This easy gluten-free chocolate cake is super simple, and has the perfect texture. You won’t know it’s gluten-free! It’s my favorite gluten-free chocolate cake recipe and it will be yours too.
And it makes the best gluten-free birthday cake!
Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake
Sometimes you just need a little gluten-free cake chocolate cake to get you through the day. We make this chocolate cake recipe at least once a month. It’s simple, uses minimal ingredients, and it bakes up quick.
I often find that gluten-free cake recipes are complicated or call for a kazillion ingredients (ok, not a kazillion – but a lot). I don’t have the time or the brain space to bake up crazy big recipes, or recipes that have tons of steps in them.
I need gluten-free cake recipes to be simple, have less than 15 ingredients, and require two bowl or less – otherwise my kitchen ends up a massive wreck. You know what I’m talking about right?
Piles and piles of dishes, all for one delicious thing – a gluten-free chocolate cake. You might be wondering why it has to be that way. Well, It doesn’t. There are amazing recipes out there, and they don’t take forever to make or require you to hire a housekeeper to clean up after you in the kitchen. You just have to look for them. Give this gluten-free chocolate cake a try and see what I mean. We often use this gluten-free cake recipe to make gluten-free birthday cake.
When we first switched over to a gluten-free diet we struggled. Gluten-free recipes were over-complicated and we got frustrated in the kitchen. We were tired of having to hunt down ingredients and even more tired of recipes failing.
Chocolate cake was one of the things we missed the most. Not flour-less chocolate cake, not chocolate cake made with nut butters, but regular old-fashioned gluten-free chocolate cake. The kind that is crumbly on the outside, and spongy in the middle.
We tried a couple of gluten-free chocolate cake mixes (mind you, this was seven years before this post) and weren’t satisfied. Most of them tasted like grass. It wasn’t until I started creating recipes from scratch that we found our perfect, easy gluten-free chocolate cake.
How to make gluten-free chocolate cake
There are a couple of tips and tricks to getting the right texture with gluten-free cake. First, you have to follow the recipe. So many people comment on recipe posts saying that they made a ton of substitutions and the recipe didn’t turn out.
Other than the dairy substitute, I haven’t tried other substitutes in this recipe. If you use substitutions, you are doing so at your own risk.
Second, you want to mix at the right time and not over-mix. When you are beating the oil, sugar, and eggs you’ll want to beat it for the time listed. This adds air which in turn helps the cake rise. Beating any longer will cause the batter to stiffen.
Can I make this gluten-free chocolate cake dairy-free?
Yes, you can make this gluten-free chocolate cake dairy-free. Simply use dairy-free milk in the gluten-free chocolate cake mix and use dairy-free butter in the frosting.
Can I make this gluten-free chocolate cake egg-free?
I haven’t tried using an egg substitute in this gluten free chocolate cake but a few others have tried it with flax-egg. If you make it egg free please stop back by and let me know which egg replacer you used. If you don’t want to experiment, you could always start with my Gluten-Free Vegan Chocolate Cupcakes.
What causes a gluten-free cake to crack on top?
If your temperature is too high, or your cake is placed in the oven too high your cake may bake up into a high, cracked dome. The heat of baking activates the baking powder and causes it to release carbon dioxide, which forms bubbles and raises the cake. If your oven is too hot, that process is sped up. Make sure to place your cake in the center, and regularly check your oven’s temperature.
Some of my favorite gluten-free cake recipes:
- Gluten-Free Chocolate Bundt Cake
- Grain-Free Hummingbird Cake
- Gluten-Free Lemon Cake
- Gluten-Free Vegan Chocolate Ganache Cake
If you are looking for cupcake recipes, just search cupcakes in the search bar on the right. Here is a video of my gluten-free chocolate cupcakes, which uses the same ingredient as this chocolate cake.
Why did my gluten-free cake sink?
There are several reason why cakes sink, one is from over beating the batter and adding too much air. Also, cakes often will sink when there is too much moisture. This is more common in humid climates where added moisture can collect naturally in ingredients such as flour. When this occurs, cupcakes may rise rapidly and then fall during baking. In higher elevations, the leavening agent works twice as hard and may cause the batter to rise rapidly and sink before it’s had a chance to set up.
All these tips are relevant to most cake and cupcake recipes, not just this Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake.
This gluten-free chocolate cake recipe is also in my cookbook, “Sweet & Simple Gluten-Free Baking; Irresistible classics in 10 ingredients or less!” I wanted to share it with you so you can find your happily-cake-ever-after. This gluten-free cake recipe is simple enough that anyone can make it (yes, even the non-baker folks).
I hope you enjoy it as much as we do! If you like cake then you’ll also love my Gluten-Free Lemon Cake and my Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes.
If you make this gluten-free cake please stop back by here and let me know what you thought!
Easy Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake
This easy gluten-free chocolate cake is super simple, and has the perfect texture.
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 1/2 cups (320g) granulated sugar
- 2 cups (285g) all purpose gluten-free flour blend
- 3/4 cup (75g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (6g) gluten-free baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (8g) baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt (6g)
- 2 large eggs (110g), room temperature
- 1 cup milk (260g) (or dairy-free milk)
- 1/2 cup (110g) vegetable oil (or oil of choice)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (4g) gluten-free vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup (150g) boiling water (for activating the cocoa)
For the frosting:
- 1/2 cup (115g) butter (or dairy-free butter)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (4g) gluten-free vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup (50g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 4 1/2 cups (450g) powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup (40-60g) milk (or dairy-free milk)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Position rack in center of oven. Grease two 8-inch round cake pans; set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until there are no visible clumps.
- Add eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla. Beat with a mixer on medium speed for two minutes.
- Stir in boiling water.
- Spoon batter evenly into cake pans. Bake for 35 to 38 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Remove from oven and let cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then remove from pan and let cool on a rack.
- For the frosting: In a medium mixing bowl, beat butter and vanilla until smooth and creamy. Add cocoa powder and beat until combined. Gradually add powdered sugar, one cup at a time. Slowly beat in milk. Beat in additional milk if needed, to obtain desired consistency.
- Frost cakes.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days, or in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Notes
- Flour Blend: I used my gluten free blend in this recipe and I've used Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten Free Baking Flour. I do NOT recommend using Bob's Red Mill All Purpose Gluten Free Flour. Bob's Red Mill All Purpose Gluten Free Flour blend has chickpea flour (also known as garbanzo bean flour) in it. Chickpea flour goes rancid rather fast and when it does it creates a dry and sour/bitter flavor. It also does something funny to this recipe.
- When working with or measuring gluten-free flour, spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level. Do not scoop your measuring cup into the gluten-free flour. The best method really is to weight it but I don't have the ingredient weights for all my recipes yet.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
16 slicesServing Size:
1 sliceAmount Per Serving: Calories: 407Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 40mgSodium: 347mgCarbohydrates: 66gFiber: 2gSugar: 49gProtein: 4g
Charlie says
OMG!
Ive been dying for chocolate cake for weeks!
Im FODMAP but can eat butter(thank god)
I also bake alot of GF and Vegan things for a living.
This is the most simple, straight forward recipe and im so excited to try this!(Just in time for my birthday!)
Thank you!
chrystal says
Hi Charlie,
I am so glad you think its simple and straight forward – that’s what I was going for! Thank you for taking time to stop by and let me know.
Best,
Chrystal
Penny Rudder says
I found this recipe yesterday and made it last night. I did not change anything and it was an absolute success. It’s a lovely dark rich chocolatey cake, soft and not over moist. I made it in rectangular pan and baked it for about 45 mins. The mixture is quite loose so don’t be concerned it, works out beautifully.
Thanks so much for posting this recipe. I have been advised to avoid gluten but now at least i can make cake!
chrystal says
Hi Penny,
I am so very glad that you liked it. Thank you for taking time to stop by and let me know. I have almost 300 recipes on my site. I hope you find many more that you love.
Best,
Chrystal
Eileen says
Hi Chrystal,
Hoping to make this for a gluten free friend for her birthday. I don’t have round cake pans. I see Penny used rectangular pan. Assuming 13 x 9? Have you tried it this way? Thanks!
chrystal says
Yes, you can use a 9×13 pan. Start with a baking time of 28 minutes and watch for doneness after that.
Best,
Chrystal
Ruthie says
Chrystal, I want to thank you for this delicious gluten free chocolate cake! My cousin is gluten free & most times doesn’t get to eat the birthday cake til now! I followed the cake recipe exactly as you said. The only thing I made different was a cream cheese frosting. Everyone said how delicious & if I didn’t tell them it was gluten free, they wouldn’t have guessed.
Thank you so very much, Ruthie
chrystal says
Awe, Ruthie, I’m so glad you like it. You are very welcome. Thank you for letting me know everyone loved it.
Best,
Chrystal
Caitlin says
I have made this recipe twice and both times the cake has come out with a sunken top and so crumbly it cannot even stick together. I am using almond flour rather than pure gluten free flour but I am not sure why that change would make it so crumbly when it does not do that to other cakes I have made. I even tried putting in less hot water the last time I made it and it was still so crumbly. Do you have any advice on how to make this cake more firm? I of course want it to be moist but it needs to stick together.
chrystal says
Hi Caitlin,
This recipes doesn’t work with almond flour. Almond flour works very differently in baked goods than other flours as it has more natural oils in it and no starch. You might want to try my double chocolate muffins. The recipe uses almond flour and can be made into a cake.
Best,
Chrystal
Nikki says
Hi! I’m super keen to try this recipe for my son’s 2nd birthday cake. Can it be made ahead of time and frozen? Thanks!
chrystal says
Hi Nikki,
Yes, you can make the layers ahead of time. Wrap them up and freeze them. When you are ready, thaw them and frost.
Best,
Chrystal
Newbaker says
Great recipe. I’m new to baking and followed the instructions. I did change up ingredients a bit – used a combination of coconut oil (majority), and a bit of olive oil plus vegetable oil margarine. And Monk fruit sugar instead of cane sugar.
The cake however turned out to be very salty. Only reason I can think of is: since I was going by volume using a tea spoon (the spoon is marked as one teaspoon but looks larger) I may have almost doubled the salt/baking soda/baking powder. Any thoughts ?
Thanks !
Joy
chrystal says
Hello Joy,
It sounds like you did use too much salt and or leavening agent, which is salty. Do you normally use weight measurements? I can grab the weight for you in grams if that helps.
Best,
Chrystal
Newbaker says
Thanks , I see you have the weights listed in the recipe… I will look for a weighing scale!
Joy
chrystal says
Hi Joy,
All my recipes are in volume (cups, etc) and a few of them are in weights. I’m working on getting more converted to weights so people can weigh their ingredients if they like 🙂
Best,
Chrystal
Harriet says
Hi Chrystal,
I’m planning on making this cake for my lovely manager as it is her birthday in a few days! Do you have these converted into grams? Looking forward to trying this cake, it looks lovely 🙂
Thank you!
Harriet
chrystal says
Hi Harriet,
The grahams are shown in the recipe card per ingredient.
Best,
Chrystal
Sergia says
This recipe is amazing! I used a gluten free flour mix of 1 cup banana flour, 1/2 cup of rice flour and 1/2 cup of coconut flour. For the milk I used Calfia coconut almond milk blend… Everyone at Thanksgiving was impressed and could not believe it was gluten free! Making it again for my companies holiday potluck party!
chrystal says
I’m so glad you like it! Thanks for sharing what flours you used.
Best,
Chrystal
Mia says
I’ve made this cake on two different occasions at two different altitudes. The first time I made it, I did the cupcake version, and they turned out horribly dry, but very tasty). Second time round, I made this cake, and it’s tasty, but too dry for my liking. What can I do to make it more moist? Less cooking time, or more liquid? I baked mine for 35 mins, checked it (toothpick came out very wet), so I baked it for another 3 minutes. It was fine in the middle, but drier towards the edge of the cake, which I’m not too fond of. Thanks so much for sharing the recipe!
chrystal says
Hi Mia,
This cake is usually nice and tender and not dry at all. Can I ask what flour blend you used and how you measured it? Also, what elevation are you at?
Best,
Chrystal
Cianna says
I used this recipe to make a 4 layer 6 inch cake for a birthday party. I put espresso in the boiling water and used a different frosting recipe but people were going gaga for it.
Thank you for sharing your all purpose gluten free flour blend.
This cake was superb!
chrystal says
I’m so glad you liked it. I love using espresso in place of the hot water. It ads a nice touch. Thank you for stopping by to share what you used.
Best,
Chrystal
Grace Kokoris says
Can you use butter to make it taste better ?
chrystal says
Hi Grace,
I’m not sure what you mean by using butter to make this cake taste better. You can’t taste the oil in it. You can use melted and cooled butter if you like just note that the texture will be a little different, probably more fudgy.
Best,
Chrystal
Mary Bradshaw says
Thank you for this great cake recipe! I have recently gone gluten free and it has changed my life. I’m trying many recipes and this was definitely a hit. I brought it to a church pot luck today along with a regular store bought chocolate cake (just in case this was a fail) and the store bought went untouched! I received many compliments.
chrystal says
You are very welcome. I’m so glad you like it. I hope you find many more recipes that you love.
Best,
Chrystal
Lisa says
This looks amazing. Do you think it would be possible to use egg whites instead of whole eggs, and stevia instead of sugar for this recipe? I have been looking all over for a gf chocolate cake recipe that is both sugar free and low fat (rather than keto or paleo), but having no luck, so I might need to experiment. Thanks!
chrystal says
Hi Lisa,
I think egg whites would work but I haven’t tried stevia yet. Sorry I can’t be more help.
Best,
Chrystal
Chris says
Hi. Do you have a suggestion for the baking time when using 2 9 inch round pans? Thanks!
chrystal says
Hi Chris,
I would start with 25 minutes and watch for doneness from there.
Best,
Chrystal
Ann says
Oh man, I thought I would read the comments while my cakes are baking in the oven. I’m a little nervous because I mixed 1 cup oat flour with 1 cup almond flour. After reading that almond flour doesn’t work with this recipe I’m concerned it won’t turn out right….well, here’s to experimentation! I’ll let you know what happens.
chrystal says
Hi Ann,
Typically almond flour doesn’t work in this recipe. I haven’t tried it but i have some readers who braved using it and didn’t have good results. How did yours turn out? I have a paleo chocolate muffin recipe that uses almond flour that can be made into a cake, if you need.
Best,
Chrystal
cricket says
Let me start by saying I am NOT a baker, but after being so disappointed with a GF cake mix for my husband’s birthday, I decided I had to find a better way. I made this cake for my son’s birthday at Christmas and wow was it a success!! I followed the directions to a “T” except I used apple sauce instead of oil. This works for me almost all the time. The cake is fudgy, not dry, not too moist. It was perfect!!! I just made another another for my younger sons birthday. It also appears to be perfect. I am going to freeze it for a week as I have a busy upcoming week. Thank you for this recipe and the very helpful hints!
chrystal says
Hi Cricket,
You are very welcome. I am so glad you like my cake recipe. Thank you for taking time to stop back by and let me know.
Best,
Chrystal
Tatevik says
Hello,
I made the cake with the exact ingredients. The only substitution was using canola iil instead of a vegetable oil. My cake turned out sunken in the middle. Any suggestions of what to try?
chrystal says
So sorry to hear that happened. There are many reasons a cake can sink (over mixing, wrong oven temp, expired ingredients, miss measured ingredients, just to name a few). I’ve even had it happen to me on occasion with recipes I use all the time. I’m not sure which caused yours, but fingers crossed it doesn’t occur again.
Best,
Chrystal
Susan Finlay says
I’ve made this a couple of times and it was a big hit. Even a friend who is a foodie (with opinions) and not gluten-free, liked it. That’s saying a lot!
chrystal says
Thanks Susan! I’m glad everyone loved it.
Best,
Chrystal
Rachel says
I just used this recipe to make cupcakes. I’ve never baked gluten-free and also used the flour recipe on this blog. I followed the recipe exactly as it’s written. Though I was a bit concerned about how liquid the batter is after the water I decided to forge on – with great results! The cupcakes are chocolately, moist and light. They rise beautifully (I portioned about 60g of batter per cupcake). Great recipe!
chrystal says
Hi Rachel,
I am so glad you like these cupcakes. Thank you for letting me know.
Best,
Chrystal
Debbie says
Good morning can you please tell me if I can make this exact cake vanilla?
I need a good vanilla cake recipe.
Thank you
chrystal says
Hi Debbie,
I have a good vanilla cake recipe, that I’m sure you’ll love. https://www.glutenfreepalate.com/easy-gluten-free-vanilla-cake/
Best,
Chrystal
Theresa says
Hello, I made this for my sons birthday in a few days. Came out moist but didn’t rise as much ad I’d hoped. Does using cold milk make a difference? Recipe did not say room temp. but did say room temp eggs.
chrystal says
Hi Theresa,
It should have risen nicely. I don’t think the milk temperature had anything to do with it.
Best,
Chrystal
Paula edwards says
Wow just wow.. I baked this for my dads birthday today and it looks amazing I cut off the top to make it level for icing and tried those bits but just wow! I’ve never seen a gluten free cake actually rise and not sink! I followed receipe to the letter.. was worried it looked too runny going into the tins but no need to .. I just cannot believe it!
chrystal says
Hi Paula,
Your comment made me so happy. I’m glad you loved this cake recipe. Thank you for taking time to stop by and share.
Best,
Chrystal
Kathy says
I admit that when I seen how thin the batter was-I was very upset that my gf husbands birthday cake was a flop again. It still in the oven but it is rising beautifully and smells heavenly. I can’t wait to taste it!
Dani B says
I made this last night to bring to a birthday party. Everyone RAVED about it and no one even suspected it was gluten free. Recipe was easy to follow and turned out incredibly well. Will be making again and again, thank you!
chrystal says
Hi Dani,
I am so glad everyone loved it. Thank you for taking time to stop by and let me know.
Best,
Chrystal
Valerie says
I made this chocolate cake (my first attempt at a gluten free cake) for a baby shower. Everyone loved it. Thank you for sharing an uncomplicated and super easy cake recipe
chrystal says
Hi Valerie,
I am so glad everyone loved it. Thank you for taking time to stop by and let me know.
Best,
Chrystal