy vanilla coffee frosting
This is the real secret to this cake. It takes the recipe from average to really darn good.
I wanted the cream cheese frosting to be light and whipped with just the right amounts of vanilla and coffee flavored throughout. I used a bit of cream cheese to keep it light and creamy. Then added instant espresso powder and real vanilla for flavor.
It’s not your everyday frosting, but I promise it’s delicious.
Once the cake is out of the oven, let it cool, then frost and enjoy! Every last bite leaves you wanting another.
The perfect cake to bake up now, but also enjoy into fall. That frosting reminds me of a warming spice latte. It’s already getting me excited for what’s to come!
Looking for other sweet zucchini recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Chocolate Chunk Almond Butter Zucchini Bread
Sneaky Zucchini Chocolate Chunk Coconut Bread
Zucchini Peach Streusel Muffins
Lastly, if you make this Chocolate Zucchini Banana Cake with Vanilla Coffee Frosting, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Zucchini Banana Cake with Coffee Frosting
Servings: 10
Calories Per Serving: 660 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 2 small zucchini, grated (about 1 1/2 cups grated, before squeezing out water)
- 2 medium ripe bananas, mashed (about 3/4 cup mashed)
- 1/2 cup melted coconut oil
- 1/3 cup honey
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup semi-sweet or dark chocolate chunks
Frosting
- 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter, at room temperature
- 1 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar
- 1 tablespoon instant coffee powder
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- 1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper.2. Place the shredded zucchini in a clean towel, then squeeze out any excess water. 3. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the mashed bananas, coconut oil, honey, eggs, and vanilla until combined. Add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt, mix until just combined. Stir in the zucchini. Fold in the chocolate. Pour the batter into the prepared bread pan. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until the center is just set. Remove and let cool for at least 30 minutes before frosting.4. To make the frosting, dissolve the instant coffee in 1 tablespoon hot water. In a stand mixer, beat together the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the confectioners’ sugar, coffee, and vanilla. Beat until the frosting is light and fluffy, 2 to 4 minutes more. 5. Spread the frosting over cake. Slice, snack, and enjoy!
This post was originally published on August 27, 2021
Delicious and so easy …. The coffee added to the icing adds such a great subtle twist!
Hey Cathy,
Awesome! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks for making it! xTieghan
This was SO GOOD!! Loved the zucchini/banana bread combo and that coffee frosting was just amazing. Will definitely make again!
Hey Avery,
Awesome! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks for making it! xTieghan
Fabulous recipe! Made exactly as written- except I didn’t frost them since me & my kids ate it before I could get to that step! Love that it uses honey and bananas instead of sugar to sweeten. Thanks for the awesome recipe- its a keeper!
Hey Lainey,
Awesome! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks for making it! xTieghan
I made this recipe into mini muffins for school snacks. Big hit! Thanks for the inspiration!
Hey Angel,
Happy Labor Day!?? Thanks a lot for giving this recipe a try, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! xTieghan
I made this last night along with the Sage Chicken with Creamy Potatoes out of the Super Simple cookbook. Both were hits! Even the kid loved the coffee icing…although he was mighty awake still at 11 pm 🙂
Hey Helen,
Happy Labor Day!?? Thanks a lot for giving this recipe a try, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! xTieghan
I made these this week. The cake was amazing and the the frosting is unreal! I’d like to take this frosting and try in on some other favorites like cinnamon rolls! From one high altitude baker to another… this one is a home run!
Hey Amy,
Happy Sunday! Thanks a lot for making this recipe. I am delighted to hear that it was enjoyed! xTieghan
Can I use this recipe for cupcakes? If so, what degree and how long should I cook them?
Hey Annie,
Sure, I would use the same temp but reduce your baking time to 25 minutes. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
Made this and we all loved it! I made two small changes-I used banana I had frozen and let thaw, that makes for a real soggy banana mush. So I only added 1/4 cup coconut oil. Also, I baked it in a springform pan. Made the frosting just as described (it was fabulous-definitely use the coffee), it’s enough for two cakes, so I’m making another cake! Thank you for this.
Hey Beth,
Fantastic! Love to hear that the recipe was enjoyed, thanks bunch for making it. Have the best weekend:) xTieghan
Hi there!
Going to make this this weekend but wanted to ask what suggestions you might have for a coffee substitute for the icing. My partner is super sensitive to caffeine so I will probably make a second icing for him. Still making some of the coffee icing for myself though!
Thanks,
Kait
Hey Kait,
You can simply omit the coffee. Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love the recipe! xTieghan
So delicious even though I substituted flour for almond flour and coconut oil for MCT coconut oil. Thank-you! Will definitely do it again.
Hey there,
Fantastic! Love to hear that the recipe was enjoyed, thanks bunch for making it. Have the best weekend:) xTieghan
…any thoughts as in using Summer Squash in place of Zucchini? I’ve never seen a baked recipe using the yellow squash, so I’m thinking no?
OOPS, so sorry! – I see that Claire asked the same question on August 27, 2021 at 5:51 AM – so I’m going to try this recipe with the yellow squash this weekend – YAY! BTW, I’ve never had one of your recipes fail me yet!
Enjoy everyone.
Hey Mary Ellen,
I’ve never tried this, you could certainly test it out if you’d like, I’m sure it would be fine to use. Let me know if you give the recipe a try! xTieghan
made this today and it turned out sooooo good! maybe one of my favorite recipes of yours! thanks for sharing!!
Hey Tay,
Happy Friday! I am delighted to hear that this recipe was enjoyed! Thanks a lot for making it. xTieghan
A friend of mine posted this recipe to an all girl cooking group and I was lucky enough to see it. Your stunning photo caught my eye, but the simplicity of the recipe really made me want to try it because I am NOT a baker. The ease of the ingredients and instructions had me convinced I could make this! I did NOT change a thing and, not only was it easy to make, it was ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS! I cater for a living, so I am hyper-critical about recipes (ease to make, works well for all cooks, and it has to be delicious, etc.). Your recipe took the cake and made me go bananas for this moist, not overly sweet, and perfectly topped cake! That icing is the BOMB! I’m trying to figure out how to use it in a Zuccato Cake… Thanks for such an outstanding recipe!
Hey Pam,
Happy Friday! I am delighted to hear that this recipe was enjoyed! Thanks a lot for making it. xTieghan
Loved this recipe! combines sweetness of banana bread without refined sugar, a touch of healthy with zucchini and of course chocolate chips! used Dark chocolate chips so it didn’t add too much sweetness and made a strong cup of drip coffee and just used a tablespoon of that for the frosting- was perfect!
Iced half the cake with frosting without coffee for the kids and the rest with the coffee frosting and tasted good either way!
Hey Laura,
Happy Friday! I am delighted to hear that this recipe was enjoyed! Thanks a lot for making it. xTieghan
Can I use frozen grated zucchini? Should I defrost it and remove the excess water?
Hey Bobbie,
Yes, that should work well for you! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know how it turns out! xTieghan