Gluten-Free Courgette Cake Traybake

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This Gluten-Free Courgette Cake Traybake is an easy everyday bake made with gluten-free flours and no xanthan gum. Covered with a dreamy lemon mascarpone icing this cake makes the most of summer’s bounteous courgettes and is perfectly light, moist and incredibly moreish.

this recipe

If you have an abundance of courgettes this season then this Courgette Cake Traybake is a wonderful celebration of this lovely summer vegetable. It boasts a wonderfully light sponge with a tender crumb thanks to the combination of rice and oat flour which not only means this cake is gloriously gluten-free but also lends it a toasted, coming to the end of high summer, campfire in the evenings vibe.

This moist cake is then topped with a creamy lemon mascarpone icing turning this into a delightful gluten-free courgette and lemon cake. The icing has only a mere whisper of sugar, but plenty of zesty citrus, will be your kind of heaven. Lemon is the perfect compliment to the delicate courgette flavour. A perfect treat for our heady August days when cake might otherwise seem too indulgent.

Why you'll love this cake

• The batter comes together in moments, baking up a dream so it is ready, iced and on your fork before you can change your mind about having an afternoon slice of cake.
• Tasty way to make the most of courgette (zucchini) season for all of us veggie lovers.
• Carefully spiced with a touch of cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg.
• No xanthan gum.
• This sponge cake has a light fluffy texture.
• Light, creamy and zesty mascarpone icing which is the perfect compliment to the soft sponge.

How to prepare the courgettes

The courgettes need to be grated to add to the cake mixture. You can grate the courgette in several ways:

• Julienne peeler. It's time consuming but does create lovely strands of courgette.
• Grating attachment of food processor. This is my favourite method as it's very quick, the size and shape of the courgette is completely uniform so it gives the cake a great texture.
• Box grater. This is my least preferred method as it is time consuming and you don't get a uniform result. Having said that if it's all you have then it's absolutely a viable method.

After you have grated the courgette you will need to squeeze out the excess moisture as courgettes have a high water content which can interfere with the liquid content of the bake.

To squeeze out the excess moisture then place the grated courgette in a large muslin square or cheesecloth. Then roll it up and wring it out. The water will filter out through the pours in the cloth. The courgette is then ready to be added to the cake mixture.

Which gluten-free flour blend to use

The sponge is so light thanks to the power partnership of rice and oat flour.

Oat flour

This is a lovely soft fluffy flour with a delicious toasty flavour. If you can’t find oat flour then by all means whizz up some oats very finely in your food processor, the results will be the same and oat flour can be quite pricey.

READ MORE >>> Ultimate Guide to Oat Flour

Substitution: You can swap the oat flour for sorghum flour.

Rice flour

This is a very accessible and affordable gluten-free flour which can be found at most supermarkets. You can use either white rice flour or brown rice flour for this recipe.

READ MORE >>> Ultimate Guide to Rice Flour

✨You can swap out both the rice flour and the oat flour for the same amount as my DIY Gluten-Free All Purpose Flour Blend.✨

What ingredients do we need

• Courgettes (fresh zucchini). Use the freshest vegetable, preferably organic.
• Light muscovado sugar. For flavour, sweetness and structure.
• Olive oil. Use the mild, light, flavourless oil. You can substitute for vegetable oil.
• Eggs. Use 4 medium eggs.
• Rice flour. You can use white rice flour or brown rice flour.
• Oat flour. You can use homemade.
• Spices. Cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg are used for a lovely warm flavour.
• Bicarbonate of soda. To help the cake rise.
• Baking powder. Make sure it’s gluten-free. Used to help the cake rise and a tender crumb.
• Salt. This recipe is tested with kosher salt which gives a soft salt flavour.

Recommended equipment

• 13" x 9" Baking tin
• Julienne peeler
• 13" Offset spatula

How to make the courgette cake

For full recipe instructions go to the recipe card at the end of this post. 

• Grate the courgettes and squeeze out the excess moisture.
• Wet ingredients. Beat the sugar, olive oil and eggs in a medium bowl until smooth and thick.
• Dry ingredients. Add the rice flour, oat flour, spices, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder and salt.
• Finally stir the grated courgette into the cake batter until evenly dispersed.
• Pour batter into a prepared tin and bake for 40 minutes.

✨Expert tip It's a great idea to allow 20 minutes for batter rest prior to pouring into the cake tin. This helps the gluten-free flours time to soften and absorb the liquid ingredients prior to baking which gives a much better results.✨

Mascarpone Lemon Icing

The icing feels like a bit of a cheat as it is just so easy and unlike most icings you don’t even need a mixer, just whipping together with a wooden spoon is enough.

How to make the icing

Beat the mascarpone with a little yoghurt, icing sugar and lemon zest until light and smooth.

Make ahead

This Courgette Cake Traybake keeps well, un-iced, for up to 3 days at room temperature. Due to the nature of the mascarpone you should ice just before serving. However, you can keep the cake iced in the fridge for up to 2 days but keep in an airtight container. Bring the cake back to room temperature before serving.

How to freeze

It is best to freeze this gluten-free traybake before you add the icing. Once the cake has been cooled then wrap it whole, uncut, in a double layer of cling film and aluminium foil. The cake will keep well in the freezer for up to 2 months.

To defrost, take out of the freezer and leave at room temperature overnight before unwrapping. You can then add the icing.

Other gluten-free courgette recipes you'll love

• Courgette Loaf Cake
• Golden Beetroot Carrot Cake
• Courgette Relish
• Jalapeno Honey Courgette Cornbread
• Chocolate Courgette Muffins {gluten-free and vegan}

✨Have you tried this Gluten-Free Courgette Cake? Please leave a 5-star ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ rating on the recipe card and consider leaving a comment as well! I would love to hear about how your recipe turned out and your feedback also helps other readers✨

Gluten-Free Courgette Cake Traybake

Georgina Hartley

This Courgette Cake Traybake makes the most of summer’s bounty and is perfectly light, moist and incredibly moreish. Topped with a dreamy Lemon Mascarpone Icing.

5 from 3 votes

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 40 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

Course Cake

Cuisine British

Servings 16 slices

Calories 504 kcal

Ingredients

 

MetricUS Customary

 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 400 g light muscovado sugar
• ▢ 300 ml light olive oil - or other flavourless oil
• ▢ 4 eggs - medium, about 200g
• ▢ 240 g rice flour
• ▢ 80 g gluten-free oat flour - or oats finely ground to a powder
• ▢ 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ▢ ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ▢ 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• ▢ 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ▢ ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ▢ 340 g grated courgettes - (about 4) squeezed to remove excess moisture

For the Icing

• ▢ 500 g mascarpone
• ▢ 2 tablespoons natural yoghurt
• ▢ 2 tablespoons icing sugar
• ▢ 1 lemon - grated zest

Instructions

 

• Pre-heat the oven to 170°C/ 150°C fan assisted / gas mark 4 and line a grease a 13x9x4 inch baking tin.
• In a large bowl (or stand mixer) beat together the sugar, olive oil and eggs until smooth and thick.
• Add all the other ingredients in, except for the courgette, and beat until everything is fully mixed together.
• Finally stir in the courgette until evenly dispersed and pour into the prepared baking tin.
• Bake for 40 minutes, checking after 20 minutes and covering with foil if the cake seems to be browning too much.
• When ready, leave the cake in the tin for 5 minutes to settle before turning out onto a wire rack and leaving to cool completely before icing.
• To make the icing beat the mascarpone together with the yoghurt, icing sugar and lemon zest until light and smooth and spread onto the top of the cooled courgette cake with a palette knife.

Notes

Adapted from Alice Medrich’s Carrot Spice Cake in Flavor Flours

Flour substitutions

• Oat flour. You can swap for sorghum flour.
• Rice flour. You can use white rice flour or brown rice flour.

Preparing the courgettes

I recommend using the grating attachment of a food processor for uniformly cut shards of courgette. However, you can also use a julienne peeler or a hand grater.

Squeeze out the excess moisture from the grated courgettes by wrapping in a large muslin and wringing it out.

Make ahead

This cake keeps well, un-iced, for up to 3 days at room temperature. Due to the nature of the mascarpone you should ice just before serving. However, you can keep the cake iced in the fridge for up to 2 days but keep in an airtight container. Bring the cake back to room temperature before serving.

How to freeze

It is best to freeze this courgette cake before you add the icing. Once the cake has been cooled then wrap it whole, uncut, in a double layer of cling film and aluminium foil. The cake will keep well in the freezer for up to 2 months.

To defrost, take out of the freezer and leave at room temperature overnight before unwrapping. You can then add the icing.

How to make dairy-free

The courgette cake itself is dairy-free so you just need to switch out the icing for an allergy friendly alternative.

I recommend a simple whipped coconut cream or a cashew cream.

US customary measurements

These US measurements for the ingredients provided are based on a conversion calculator. This recipe was tested with metric measurements and I recommend using a digital scale to weigh ingredients for the most accurate results. READ MORE >>> Why you should always weigh vs measuring with cups 

Nutrition information

Please note that the nutrition information provided below is an estimate based on an online nutrition calculator. It will vary based on the specific ingredients you use. Please seek a professional nutritionist’s advice for further clarification.

The nutrition serving is for 1 slice of cake.

 

Nutrition

Calories: 504kcalCarbohydrates: 43gProtein: 6gFat: 35gSaturated Fat: 12gCholesterol: 72mgSodium: 186mgPotassium: 198mgFiber: 1gSugar: 26gVitamin A: 540IUVitamin C: 7.3mgCalcium: 106mgIron: 0.9mg

Have you tried this recipe?Head to the comment section and let me know what you think!