Green-Tomato Cake

I got tired of battling hornworms and took out most of the tomato plants.  Powdery mildew was threatening to weaken what the caterpillars didn't eat.  I'm also kind of over preserving the excess tomatoes.  This left me with quite a few green tomatoes to deal with.  I didn't want to turn all of it into pickled green tomatoes.  Most of them will ripen on the counter if I leave them long enough.  Meanwhile, I went looking for unusual recipes.

This idea of substituting green tomatoes in a carrot cake recipe piqued my interest.  I was skeptical enough to make a one-egg version in a 6" pan.  Also didn't want to grate all the green tomatoes I harvested.  Several pounds of cherry tomatoes?  Yeah, no.  I got halfway through doing the first one by hand and switched to the food processor.

My one-third recipe makes a very full 6" cake.  You could also double it as two thinner 8" layers, or the original size of recipe in the 9x13 pan.  I was also thrilled with the result when I used a cake strip around the pan.  Perfectly flat top and evenly baked, which is hard to do on a thick layer.

Unlike with zucchini bread, you're going to be able to see the green in this cake.  Sorry.  Too bad St. Patrick's Day is too early for even green tomatoes.

*1 C grated green tomatoes, measured after draining
2/3 C granulated sugar
1/2 C vegetable oil
1 egg, room temperature 
3/4 tsp vanilla
1 C flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves
heaping 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

1.  Spray a 6" or 8" cake pan, and line with parchment paper if desired.  If using, start soaking baking strip.  Preheat oven to 350º.

2.  To grate tomatoes, either use a box grater or the shredding blade on a food processor.  Drain well in a fine-mesh strainer.  Lightly press out the juice, but it's ok if they aren't perfectly dry.

3.  In one bowl or a large measuring cup, combine sugar, oil, egg, and vanilla.  Whisk well.  In another bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, cloves, baking soda, and salt.

4.  Pour wet mix into dry mix and stir until almost combined.  Add shredded tomatoes and fold in until everything is wet, but not overly mixed.

5.  Pour batter into prepared pan and bake 35-40 minutes, until the cake passes the toothpick test.

6.  Allow to rest in the pan 5-10 minutes before running a spatula around the edges and turning out.  It's a very tender cake and I tore a bit by removing it too soon.  Once fully cooled, frost or glaze as desired.  I used a touch of cream cheese frosting only on the top, sprinkled with nutmeg and lemon zest.

Serves about 6

Difficulty rating  :)