This is the BEST Gluten Free Chocolate Cake! It’s moist, delicious and no one will ever guess it’s gluten free! It is perfect for your next celebration that calls for cake!
It’s my birthday! Well, not actually until Tuesday, but I think it is ok to celebrate all week, right?! Especially when your birthday falls on a weekday. When this happens you should probably make a huge gluten free chocolate cake and eat yourself into a chocolate cake frenzy all week long! My mom used to make a homemade cake for me every birthday growing up and they were delicious! I’ve recently started making them for myself and my kids and this gluten free chocolate cake makes a regular appearance.
Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Recipe Ingredients & Substitutions
- Gluten Free All Purpose Flour – I developed this gluten free chocolate cake recipe using Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1:1 Baking Flour. I have since made this recipe using a couple of other AP gluten free flour blends and it has worked, but I always prefer the taste and texture when I use Bob’s Red Mill. If using a different brand, make sure it contains xantham gum.
- Cocoa Powder -I use regular, natural cocoa powder for this recipe, not dutch cocoa powder.
- Sugar – I use both granulated sugar and brown sugar for this recipe. I use light brown sugar but dark brown would work as well. You could also use a mixture of cane sugar and coconut sugar.
- Butter – I use unsalted butter so you can regulate the amount of salt in your cake. I’ve also made this cake using vegan butter and it worked great!
- Eggs – I originally developed this gluten free cake recipe using real eggs, but have also tried the recipe using a vegan egg substitute and it worked well.
- Almond Milk – You can use any plant based milk for this recipe, and if you aren’t needing the cake to be dairy free you can use regular milk.
- Non-fat Greek yogurt – Non-fat Greek yogurt makes the cake light and fluffy but you can also use dairy free yogurt. I usually use plain yogurt but have made the recipe with strawberry greek yogurt and it worked great!
- Frosting – You can use any kind of frosting you want for this cake! I like chocolate cake with chocolate frosting, but it’s totally up to you. I have linked the chocolate frosting recipe I used in these photos in the recipe card.
- Vanilla Extract
- Salt, Baking Soda, Baking Powder
How To Make The Best Gluten Free Chocolate Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and grease your cake pans. This recipe makes a round 3 layer cake, but you can also use it to make cupcakes or a sheet cake.
- In a medium sized bowl, mix together the flour, cocoa power, salt, baking soda and baking powder. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars for about 3 minutes until they are light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, whisking in between each addition. Then add the vanilla and mix again. Finally add the milk and mix one last time. The wet mixture might look a little strange, like it’s curdled, at this point, but that is ok!
- Add the flour mixture and the Greek yogurt to the wet mixture, one half at a time alternating between the two, starting with the flour. Give the batter one last mix until everything is combined.
- Equally distribute the batter between the three baking pans. Bake cakes for about 30 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let the cake cool inside the pan for ten minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack.
- Once the cakes are cooled, transfer to a plate or cake stand and stack the cakes on top of eachother, frosting in between each one. Frost the top and sides of the cake, smoothing out with a knife if necessary.
Easy Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Frequently Asked Questions
- Is this recipe dairy free? You can easily make this recipe dairy free! Just use dairy free butter and dairy free milk.
- Can I use almond/rice/coconut etc… flour in this cake? You could try, but I’ve had the best results using regular Gluten Free AP flour. Coconut flour would definitely alter the recipe and need more liquid.
- Can I make this recipe without eggs? Yes, just use an egg substitute. I like to use a flax or chia egg.
- Can I make cupcake with this recipe? Yes! Unless you need a lot of cupcakes, I would suggest cutting down the recipe by 1/3 to make cupcakes, it should make 24 cupcakes.
- Can I make a two layer cake instead of a 3 layer cake? Yes, just cut the recipe down by 1/3.
- Can I make this cake ahead of time? Yes, there are two ways you can make this cake in advance:
- How to freeze the cake: let cake cool completely and then wrap each round in plastic wrap. Place the plastic wrapped cake into a ziplock bag or airtight container and freeze up to 3 months. Unwrap the cakes and thaw on the counter until ready to frost.
- How to store the cakes for just a few days: let the cakes cool completely and then wrap them loosely in plastic wrap and store at room temperature for up to 2 days. If it’s hot in your kitchen, store in the refrigerator.
Have a question that I didn’t answer? Ask me in the comment section below and I will get back to you ASAP!
Looking For More Easy Gluten Free Dessert Recipes?
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Gluten Free Three Layer Chocolate Cake
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 8-12 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
This is the best homemade gluten free chocolate cake you will ever eat! Everyone who makes it loves it, even people who aren’t gluten free!
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons Bob’s Red Mill gluten free 1:1 baking flour*
- 1 1/2 cup cocoa powder, sifted
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cup almond milk or regular milk
- 1 1/2 cup plain non-fat Greek yougurt
- 2 cups chocolate frosting – see link below for the one I used
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a medium sized bowl, mix together the flour, cocoa powered, salt, baking soda and baking powder. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars. Add the eggs one at a time and then add the vanilla and mix again. Finally add the milk and mix one last time. The wet mixture might look a little strange at this point, but that is ok!
- Add the flour mixture and the Greek yogurt to the wet mixture, one half at a time alternating between the two, starting with the flour. Give the batter one last mix until everything is combined.
- Grease three 8 inch cake pans and equally distribute the batter into the pans. Bake cakes for about 30 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let the cake cool inside the pan for ten minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack.
- Once the cakes are cooled, transfer to a plate or cake stand and stack the cakes on top of eachother, frosting in between each one. Frost the top and sides of the cake, smoothing out with a knife if necessary.
Notes
*I have only made this recipe using Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1:1 Baking flour, I’m not sure if it would turn out the same using a different gluten free flour.
I used this chocolate frosting recipe, but you can use any recipe or store-bought frosting you like. You will need about 2 cups depending on how much frosting you like to use.
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Category: Dessert, Gluten Free
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
I’m going to try using this for a baby shower cake I’m making. Do you think it will work out if I do 9″ and 6″ cakes, as long as I adjust the time? I’m excited for this cake!!
Hi Nicole, I think that would work great! Just adjust the time accordingly 🙂 I hope everyone enjoys it!
Thank you for such an amazing recipe. I made it for my son’s birthday and everyone loved it. No one could tell it was gluten free. When I made it I forgot to put in the 2 tbsp extra of flour and that didn’t seem to make a difference. I did add mini chocolate chips because I always like that extra chocolate bite and I used Cacao Powder instead of chocolate powder. You don’t happen to have a shortbread cookie recipe?
That’s so great to hear! I’m so glad your son enjoyed it!! Adding extra mini chocolate chips sounds like the best idea ever! 🙂
I’m just wondering if I mix this cake by hand or use an electric mixer?
I used an electric mixer but it would probably work by hand too if you don’t mind mixing for a bit!
Made this cake last week for a friend. It was AMAZING!! I had Namaste Perfect Flour Blend in my pantry so I used that. So, it does taste great with other flour blends 🙂
Your page is bookmarked so I can make this again!
Thanks so much, Kerry! I’m so glad you enjoyed it and that is great to know that it works with other gluten free flours as well! Thanks!
This cake is the best. Thanks for the recipe.
I used melted coconut oil instead of butter and then used my own gf flour mix (2cups rice flour, 2/3c potato starch,1/3c tapioca starch) and then 1.5tsp guar gum.
Thank you!! That is a great idea to use coconut oil instead of butter, i’ll have to try that! I’m glad you enjoyed it 🙂
I must say this is the best chocolate cake I have had since my grandmother passed away in 1985…with or without gluten! Her secret was sour cream and I forgot all about that.
One of my daughter’s friends made this for my birthday last year and it was so good, I made it for my wedding cake this past August…in three 14″ square pans. It was a total hit at the reception! People could not believe it was gluten-free. The only thing I changed was the yogurt because I don’t buy fat-free unless it is, by nature, fat-free.
Thanks so much for the nice words, Lisa! I’m so glad you enjoyed this chocolate cake! It’s one of my favorites too 🙂
Hi! This cake looks absolutely delicious. I’m baking a cake for a friend this week and I would love to use this recipe! However, I only have 9″ cake pans. Will the bake time be different? Thank you!!
Hi Joey, thank you! Yeah, I would just keep a closer eye on them and check them more to make sure they don’t burn since the batter will be spread a little thinner. It shouldn’t be too much different, but probably a few minutes less.
Thanks Izzy! By the way, would it be possible to switch the butter with oil instead? If so, would you know how much I’d use?
This looks great! If you use regular yoghurt instead of greek yoghurt, would you use a different amount to maintain the same consistency? Or would you recommend substituting something else? I’m living overseas in a place where there’s no greek yoghurt 😮
Hi Andrea, do you have access to sour cream? If so, I would use that instead of the yogurt. If not, I would just use a little bit less regular yogurt or maybe add a little extra flour to offset the extra wetness of the regular yogurt. Good luck!
Thanks for this recipe! I made this cake for my son’s birthday. It was by far the best gf birthday cake I have ever had. As a matter of fact, it may very well be the best chocolate cake ever!
That is so great to hear!! I’m so glad you all enjoyed the cake! 🙂
Thank you very much for this recipe Izzy 🙂 I have never made a cake for my Mum because she became gluten intolerant after I left home and got into baking – good Glu-free recipes are hard to come by for discerning European chocaholics (it tastes very different over here as you probably know!) so this will be the first one – bit of pot luck testing with our local Glu-free flour so I’ll let you know how I get on….
Hi Tim, I hope it works out great for you and that your mom really enjoys it!
Hi again Izzy, i had to amend the recipe slightly as our flour was rice based and i can’t get xanthan gum in our area. I tweaked it using flax based on another recipe’s proportions and it turned out ok although a bit crumbly. We worked out that our large eggs are smaller than yours these days so next time we will add an extra egg for binding. The proportion of vanilla in the icing recipe was a bit strong for our tastes but that is easily adjusted! Other than that and having a fight to obtain the ingredients it was very tasty 😀
Hi Tim, thanks for the update! I’m glad you were able to find some substitutions and that you enjoyed it! Hopefully the extra egg will make it a little more moist next time 🙂
I made it for the birthday of my son and everyone loved it! I am planning to make it again this week for my 1 year old boy. Just thinking on substitute the butter for coconut oil, let see how it turns out. Thank you so much for the delicious recipe!
Hi Noelia! That is so great to hear! I’m so glad everyone loved it! 🙂
Hi,
I need to bake a gluten free chocolate cake for a client and I don’t have time to trial it out before. Can I use this recipe for 9 inch, 2 layer cake? It needs to be able to feed 25 people.
Hi Marianne, If you are just going to make a 2 layer cake, I would cut the recipe down by 1/3. If not, there will be too much cake in each pan and it probably won’t cook correctly. I’m not sure if the cake is big enough to feed 25 people though… I hope that helps!
My cake is still wet in the middle. It’s been in the oven a long time. I’m not sure if it’s “fudgey” or not cooked.
Hmm, I don’t remember that happening when I baked the cake. Did you use the bob’s red mill 1:1 baking flour? Gluten free bakes goods can be a little fickle sometimes. I’m sorry about that!
Would this recipe make good cupcakes? Have you tried them?
Hi Katie, I’ve made cupcakes with this recipe a few times and it worked great!
I’ve been looking for and trying a number of chocolate cake recipes, and made this one today for my daughter’s birthday. I used a mix of Bob’s Red Mill All Purpose Flour and sweet rice flour (2c of Bob’s and 1/4 c of sweet rice flour), and 1/2 tsp of xanthan gum. It turned out great. Moist & fudgey! I iced it with a butter cream cheese frosting. Yum! Thanks so much for sharing your recipe. It’s a keeper!
Hi Roberta, I’m so glad to hear that the cake turned out great and that you enjoyed it! And also glad to hear it turned out using different gluten free flours! Cream cheese frosting is one of my favorites! 🙂
I just made your cake for the birthday of a friend who can’t eat gluten. I don’t even like cake and it was fabulous. I followed the directions exactly except I eyeballed the salt, baking soda and baking powder since I couldn’t find my spoon measures, so it is good to know the recipe is forgiving in that area. It is moist and fluffy and light, but still rich and fudgy. I made one double round to freeze and cut in half for a two layer cake, plus a dozen and a half cupcakes. I have eaten three cupcakes so far. Thanks for an awesome recipe! I can’t wait for her to taste the whole cake. I am going to use a pecan coconut frosting so it is more like German Chocolate cake. Awesome.
Hi Lauretta! I’m so glad you like the cake!! It’s one of my favorites! I’ve made cupcakes out of the batter a few times and they are always so good too! I hope your friend loves the cake as well and has a wonderful birthday! 🙂
This is a fantastic recipe. I made it using Edmonds Gluten Free flour (I’m in New Zealand) and it worked brilliantly. By the time I’d filled it with butter cream it was enormous! I’m about to make it as a 2 layer cake and use the rest of the mixture as muffins for the kids’ lunchboxes. Thanks!
Hi Cat! I’m so glad it turned out well for you! And I love the idea of using some of the mixture to make muffins with, yum! 🙂
This recipe is somehow inaccurate. I was really excited and hopeful for how it would turn out, but unfortunately all I got were cakes that never came together and overflowed the pan. I have done a good amount of gluten free baking, but never had this happen. My guess would be the lack of xanthan gum in the recipe? I don’t know. But it didn’t turn out.
Hi Kristen, I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you. I’m guessing it had to do with the type of gluten free flour that was used. I have only tried this recipe using Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1:1 Baking Flour, which does have zantham gum added to it. I have added a note in the recipe about that.
Has anyone made with using a 9×13 pan?
Hi Lisa,
I’m not sure if anyone has tried that yet, but I think that if you just monitor it well and adjust the cooking time if necessary that it would work fine!