Monday, February 21, 2011

Go-To Gluten Free Chocolate Cake.


 I used to really dislike gluten free recipes that called for a pre-made mixture of flours rather than the flours separately.  In general, I still prefer to use separate flours because I think they give gluten free baked goods a better texture.  Recently though, going through Bette Hagman's Deliciously Gluten Free, I thought of what a waste it was to have this book and never use any of the recipes because so many of them called for mixes.  So I got out a mixing bowl and put together Bette's Featherlight Mix for gluten free baked goods.


Although I haven't tried any recipes from the book using this mix yet, I plan on it, and it works wonders in cake recipes that call for a generic gluten free flour mix, like this chocolate cake.  I used it on my birthday a few weeks ago and yesterday to make little chocolate cakes for some adorable guests we had for Sunday dinner. 

A small complaint:  it seems like every gluten free website has their own set of mixes, which is unfortunate, because I'm not going to make a mix for every gluten free website I go to.  I realize everyone does what works for them, and that's fine.  For now, this is the one I'll use when it comes to cakes and pastries that call for a gluten free mix instead of separate flours.

Featherlight Mix
In a large bowl, whisk together until very well combined:
1 cup white rice flour
1 cup cornstarch
1 cup tapioca starch
1 tablespoon potato starch

Store in an airtight container or resealable plastic bag.


Gluten Free Chocolate Cake
Adapted fromFood.com
1 1/2 cups Featherlight Mix (or other gluten free flour mix)
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
5 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. and grease a 9" layer cake pan (or 8x8" or 9x9" square pan) with nonstick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, sift the flour, cocoa, sugar, salt, baking soda and xanthan gum together.  Stir in the oil, vinegar, extract and egg and whisk or stir with a spoon until everything is very well combined and there are no lumps.  Spoon into the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean, or until the cake springs back slightly when pressed with a finger.

Let cool on a wire rack completely before frosting.

7 comments:

  1. wow. they looked so tempting. plus, they're gluten free!cakes on line

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  2. i love the pretty sprinkles on these!

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  3. this looks gorgeous! i am in love with this. thanks for sharing this.

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  4. This little cakes just look so good. Thanks for sharing your recipe, can't wait to try.

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  5. This looks delicious! I'm totally passing it onto my GF friend, I know she'll enjoy it :)

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  6. Oh, I hear you on the GF flour mix issue. I actually chose your carrot cake recipe earlier today (googled) because it did NOT call for a "mix". We have all the flours and it works for me to just measure up what we need for whatever particular recipe, rather than have some sort of mix that might or might not work the best.

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  7. mommylisad, how did the carrot cake turn out for you? I love that recipe!

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