Tropical Traditions - Recipe - Making A Foolproof Gluten Free Cake

Making A Foolproof Gluten Free Cake

Life without gluten can be full of obstacles and variations, but that shouldn’t mean you have to settle for something less.

Take cake for an example. Gluten-free cakes will never be as good as the wheat ones, right? WRONG! I myself am not gluten intolerant, but I do know what it’s like to have to give something up because it’s not healthy and try to find an alternative. I don’t like to settle for something less; for me taste is a very close second to healthy.

My biggest goal in producing gluten-free recipes is "foolproof-ness." Cake was a big one, and I was eager to try it. This was right about the time that I was really getting into my little coconut flour frenzy and trying to come up with as many recipes as possible for the product. Cake was something I hadn’t tried yet, but I was ready to start experimenting.

The first thing was ideas. I wanted to do a yellow and chocolate cake, but decided on the chocolate first. I found a chocolate cake recipe I liked, and began the long process of taking it apart, adding, taking away, testing, testing, testing. By the time I was done it was a totally different recipe. It was by far the longest time I ever spent developing a recipe; even longer then my Coconut Flour Brownies. I tried, and tried again. Each time there always seemed to be something wrong with it. The biggest issue was the dryness. It always seemed too dry. The more I experimented, the more the amount of eggs grew. Soon they had reached a rather alarming amount, but by that time I finally had the perfect gluten free chocolate cake.

It was moist, fluffy, chocolaty, and perfectly foolproof. Many times I’ve made them for company dessert (many with little kids by the way) and unless I told them they were gluten free they would’ve never known or suspected and would’ve just kept on happily wolfing it down.

No, no, seriously. It’s really that good. If you make it, follow the recipe exactly and please don’t change a thing and then tell me it doesn’t work. It really does work. The eggs are the most important part, and they definitely cannot be changed.

While you’re mixing the eggs and butter together, don’t panic if the butter separates into little sesame seed shapes. That’s normal, and doesn’t bother anything at all. I also recommend having the butter still just a tad bit cold, not near melting point.

This recipe can be made as a 2, 8 inch layer cake, a 9 inch layer cake, or cupcakes. I like to use a buttercream frosting for this cake but pretty much anything that goes with chocolate will be good on this.

If any of you try the recipe, please feel free to let me know how you liked it. :)

Gluten Free Coconut Flour Chocolate Cake

Prepared by Sarah Shilhavy, Photo by Jeremiah Shilhavy

Coconut Flour Chocolate Cake

1 cup butter - softened
1 2/3 cups sugar (white or brown, I recommend the whole sugar)
10 eggs (at room temperature)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups coconut flour
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cups whole milk or half n’ half
Coconut oil

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two 9 inch or 8 inch layer pans with coconut oil and dust with cocoa powder.

In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine butter and sugar, and beat together for about 2 minutes. Add eggs in one at a time and beat high speed for about 3 minutes. Add in the vanilla while beating the eggs and butter mixture. In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients together and add alternately with the milk to the butter mixture. Beat batter for about five minutes on high speed. Spoon batter into the two prepared cake pans and smoothen out tops.

Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into the center of cake comes out clean. Place pans on wire rack and cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans. Cool cakes completely before frosting. Use your favorite frosting to frost the cake.

Peppermint Chocolate cake variation: add 1 teaspoon peppermint extract to batter before pouring into pans and mix well. Frost cake with peppermint frosting or frosting of your choice.

Cupcakes: Make recipe as directed but spoon batter into muffin cups and bake for about 26-30 minutes. Frost after cupcakes have cooled completely. Makes about 24 cupcakes.

Enjoy everyone!

Sarah Shilhavy

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This cake looks and sounds yummy, but my mixer doesn't have a paddle attachment. Would it really make a difference if I used regular beaters? You said to follow the recipe exactly, so I'm almost afraid to try it.

# Posted By Denise | 11/12/09 10:44 PM

Hi Denise!
The recipe will work with regular beaters. Just watch the batter and stop mixing once it looks pretty well incorporated. As with any mixer the time it takes to mix everything together will vary. The thing that you should really follow exactly is the ingredient list, but you'll be fine with regular beaters. :)

# Posted By Sarah | 11/12/09 11:00 PM

Hi This cake looks wonderful, but unfortunely for me,I cannot have sugar. I am not big on sugar subsitutes such as Splenda. Do you think Splenda would work. Any other suggestions for sugar?

Thanks

Susan

# Posted By susan | 11/14/09 7:06 PM

Hummm...well, I don't recommend Splenda. Not healthy. I've never made this cake without sugar, and really to be honest don't know how it would turn out. Honey might work...but to be on the safe side I'd do a half batch and try it. You could make this instead though: http://www.freecoconutrecipes.com/recipe_Gluten-Free_Chocolate_Coconut_Cake.htm. It's sugar free. :)

# Posted By Sarah | 11/14/09 9:00 PM

No SUGAR in this cake! I made this cake with all these ingredients, except i did not use any sugar, because we have diabetics in our family, and I just plain don't want it myself. For all our desserts, I substitute xylitol in place of sugar. Use the same amount of xylitol as is stated in the recipe for the sugar. This cake was absolutely delicious even with no icing!!! It was light and moist!!! By the way, I used regular beaters.
You can also make icing with the xylitol.
Thankyou so much for the recipe, Sarah!!!
Xylitol from birch trees is best.

# Posted By Nan | 12/19/09 3:03 PM

Thank you Nan! So happy you enjoyed it and was able to tweak it. :)

# Posted By Sarah | 12/22/09 12:04 PM

How much coconut oil should one use?

# Posted By Kate | 12/22/09 1:43 PM

Use just enough to grease the pans; no specific measurement.

# Posted By Sarah | 12/22/09 2:39 PM

is it ok to use rice milk? and to use rapadura or coconut sugar?

# Posted By Kristine | 12/27/09 7:07 PM

Thank you all for your comments, your comments will allow me to bake replacing the sugar and gluten in my diet without giving up something sweet once in a while. I am not able to eat regular sugar or wheat products. Can anyone tell me how much coconut flour to use as a substitute?

# Posted By Lorna | 12/27/09 10:22 PM

You can read about that here: http://www.freecoconutrecipes.com/index.cfm/2009/8/5/How-To-Use-Coconut-Flour

# Posted By Sarah | 12/28/09 10:59 PM

I made this cake last nights and it was amazing! I'm just getting used to making gluten free so don't always know when it's done and may have over baked it a tiny bit but it was so delicious just the way the recipe was written. Has anyone ever used carob powder instead of cocoa? My son has problems with chocolate. I may try it next time.

# Posted By Julie | 1/8/10 3:15 AM

I forgot to add that I put on peanutbutter icing--wow! My husband even ate some. Very delicious.

# Posted By Julie | 1/8/10 3:17 AM

I'm eager to try this recipe as well as many others here. I'm used to using almond flour and adding xanthan gum. Is xanthan gum helpful when using coconut flour? It helps to bind, and improve texture in flourless baking.

# Posted By Brenda Newman | 2/3/10 3:44 PM

Yes, xanthan gum is a very good addition to coconut flour baked goods. You can toss a bit in with the flour if you want, but go slow on the amount. I didn't develop the recipe using said gum but it won't hurt it. :) It really can only make it better.

# Posted By Sarah | 2/3/10 9:41 PM

Thanks! I'll let you know how it turns out.

# Posted By Brenda | 2/4/10 8:50 AM

I made this cake and it was DIVINE!!! I used 1 1/3 cup of applesauce and 1/3 c. honey and it was perfectly moist and amazing!! We are on a sugar restriction for now but I needed something for my daughter's birthday that woldn't disappoint.....this was it!!! Thank you for a great AND tryuly foolproof cake!!

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