The Ultimate Dark Chocolate Cake
Nothing says “Happy Birthday” quite like a decadent, dark chocolate cake smothered in cream cheese frosting. A couple of weeks ago one of our coworkers at the office had his birthday. Knowing he has to eat completely gluten free, I volunteered to make the cake for him. Little did I know, it had been years since he had a true birthday cake. He was rather shocked and ecstatic.
If you know of anyone that loves chocolate and is also a GF-eater, this cake is the one for them. It’s pretty simple to make, but has a stunning appearance. Top it off with a little cocoa powder and chocolate shreds and it looks like it came from a local bakery. Hope you enjoy!
The Ultimate Dark Chocolate Cake
The Ultimate Dark Chocolate Cake
The Ultimate Dark Chocolate Cake
The Ultimate Dark Chocolate Cake
Nothing says “Happy Birthday” quite like a decadent, dark chocolate cake smothered in cream cheese frosting.
Ingredients
Dark Chocolate Cake
- ¾ c. butter softened
- 1 c. brown sugar
- 1 c. white sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 t. vanilla
- 1 1/3 c. white rice flour
- 3/4 c. tapioca starch
- 1 t. xanthan gum
- Or 2 c. all purpose GF (with xanthan gum / non-GF flour instead of the above 3 ingredients)
- ¾ c. cocoa powder dark
- 1 ½ t. baking soda
- ½ t. salt
- 1 ½ c. buttermilk
- 1/4 c. prepared coffee
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 4 T. butter melted
- 4 T. cream cheese
- 1 t. vanilla
- 6 c. powdered sugar
- 2-3 T. milk
Instructions
For the Dark Chocolate Cake:
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
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Combine butter and sugars in stand mixer (or in a bowl with an electric mixer) and cream on medium high until light and fluffy. About 3-4 minutes. Add in eggs, one at a time, and cream more until well combined. About another 2 minutes. Add in vanilla.
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Combine white rice flour, tapioca starch, xanthan gum, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in a separate bowl and toss to combine.
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Alternatively add in dry mixture and buttermilk/coffee, starting and ending with the dry mixture.
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Grease 2 9-inch round baking pans with butter or non-stick cooking spray and divide batter evenly among them.
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Bake for 22-25 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.
For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
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Combine 4 T. butter and cream cheese. Cream until well mixed. Add vanilla and mix well.
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Alternatively add powdered sugar and milk until all ingredients have been used.
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Remove cooked cakes from pans to allow for quicker cooling once they have been out of the oven for at least 10 minutes.
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To assemble cake, place a dollop of frosting on the plate your are placing it on. Put the first layer down. Spread about 1/3 of the frosting mixture over the first layer. Add in 3-4 toothpicks to allow for greater stability. Place second cake layer on top of the first frosted layer. Completely frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting.
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Optional: Dust with cocoa powder and garnish with chocolate shreds.
Simple Syrup
Lime Sorbet
Healthy Peanut Butter Cups
Pumpkin Overnight Oats
Michelle Stripe says
Best cake hands down by far. Noone knew it was gluten free. Thanks for sharing.
London says
Thanks! I’m so happy you liked it! It’s always fun to see the look on peoples’ faces when they find out it’s GF 🙂
Kris says
Can you just use bobs mill 1 to 1 baking flour instead of the 3?
London says
Yes, Kris! Bob’s 1 to 1 has xanthan gum in it (unlike their baking flour blend) so you can simply replace the white rice flour, tapioca starch and xanthan gum called for in the recipe with 2 c. of your blend.
Brittany says
I just found my birthday cake, but I don’t think I can wait until March! This looks absolutely delicious and doesn’t seem to hard! I have a question, do you think one can use a GF baking blend instead? (like the boxes you can get at walmart? I think mine has rice flour mixed with backing powder)
London says
Lol… You should totally make it ASAP! Yes, I think a baking blend will work fine. If it already has baking powder, or any sort of “gum” (i.e.-xanthan gum) you will want to make sure not to add in those ingredients again. Can’t wait to hear how it turns out!
monika says
The kefir worked beautifully. Buttermilk is acidic – that’s the reason the kefir worked equally well!
London says
Great! That’s good to know 🙂
monika says
also…I don’t have tapioca…but I DO have arrowroot…(any idea if I could use that instead?)
London says
Hi Monika! I am always a fan of substitution, but I honestly have not worked with arrowroot to know exactly how it will exchange. I say go ahead and test it out! As for the buttermilk, I think you would get the best results if you substitute milk instead (regular, almond, cashew milk, etc.). Let me know how it turns out 🙂
monika says
Do you know if this would still work with 1 1/2 cups kefir/yogurt instead of buttermilk?
June @ How to Philosophize with Cake says
That looks amazing! With all that cream cheese frosting I’m sure this cake is delicious 🙂
London says
Thanks so much, June! Ya, cream cheese frosting is a great addition to most cakes 🙂