Kale cake? Yes! You can't taste the kale in this delicious vegetable cake, but it gives this cake a bright green colour and leaves some goodness behind. Hundreds of readers have made it and loved it.
Kale Cake! From Veggie Desserts + Cakes published by Pavilion Books. Image: Clare Winfield
Kale Cake
I love this kale cake so much, that I've included it in my debut cookbook, Veggie Desserts + Cakes, all about vegetable cake recipes and vegetables in other desserts!
It has long been popular on this blog and hundreds of readers have written to me to tell me how much they've loved it.
I hope you love this vegetable cake too. Find out more about my vegetable cake cookbook.
This is the most popular vegetable cake recipe on my blog, with countless readers making it time and again.
Kale has risen up the ranks to become the world's trendiest leafy green, but I've shunned the usual kale chips and smoothies, and made it naughty by baking it into a cake.
Apple Kale Cake
This kale cake has a delicate apple-flavoured sponge, topped with a zesty apple icing and, although there is quite a bit of kale, the flavour doesn't overpower the other ingredients.
I've found that the fresher the kale, the brighter the colour of the cake.
When I can get my hands on freshly picked local heads of kale, the green is incredibly vibrant.
Supermarket bags of chopped kale also work fine, but the colour can occasionally turn out a little less bright.
But don't be tempted to add more kale to make the colour brighter or its flavour will come through too much!
Why Make Kale Cake
I've added applesauce to this veg cake, so less oil needs to be used.
This kale cake is sweet without being too sugary and has moist texture, as vegetable cakes often do.
For the icing, instead of the usual buttercream I beat the powdered sugar with applesauce and just a little butter to solidify it.
The tangy sweet icing compliments this vegetable cake well.
I know that you're still sceptical.
Heck, I would be if I hadn't tried it.
More Vegetable Cake Recipes
If you're looking for more unusual vegetable cake recipes, try:
cauliflower banana bundt cake with cinnamon icing
lemon cucumber cake with gin icing
vanilla pea cake.
Kale Cake Recipe Testimonials
I've had LOADS of readers make this kale cake again and again, so here are some of their thoughts:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "This was great – and I entered it to a competition and won first prize! Thanks!" - Mark
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "It was fun to keep people guessing as to why it was green. Needless to say, the cake received lots of compliments and there was none left. Several people asked where I found the recipe." - Megan
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "It was very tasty!" - Laurel
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "I just made this cake.. It’s delicious!!!!! Will definitely make it again" - Caroline
Vegan Kale Cake
And a reader successfully made it into a vegan kale cake:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Delicious! I made it with flax “eggs” – came out great! Thank you for the beautiful recipe." - Lyd
Tips for Making Kale Cake
- Puree the kale very well, making a slightly stringy paste, in order to get an even green colour.
- If necessary, add a little of the applesauce to the kale to make pureeing easier.
- A hand blender/emersion blender works best to puree the kale.
- Readers have had success using flax eggs to make a vegan kale cake.
- Use any apples that you like to eat, gala, cox etc...
- Fresh kale can produce a more vibrant colour, though supermarket bags of chopped kale still work well.
- Don't be tempted to add more kale to get a brighter colour or the flavour will come through too much.
- Check out my other naturally green vegetable cakes!
Get the Kale Cake Recipe
If you make this kale and apple cake recipe, please tag it with #veggiedesserts on Instagram or other social media. I LOVE seeing your recreations of my recipes! Also, pop down to the comment and let me know how you got on with the recipe. It’s always great to hear from my readers.
Kale and Apple Cake with Apple Icing
Ingredients
- 3 cups loosely packed, (200g) kale raw, woody stalks discarded)
- 3 eggs
- ½ cup (100ml) vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup (100g) applesauce (see notes on how to make your own)
- ¾ cup (175g) granulated sugar
- 2 apples peeled and grated
- 2 cups (250g) plain flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
For the Apple Icing
- 2 cups (250g) icing sugar
- 2 tablespoons butter softened
- 2 tablespoons applesauce smooth, puree if necessary
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F. Grease and line 2 x 8”(20cm) round cake tins with baking paper.
- Tear the kale leaves into bite-sized pieces and boil or steam for a few minutes until tender. Refresh by running under cold water, drain and puree well with a hand blender.
**Kale is one of the more difficult vegetables to puree since it's quite fibrous. I've found that a hand blender works best. Persevere for a few minutes to blitz the fibrous leaves to a paste. If necessary, add a little of the applesauce when pureeing to make it easier to blitz.**
It will still be slightly stringy. Set aside. - Beat the eggs, oil, vanilla, applesauce and sugar together well with an electric mixer. Beat in the kale puree and grated apple.
- Sift in the flour, baking powder and salt and gently combine, taking care not to overmix at this stage.
- Pour into the prepared tins and bake for 30 minutes or until an inserted skewer comes out clean.
- Cool for 2 minutes in the tins and then turn onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- For the Apple Icing:
Sift the icing sugar into a bowl, add the other ingredients and mix with an electric mixer until smooth. - Store in the fridge until ready to use. Frost the completely cooled cake.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information provided is approximate and can vary depending on several factors, so is not guaranteed to be accurate. Please see a registered dietician for special diet advice.
Angie
Can I use baby kale? If so, should I remove the stems?
Kate Hackworthy
Hi, that should still work. Just remove any tough stems that won't puree after cooking.
Thea
My cake turned out bland with bits of green from kale but not a green coloring of the cake. . What wenr wrong ?
Kate Hackworthy
Hi Thea
If the cake didn't get a green colour, then it would have been that the kale just wasn't pureed enough. Sorry that you didn't have any luck with this.
Dianne Carpenter
Excellent recipe!
Sam
Hi
Can I use curly kale for this recipe? Tia
Kate Hackworthy
Hi, absolutely! Any kale will work. I hope you enjoy it.
Sam
Absolutely delicious.
The only change (mistake) I did was not cook the kale before blending it. So it did have a mild kale smell. I'm hoping my kids(picky eater) will enjoy it and I will be super happy to get some veggies into them... Thanks heaps for the brilliant recipe and immediate response. Gonna try your others ones soon.
Kathy K
I made these as mini cupcakes, but used a Two Sisters Cinnamon Buttercream frosting instead. Decadent, I know, but I was looking for a frosting that I could use to make the cupcakes look pretty! Anyhow, they are getting raves! The cake is very moist!
Kelsey
These are great! Just a hint of kale. I did a half recipe and got 12 cupcakes baked for 21 minutes. I prefer the icing a little less sweet, but otherwise awesome.
Tas
Hi Kate, just found you, and have become an instant fan. I tried this cake today, and it came out a little doughy although the family thought it was great. Does yours? Or should I have left it in the oven for longer? It passed all the ‘done’ tests: was brown around the edges, which came away from the sides, and the skewer came out clean. I do have a fan forced oven though and it usually converts 180 Celsius to 160 Celsius ... is your recommended oven temp for a fan forced oven? Really want to perfect this - I’m a dietitian and really want to recommend your website to patients too! Thankyou x
Anna Rumming-Pain
I really want to try this! Is the apple sauce shop bought? If so, where can I get it? Or is it homemade? If so, how do I make it? Sorry, complete novice!
Kate Hackworthy
Hi! I sometimes buy applesauce (it's with other condiments like mint sauce etc...), or else I make my own. Peel and core apples, then slice thinly and put into a pan with a tablespoon of water. Cook until the apples are soft, then puree.
Janice
What a wonderful recipe! It's so unusual and looks absolutely delicious