The Most Fudgy Aubergine Chocolate Cake

An aubergine chocolate cake that tastes surprisingly delicious (and not a bit of aubergine/eggplant)! Fudgy, rich, flourless, gluten free, dairy free, and more-ish.

We all know how difficult kids can be about vegetables. Do you have one or more children who are picky over a certain veggie (or lots of them)?

I’ve been working with Veg Power for a couple of years now, and one of the best bits is getting access to some of the UK’s leading experts in cooking, nutrition, child psychology and more.

I’ve learned so many amazing tips from these guys, and all of them have been super helpful when I am trying to gently coerce a 4-year-old into taking “just one bite” of roasted squash as they prod it suspiciously with a fork and declare it officially “yucky”.

One thing I have learned over the years that has been reiterated to me by experts is the need to avoid using “hidden vegetables” as the only technique to get veg into children.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s an excellent way to get a little more veg into a fussy easter’s diet. And many of my recipes include it for exactly that reason.

But 90% of the time, when I’m blitzing a vegetable into a recipe where it won’t be recognised, I have my kids make it with me, or I am really upfront about the fact that it is in there.

Why?

Because of the experts’ top tips I’ve gathered over the years, tips that include:

1. Don’t hide veg – or if you do, also include it in a different, visible form in their diet so they also know they are eating it, otherwise they are not being exposed to the veggie for more long-term benefits. Which leads me to…
2. Exposure is key – the more a child experiences a vegetable, the more likely they are to eat it. This can include…
3. Cook together – encourage the child to see, hold, touch, chop, taste, smell and generally be involved with the vegetable as they prepare a meal with you. It also increases their positive associations with it as they enjoy spending time with you.
4. Eat it together – kids’ learn by watching us. Eating together at mealtimes not only strengthens family bonds, but it also gives them an opportunity to see us enjoying the vegetable, which makes it more likely they will try it themselves. The healthy choices you make will pass on to them!
5. Grow together – whether you have a massive garden or just a small windowsill, you can grow something. Herbs, small veg, large veg… pick one or two together and give it a go. The exposure to the veg and the care they take over it will build a positive relationship with it.

Still, there’s a time and place for hidden veg – and this cake is definitely it! This is not a cake to make to get your kid to like aubergine. I prefer to think of it as a way to add depth of flavour, texture and denser nutrients to a cake to make it ever so slightly healthier when you are going to be making cake anyway.

And I love kids’ faces when you make it with them!

You’d never guess there’s aubergine in there, it just makes it fudgy and rich.

So enjoy this flourless, dairy free, low sugar veg-containing aubergine chocolate cake – just don’t let it be the only way your kids are exposed to aubergine! My daughter hates the vegetable, but will eat an entire bowlful of baba ganoush (aubergine dip). There’s a way for your child to love it that doesn’t involves chocolate and sweetener, it might just take time for you to figure it out.

And in the meantime, this is a great treat with a little more nutrition!

5 from 4 votes

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Aubergine Chocolate Cake (Flourless/Dairy Free/Low Sugar)

Prep Time

15 mins

Cook Time

1 hr

Total Time

1 hr 15 mins

 

An aubergine chocolate cake that tastes surprisingly delicious (and not a bit of aubergine/eggplant)! Fudgy, rich, flourless, gluten free, dairy free, and more-ish.

Keyword: Aubergine, Autumn, Blender, Cake, Chocolate, Comfort Food, Dairy Free, Dessert, Easy, Eggplant, Fall, Flourless, Gluten Free, Low Carb, Low Sugar, Sugar Free, Vegetarian

Servings: 8 – 12 serves

Ingredients

• 300 g (10.5 oz) aubergines
• 200 g (7 oz) 85-90% dark chocolate, roughly chopped
• 35 g (1/3 cup) cacao or cocoa powder
• 100 g (1/2 cup) xylitol*
• 50 g (1/2 cup) ground almonds or hazelnuts
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2 medium eggs
• pinch sea salt

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas 4. Lightly grease and line an 8” (20cm) cake tin. Meanwhile, wash the aubergines, chop roughly into small cubes (no need to peel) and steam until soft (about 20 minutes). Strain through a sieve, pressing down lightly to get rid of any excess water, then add to a food processor and blitz until pureed and smooth. Add the chopped chocolate and place the lid on the blender but don’t turn it on – just leave it to melt the chocolate for a few minutes.

2. When the chocolate is melted, pulse to combine, then add the remaining ingredients and blitz until smooth. Pour into the prepared cake tin and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake is coming out just clean (if you want it even gooier, take it out when there are still a few crumbs sticking; if you want it more cakey, wait until the skewer is clearly coming out clean). Allow to cool before serving with crème fraîche or thick Greek yogurt and a handful of berries or sliced stonefruit, if you like.

Recipe Notes

*You can use the same amount of coconut sugar or even brown sugar, but please bear in mind this will up the sugar content of the cake from 2.6g (just over 1/2 tsp) per serve to 15g (almost 4 tsp) per serve making it just over the recommended allowance for kids for the day, and about 2/3 of an adult’s – although still a fraction of other aubergine chocolate cakes. Alternatively, use a baking blend of sugar and stevia and use half the amount to make it more like 7-8g (2 tsp per serve).

Looking for more veg and fruit packed desserts? Check out my dessert recipes here.