Learn how to bake the best and most moist gluten-free chocolate cake with this an easy to follow, no fail recipe! What makes the cake so moist? Boiling water in the cake batter! Boiling water helps saturate the starches, aerates the batter, making the cake light, fluffy and moist instead of gritty. This two-layer cake uses 9” round cake pans and is ready in 40 minutes. Yields 12 servings.
Best Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake REcipe
Whether you are new to gluten-free baking or a seasoned veteran, we all need need an easy, homemade gluten-free chocolate cake recipe that fools even the toughest critics. Every time I serve it, no one suspects anything but an old fashioned, moist, from scratch recipe.
I’ve made it as a gluten-free birthday cake, for celebrations, and as a base for many other creations in my gluten-free cake collection, like Ding Dong cake or Gluten-free Ice Cream Cake.
It’s my most often made dessert because it’s quick to throw together and consistently turns out fabulous. So what’s the trick? Why does this chocolate cake made with cocoa powder beat out the rest?
First, the recipe uses commonly stocked pantry items, like gluten-free all purpose flour, unsweetened cocoa powder, eggs, milk (or dairy-free), and vanilla. Since it uses oil rather than butter, not only can it be easily adapted to a dairy-free gluten-free recipe, but the crumb stays moist.
Second, it’s just as easy as using a cake mix with even better results! Simply dump all the ingredients in, mix, and bake. It’s impossible to mess up this gluten-free chocolate cake!
Lastly, it uses a magical special ingredient to give superior results. Boiling water helps saturate the gluten-free starches, eliminating any grittiness, activates the chocolate for a rich, deep flavor, and aerates the batter. Once the hot water mixes in with the cake batter, it jump starts the baking powder and baking soda for an extra fluffy texture.
Some cake recipes rely on sour cream for extra moisture, like gluten-free chocolate bundt cake, which creates a traditional denser bundt cake crumb. Almond flour chocolate cake gets its moistness from the natural oils in almonds.
But when making a chocolate cake with all-purpose gluten-free flour it’s as simple as adding a cup of hot boiling water!
Read on to learn how to make the best gluten-free chocolate cake, with bakers tips, workable ingredient swaps, and variations for sheet cake, cupcakes, and dairy-free. It’s all here!
Ingredient notes
The cake ingredients are simple, with the only speciality item required being gluten-free flour.
- Gluten-Free Flour – I use and recommend Cup4Cup gluten-free flour blend, which contains xanthan gum. For a dairy-free cake, use King Arthur Measure-for-Measure gluten-free flour or your preferred brand.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder – Use regular or Dutch-processed cocoa for richer chocolate taste.
- Milk – Use regular or any preferred non-dairy milk, such as almond milk.
- Vegetable oil – Coconut oil or any preferred oil may be substituted.
- Boiling water – Secret “ingredient” for a moist, deceptively gluten-free cake! It helps saturate the starches, aerates the batter, making the cake light and fluffy instead of gritty. This technique is also used when making gluten-free whoopie pies.
How to Make Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake
(Below shows step-by-step photos and modified instructions. For the complete recipe, along with ingredient amounts, scroll down to the recipe card.)
- Preheat the oven to 350º F. Prepare two 9-inch round cake pans by spraying with cooking spray, lining pans with cut-to-size parchment on bottom, and then spraying the parchment. This helps the cakes easily release from the pans. Below I have also listed alternative size baking pans that may be used.
- In a large mixing bowl combine the dry ingredients – flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt on low speed.
- Add the wet ingredients – regular or dairy-free milk, oil, eggs, and vanilla to flour mixture. Mix on medium speed until well combined.
- Reduce the speed to low and slowly add boiling water to the cake batter. Once the water is mixed in, increase to high speed and mix for 1 minute. This helps aerate the batter and make the cake light and fluffy.
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and cool in pans for 10 minutes. Turn cakes onto wire rack to cool completely before frosting with one of the recipes below.
Recommended Chocolate Cake Frostings
Once you’ve made your homemade chocolate cake, let it cool completely before frosting. Below are my favorite frosting recipes to pair with it, but of course it also tastes great with a simply dusting of powdered sugar!
- Fluffy Buttercream Frosting – either vanilla or chocolate frosting
- Whipped Cream Frosting – regular or chocolate whipped cream frosting
- Chocolate Ganache
- Peanut Butter Glaze
- Cream Cheese Frosting
Best Gluten-Free Flour To Use
Gluten-free baking flour blends have come a long way in the last ten years. Gluten-free baking used to mean buying, storing, and measuring several different flours to make your own flour mix.
Fortunately there are several commercial brands that perform way better than any homemade mixes I’ve ever experimented with. Below are the most common brands I’ve tested for website recipes, gluten-free cakes, and when working on my gluten-free cookbook.
Cup4Cup Gluten Free Flour is the brand I primarily use because any gluten-free taste or difference in texture is undetectable. However, it contains milk powder, so it is not dairy-free.
King Arthur’s Measure-for-Measure has preformed well in my baking tests, is affordable, and does not contain allergens. However, I still detect slightly grittier texture.
Bob’s Red Mill is widely available and affordable, but has an unpleasant aftertaste and gritty texture, especially in gluten-free pastries or cookies.
Do I Need To Add Xanthan Gum?
No, not if the gluten free-flour blend contains it. All three flours mentioned above do have xanthan gum in the mix.
Please note King Arthur has two variations of GF flour. King Arthur’s all-purpose gluten-free flour does not contain xanthan gum, so 1 teaspoon will have to added to the dry ingredients.
King Arthur Measure-for-Measure Gluten-Free Flour does contain the xanthan gum already, so there’s no need to add extra.
expert Tips for a moist Gluten-Free Cake
- Use cake baking strips to not only keep the cake moist, but they prevent uneven layers, which can be tricky to frost and hold shape.
- The less sugar you use, the drier the cake will be. Please note while the amount of sugar may be reduced, it will dry out the cake slightly.
- For the most accurate measurement, spoon the flour into the measuring cups instead of dipping cups into the bag. Using more flour, even by a tablespoon or two, dries out the cake.
- Generally using oil in cakes versus butter makes them more moist.
- This cake recipe is more forgiving when it comes to baking time, but you still don’t want to overbake. Check by inserting a toothpick into the middle. It should have some moist crumbs, without being liquidy. If you are unsure, turn off the oven and let the cake sit for 1-2 minutes before removing.
- Enjoy the cake at room temperature. Although some frostings have to refrigerated, I highly recommend setting cakes out for several hours before serving to reach room temp. Gluten-free cakes especially have a tendency to dry out in the refrigerator.
Using Different Baking Pans
If you like to experiment with using different size cake pans, or make cupcakes instead of a layer cake, follow these adaptations:
Gluten-Free Cupcakes
To make bake this cake as cupcakes follow Incredible Gluten-Free Chocolate Cupcakes recipe.
Making a 9X13 Sheet Cake
To make a sheet cake instead of layer cake make the batter as written. Spray a 9X13 baking pan and bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes or until toothpick inserted in middle comes clean. Cool on wire rack completely before frosting.
Freezing and Storing
Gluten-free cakes do not stay fresh as long as regular cakes. Therefore, if you don’t plan on freezing the cake, make it no more than 24 hours ahead of time.
Frequently I bake the cake layers and freeze them until ready to assemble with a filling and frosting. Alternatively, the cake may be baked, frosted, and frozen whole.
Freezing Unfrosted Cake Layers: Wrap each completely cooled layer securely in plastic wrap. Transfer wrapped layer to a gallon freezer bag and freeze up to 3 months.
When ready to use, remove from freezer bag and thaw wrapped cake at room temperature for 1 hour.
Freezing Frosted Cake: Assemble the cake with filling and frosting. Transfer whole cake to the freezer so frosting solidifies. After the frosting is frozen, wrap the cake securely with plastic wrap. Cover plastic wrap with foil and freeze up to 3 months.
Thaw cake overnight in refrigerator. Carefully remove plastic wrap and foil. Continue to thaw at room temperature for 5-6 hours.
Freezing Cake Slices:
I often do this to save myself from eating a whole cake! Slice the leftover cake in serving sized portions. Wrap each piece in plastic wrap and freeze in a single layer on a baking sheet. Once the pieces are solid, transfer slices to a gallon freezer bag or airtight container.
Thaw pieces on the counter for 1 hour or defrost in the microwave at 20% power, carefully avoiding overheating and melting the frosting.
Dairy-Free Adaptations
If you are looking for a dairy-free gluten-free chocolate cake recipe it only requires one easy modification. Replace the milk with a non-dairy milk, such as almond milk, soy milk, or coconut milk.
The recommended flour, Cup4Cup, does contain milk powder, so King Arthur Measure-for-Measure gluten-free flour is recommended instead.
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Moist Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake (One Bowl!)
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Ingredients
- 2 cup all purpose gluten-free flour (I highly recommend Cup4Cup gluten free flour but see recipe notes for dairy-free)
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- ¾ cup unsweetened baking cocoa
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup milk or non-dairy milk
- ½ cup vegetable, canola, or coconut oil
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup boiling water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º F. Prepare two 9-inch cake pans by spraying with cooking spray, lining pans with cut-to-size parchment on bottom, and then spraying the parchment. Set aside.
- In a large bowl add flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk to combine or, using your paddle attachment on stand mixer, mix until combined.2 cup all purpose gluten-free flour,2 cups granulated sugar,¾ cup unsweetened baking cocoa,2 teaspoons baking powder,1 ½ teaspoons baking soda,1 teaspoon salt
- Add milk, oil, eggs, and vanilla to flour mixture. Mix on medium speed until well combined. Reduce speed to low and slowly add boiling water to the cake batter. Once the water is mixed in, increase to high speed and mix for 1 minute.1 cup milk or non-dairy milk,½ cup vegetable, canola, or coconut oil,2 eggs,2 teaspoons vanilla extract,1 cup boiling water
- Distribute cake batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and cool in pans for 10 minutes. Turn cakes onto wire rack to cool completely before frosting with fluffy vanilla or chocolate buttercream.
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Recipe Notes
Dairy-Free Chocolate Cake
The only recipe adaptation you’ll have to make is replacing the milk with a dairy free milk, such as almond milk, soy milk, or coconut milk. If you prefer using coconut oil, that may also replace the vegetable oil. The recommended flour, Cup4Cup, does contain milk powder, so King Arthur Measure-for-Measure gluten-free flour is recommended instead.Using Different Baking Pans
Gluten Free Cupcakes To make bake this cake as cupcakes follow Incredible Gluten Free Chocolate Cupcakes recipe. 9X13 Sheet Cake To make a sheet cake instead of layer cake make the batter as written. Spray a 9X13 baking pan and bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes or until toothpick inserted in middle comes clean. Cool on wire rack completely before frosting.Freezing / Storing
Gluten free cakes do not stay fresh as long as regular cakes. Therefore, if you don’t plan on freezing the cake, make it no more than 24 hours ahead of time. Freezing Unfrosted Cake Layers: Wrap each completely cooled layer securely in plastic wrap. Transfer wrapped layer to a gallon freezer bag and freeze up to 3 months. When ready to use, remove from freezer bag and thaw wrapped cake at room temperature for 1 hour. Freezing Frosted Cake: Assemble the cake with filling and frosting. Transfer whole cake to the freezer so frosting solidifies. After the frosting is frozen, wrap the cake securely with plastic wrap. Cover plastic wrap with foil and freeze up to 3 months. Thaw cake overnight in refrigerator. Carefully remove plastic wrap and foil. Continue to thaw at room temperature for 5-6 hours. Freezing Cake Slices: Slice the leftover cake in serving sized portions. Wrap each piece in plastic wrap and freeze in a single layer on a baking sheet. Once the pieces are solid, transfer slices to a gallon freezer bag or airtight container. Thaw pieces on the counter for 1 hour or defrost in the microwave at 20% power, carefully avoiding overheating and melting the frosting. Adapted from Add a PinchNutrition
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