The Best Gluten Free Cakes | Recipes, Tips, and FAQs (2024)

For most of us, heading to the local grocery store to pick up a gluten free cake is just not a possibility. For starters, you have to find a gf cake, and that's just not happening for many of us. And should be so lucky as to actually find one, you may have to turn away once you catch sight of the price tag.

If you're tired of this being your reality, let me help. I've been baking and perfecting gluten free cakes for years now, and I'm excited to help you get a cake on the table for your next birthday celebration, dinner party, or regular Wednesday night dinner.

The Best Gluten Free Cakes | Recipes, Tips, and FAQs (1)

What makes these the best gluten free cakes

I have so many gluten free cake recipes on this site, and I'll be honest: It's hard to say which are my absolute favorites because I have so many. I'm not sure if that says more about me and my cake-eating habits or the recipes themselves…

Whether you're looking for gluten free cake ideas for an upcoming event or something sweet and simple that you can bake up as an after-dinner treat, you'll find plenty of options below for chocolate cakes, vanilla cakes, fruit-based cakes, celebration cakes, and warm spiced cakes:

Gluten free chocolate cakes

One Bowl Gluten Free Chocolate Cake

If you're like me, you love baking, but not so much the cleaning up that follows. This one bowl gf chocolate cake delivers on so many levels: it's fast and easy to prepare, it's super tasty, and clean up is a snap.

Click for the recipe

Rich Paleo Chocolate Cake

Did you know that if something's Paleo, it's also automatically gluten free? For this gluten free chocolate cake, I use coconut flour, tapioca starch, and cocoa powder to create a moist, rich cake that you're going to fall in love with.

Click for the recipe

Quinoa Chocolate Cake

My gluten free chocolate cake made from quinoa is so unique! The ingredient may seem odd, but I promise that it produces a gf chocolate cake that's super moist, fudgy, and delicious.

Click for the recipe

Gluten Free Chocolate Zucchini Cake

First quinoa, and now zucchini?! Listen, when you're following a gluten free diet, it helps to be creative. And let me tell you, this gluten free chocolate cake is so incredibly moist thanks to this flavorless veggie — you won't even know it's there.

Click for the recipe

Gluten Free Chocolate Lava Cakes

The best gluten free chocolate cake for the chocolate lover, this decadent lava cake bursts with chocolatey goodness the moment you take a bite. If you thought lava cakes were reserved for fancy restaurant dinners, I'm here to prove you wrong.

Click for the recipe

Gluten free vanilla cakes

The Very Best Gluten Free Vanilla Cake

When I say that this is one of my very best gf cake recipes, I mean it. While I'll argue that any of my cakes can stand up to their "regular" counterparts, this is the one that I guarantee no one will ever suspect is gluten free.

Click for the recipe

The Perfect Gluten Free White Cake

This gluten free flour cake recipe produces such a beautiful looking cake. You can leave it crisp white with vanilla frosting, or you can add food coloring, sprinkles, and other additives to make it all your own. If you're looking to make a gluten free wedding cake, this is the base recipe to use!

Click for the recipe

Gluten Free Sponge Cake

Not every cake has to be a meal in itself. When you want something light for snacking, try this fluffy sponge cake. This gluten free vanilla cake only requires a few ingredients, and it's perfect for topping with fruit, chocolate sauce, whipped cream, or nothing at all.

Click for the recipe

Vegan Gluten Free Vanilla Cake

This gluten free vanilla cake gets its name because it's kind of crazy how well it turns out considering it contains no butter or eggs. Still, this easy gluten free cake rises beautifully and tastes amazing.

Click for the recipe

Classic Gluten Free Pound Cake

If it's been a while since you've had pound cake, this rich, dense, buttery creation will have you feeling nostalgic. It has the same consistency and taste you remember, and it's still perfect for serving with fresh fruit, ice cream, or whipped cream.

Click for the recipe

Gluten free festive cakes

Classic Gluten Free Birthday Cake

I love this gf cake because it's so fun and festive — not to mention easy to prepare and oh-so delicious. In this gluten free birthday cake recipe, I offer all the instructions to make this yummy yellow cake and its accompanying chocolate frosting.

Click for the recipe

Easy Homemade Gluten Free Ice Cream Cake

Ice cream cakes are so much fun, but finding a gluten free version is hard… and you'll pay a pretty penny should you find one. With this delicious frozen treat, you'll save money and be a cake-making hero.

Click for the recipe

Classic Gluten Free Vanilla Sheet Cake

The thing with gluten free cake recipes is that you have to follow them carefully — any deviation is an opportunity for things to go wrong. If you want to make a birthday sheet cake, don't use any other cake recipe but this one; the ratios are just perfect!

Click for the recipe

Festive White Gluten Free Fruit Cake

Does anything scream the holidays more so than a fruit cake? If you haven't had one in a while because you have memories of dense, sickeningly-sweet loaves, please let me be the one to show you that it doesn't have to be that way.

Click for the recipe

Classic Gluten Free Red Velvet Cake

Red velvet is usually reserved for Valentine's, but I'm a firm believer in spreading the love throughout the year. No matter the season, I love the light chocolate flavor and amazing cream cheese frosting of this crowd-pleasing cake.

Click for the recipe

Gluten free fruit based cakes

Gluten Free Lemon Cake

This tangy cake is bursting with flavor! It's a copycat recipe, drawing inspiration from a cake served at Olive Garden. I promise that this cake tastes just as good as the original, but without the gluten!

Click for the recipe

Gluten Free Lemon Blueberry Cake

Don't get me wrong: A chocolate cake is a thing of beauty, but sometimes you just want something different. This is the gluten free cake for when that kind of mood strikes. It tastes to fresh, and it absolutely sets off the tastes buds.

Click for the recipe

Gluten Free Strawberry Breakfast Cake

Cake for breakfast? Why not?! This strawberry breakfast cake is incredibly light and airy, but not too sweet, perfect for starting the day on the right foot. Serve it as is, or top with a strawberry glaze or some whipped cream.

Click for the recipe

Gluten Free Banana Cake

I love watching bananas go from yellow to black because I know I'll soon have the chance to whip up something tasty! This gluten free cake is sweeter and more delicate than banana bread, and you absolutely have to try it at least once with its amazing sour cream frosting.

Click for the recipe

Gluten Free Carrot Pineapple Cake

Carrots and pineapple? In the same recipe? Don't worry — it sounds like it shouldn't work, but oh my, how it does! The pineapple actually amplifies the sweetness of the carrots and provides for such a moist cake.

Click for the recipe

Gluten free spiced cake

Classic Gluten Free Spice Cake

When the weather turns cool, I always crave flavors that bring warmth. That's exactly what you get when you make this delicious spiced cake. It's moist and tender, and you can customize it by adding nuts, chocolate chips, and more.

Click for the recipe

Easy Gluten Free Carrot Cake

Just as with traditional carrot cake, this simple gluten free cake recipe offers a sweet, spiced base and tangy cream cheese frosting. If you prefer cupcakes, you'll be happy to know this recipe delivers that too!

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Gluten Free Gingerbread Cake

This cake is certain fit for the holidays with its warm spices that immediately invoke memories of Christmas trees, hot cocoa, and jolly old St. Nick. But I love it so much that I make it a few times throughout the year.

Click for the recipe

Tender Gluten Free Apple Cake

Imagine an apple pie in cake form. Tender apples, delicious spices, and a call for a scoop of vanilla ice cream — that's what this comforting gluten free cake is all about.

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Easy Gluten Free Apple Custard Cake

Incredibly easy apple custard cake, made with homemade or store bought cake mix (gluten free or not), applesauce and the perfect spices. It's so easy that you won't believe that 10 minutes of mixing ingredients can result in such a delicious gluten free cake.

Click for the recipe

Tips for making gluten free cakes

Follow your gluten free cake recipe carefully

When it comes to gluten free baking, you have to throw out a lot of the rules that apply to traditional baking.

Probably the biggest is the idea that you can substitute ingredients at will. While there's certainly room to make some adjustments depending on the recipe, most gluten free recipes — and especially all of mine — have undergone hours of trial and error to produce the best results.

So if you notice that I harp on sometimes about following the recipe exactly, please believe it comes from a good place. When people have problems with a recipe not turning out right, it can almost always be traced back to ingredient substitutions or not following the recipe precisely as it was written.

But what if you have allergies or don't like certain ingredients for another reason? With very few exceptions, every recipe on this website has a large blog post section with a title like “Ingredients and substitutions,” where I suggest ways to avoid additional allergens in any particular recipe.

But if you want a sure thing and you have other allergies or dietary restrictions, I suggest seeking out recipes for gluten free cakes that already meet your dietary needs. Can't have dairy? Check out my gluten free, dairy free chocolate cake. Following a Paleo diet? My almond flour cake (or the Paleo chocolate cake above) is perfect for you!

Best gluten free flour blend for cakes

You're going to see me talk a lot about gluten free flour in this tips section. That's because it's so important to achieving the best gluten free cake.

You know that there are lots of gf flours available. There's almond flour, coconut flour, rice flour, oat flour, and more. Which is the right one to use?

I'll cover measuring and working with the flour later, but first, let's start with what I consider the best gluten free cake flour recipe blend around.

After hours of testing, I've found this is to be the perfect ratio:

  • 82% all purpose gluten free flour blend (my favorite is Better Batter, and my “mock” recipe is linked to build your own
  • 18% cornstarch

Measuring gluten free flour the right way

To put it a way that's easier to understand, in all of my recipes that call for an all purpose gluten free flour blend, 1 cup weighs 140 grams. The volume measurement (here, 1 cup) is provided for convenience purposes, but the weight is all that matters.

Sometimes, a reader will use a 1 cup dry measuring cup, scoop a gluten free flour blend, and then weigh the contents. They'll tell me there must be an error in my recipe because their “cup” weighed more or less than 140 grams.

There's no error, though. When you're baking by weight, you completely ignore the volume measurement, and just focus on weight. Since dry volume measurements are inherently unreliable and imprecise, it's useless to “test” your vessel against the weight of its contents.

So, for 1 cup of gluten free cake flour, you'll need:

  • 115 grams all purpose gluten free flour blend
  • 25 grams cornstarch

As far as all purpose gluten free flour blends, I recommend Better Batter. It's the brand I use most often in my recipes and what I find to produce the best end result.

If you're using a gluten free flour blend, like Cup4Cup, that's already quite high in starch, just use that flour blend for 100% of your gluten free flour blend needs. It doesn't need more starch to work as a cake flour!

Weigh all your gluten free cake ingredients

In gluten free baking, there little room for being imprecise with measurements. Volume measuring instruments like dry measuring cups are not standardized in size, so your cup might be larger than mine. Plus, human error is simply unavoidable, regardless of how careful you are trying to be.

For this reason, you have to be very careful when measuring out your ingredients. Remember when I said you had to throw some rules out the window? When it comes to gluten free flour, throw out the measuring cups and pull out a digital kitchen scale. (Don't actually throw out your cups, though; just set them to the side!)

Measuring your flours and other ingredients by weight to match mine is the best way to replicate my gf cake recipes and end up with the same results.

Why a kitchen scale and not a measuring cup? When you “dip and scoop” flour, as you may be used to doing, you really don't have a good idea of how much you've scooped. Is your flour recently sifted and airy? Did you compress the flour through vigorous scooping?

You really can't know, and not knowing could mean using too much or too little flour. Too much flour in a cake will lead to a tough, dry cake; too little may lead to a wet cake that sinks as it cools.

Be sure your ingredients are at the right temperature before you begin

When baking a cake, the temperature of your eggs, fat, and liquids will all be specified, since those ingredients are typically stored in the refrigerator but won't combine properly when cold.

Be sure to read through a recipe completely before you begin, since you may have to set the butter and eggs out on the counter to let them come to room temperature before you bake. Butter should give way to your finger, but not feel greasy, when it's at “room temperature.”

How to bring ingredients to room temperature fast

If you don't have time to wait until your ingredients warm up naturally, here's how to speed things along without ruining your ingredients:

  • To warm cold butter to room temperature, unwrap it, chop it into chunks. Pour hot water into a glass bowl or jar, the pour it out, and place the warm, empty bowl on top of the butter. It will help warm it slowly.
  • If you're really in a rush, you can try placing your chopped butter on a microwave-safe plate an microwaving it at 20-second intervals at no more than 30% power until your finger leaves an identation in the butter.
  • To warm eggs to room temperature quickly, place the cold eggs still in their shells in a shallow bowl in a single layer. Pour warm (not hot) water over them and allow the eggs to sit for 15 minutes, undisturbed.

For fluffy cakes, cream your butter and sugar

You'll notice that, in almost all of the vanilla and other lighter cakes above, the instructions direct you to beat your room temperature butter with sugar using a handheld or stand mixer first. That's one way we introduce air into baked goods that we want fluffy.

For cakes that are denser, like most chocolate cakes, we use a “reverse cream” method, which just means that we begin by whisking together the dry ingredients in a bowl. Then, the wet ingredients like eggs and butter and any liquid, get mixed in afterward.

Storing gluten free cakes

I don't typically recommend refrigerating any sort of baked goods that you are concerned about getting dried out. The refrigerator tends to be drying.

In addition, baking with xanthan gum helps gluten free baked goods fresh, so resist the temptation to use a gluten free flour blend that doesn't have it unless the recipe specifies using it.

I typically include storage instructions in my gluten free recipes, but here are some general tips for storing most of our gluten free cakes:

  • If you intend to finish your cake within 1 or 2 days, you can leave it on the counter at room temperature so long as you keep it in an airtight container or wrap it tightly.
  • If you won't finish your cake in a couple of days, freeze it for longer storage.
  • If you have way too much cake or are making it in advance, you'll enjoy long-term storage if you stick it in the freezer. So long as you tightly wrap your cakes to prevent freezer burn, they'll typically stay good for up to 3 months when frozen. It's best to freeze a whole cake without frosting or filling, then defrost at room temperature, frost and serve as fresh.

FAQs

Is cake gluten free?

If only life were so easy. I'm sorry to say that most cakes and cake recipes are not gluten free.

However, I've spent years developing gluten free cake recipes so that you and your family don't have to live a life without cake. No matter your tastes or the occasion, I've got an awesome gluten free cake recipe waiting for you to try.

What are gluten free cakes made of?

Since no single gluten free flour can perform in a gluten free cake recipe like conventional all purpose wheat flour, gluten free cakes are typically made using a blend of about 5 individual gluten free flours. With the right recipe, where the other ingredients are balanced properly, your cake should taste just like you'd expect from a conventional cake.

Gluten free cake is simply cake that's made without gluten. That is, none of its ingredients are derived from barley, rye, wheat, or any other food product that may contain gluten or be cross-contaminated with it.

Are gluten free cakes healthy?

A lot of people seem to think that gluten free = healthy. While it's true that there are plenty of healthy gluten free recipes, there are just as many that you'll want to enjoy in moderation because they're full of fat, carbs, sugar, and other not-so-healthy ingredients.

When it comes to gluten free cake, I'll just say it again: Moderation is key! Though, if you are still dead-set on eating something cake-like that you can truly call healthy, I would point you toward my Superfood Muffins.

Do gluten free cakes taste different?

No—as long as you use the right recipe, with good ingredients, and measure carefully. What a gluten free cake tastes like really depends on the recipe.

If you're looking for gf cake recipes that are just “good, for gluten free,” and don't require much attention, this is not the right recipe blog for you. All of my recipes are reliably good, and can be proudly served to gluten-eaters and gluten-free eaters alike.

Keep in mind that “good, for gluten free” cakes are often the function of a gritty rice flour as part of your all purpose gluten free flour. If you build your own gluten free flour blend, you'll need to use superfinely ground rice flour. If you buy a blend, make sure it's a good one like Better Batter that uses only superfine rice flour.

Why didn't my gluten free cake rise?

Whenever a reader says that a recipe didn't turn out, my frist question is always: did you make any ingredient substitutions? If so, that's probably what happened. In the case of a cake that doesn't rise, I suggest the following:

  • You used the wrong flour — Not all gluten free flours are created equal. Just because a particular flour doesn't contain gluten doesn't mean that it's appropriate for baking a cake or that it will play well with the other ingredients in the recipe.
  • You substituted an ingredient — When you swap leaveners, such as eggs, baking powder, or baking soda, for other ingredients, you just might not get the result you're looking for.
  • You didn't follow the recipe instructions carefully, and perhaps didn't cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy first for a yellow or white cake—or your butter wasn't at room temperature so it didn't incorporate properly with the other ingredients.
  • Your chemical leaveners like baking powder and/or baking soda, were past their expiration date. Those ingredients have a long shelf life, but always check your labels to ensure they're fresh, and start with a new container whenever the date is close!

Why did is my gluten free cake gummy?

If your gluten free cake came out gummy, here's where you may have gone wrong:

  • You used the wrong flour — Using a gritty rice flour blend can lead to a gummy consistency, as the rice flour won't blend properly with the other ingredients.
  • There's too much moisture — There are many reasons why your gf cake might be too moist. You may have added too much liquid by overmeasuring some wet ingredients, or undermeasuring your flour, which raises the overall moisture.
  • Your oven may have been too hot, which causes baked goods to rise quickly and bake fully on the outside before the center is baked fully and can hold. As they cool, they collapse, leaving a compressed, gummy result.
  • You used an all purpose gluten free flour blend that already contains xanthan gum like Better Batter or Cup4Cup, and you still added more xanthan gum to the recipe even though the recipe said to leave that additional ingredient out if your flour blend already contains it.

Why is my gluten free cake so dry?

If your gluten free cake is dry coming out of the oven, you may have used too much flour or not enough liquid. Either way, the ingredients were not balanced—or your overbaked the cake.

If your gluten free cake is dry a few days after baking, you've not stored it correctly. Next time, be sure to tightly wrap your baked cakes and store in the freezer for extended periods.

Why is my gluten free cake gritty?

If your gf cake is gritty, you used a blend that doesn't use a superfine rice flour (Bob's Red Mill flour blends are particularly bad for this), or your made your own blend and used a subpar rice flour which wasn't finely ground enough. Unfortunately, some newer gf flour companies have started calling their rice flour “superfine,” even though they're not.

What's the secret to a moist gluten free cake?

I would say that there are two secrets to baking a homemade gluten free cake that's super moist: balance your ingredients and measure by weight.

Of course, you don't have to do the hard work of balancing your ingredients — I've already done that for you in every one of my gluten free cake recipes. So what I'm really saying here is, “Follow the recipe exactly as written!”

The Best Gluten Free Cakes | Recipes, Tips, and FAQs (2024)

FAQs

What is the trick to gluten-free baking? ›

Mix Batters Longer

While conventional wisdom has taught us not to overmix our batters, we've found most gluten-free batters simply need to be stirred for longer. If you're worried this will turn your muffins and cakes rubbery, have no fear. Gluten-free recipes need to have more structure.

What helps gluten free cakes rise? ›

2 teaspoons of baking powder per cup of gluten-free flour is necessary to ensure proper leavening. Baking soda and buttermilk can be used to leaven instead of baking powder, but 1-1/8 teaspoon of cream of tartar should be added for each 1/2 teaspoon baking soda used.

How do you know when a gluten-free cake is done? ›

Ultimately, the toothpick test is just one data source to rely upon: with the trio—toothpick, edges, & centre—you can reliably know your gluten-free baked goods are, well, baked! If your toothpick comes out with wet batter on it, your cake definitely needs more time.

What are the challenges of gluten-free baking? ›

Owing to the challenge of gluten-free flours to form a protein network that provides structure and strength to dough, breads produced in the absence of gluten tends to be flatter, denser, crummier, less chewy and less tasty.

How do you make gluten-free cake less crumbly? ›

Adding xanthan gum, to some extent, replaces the elastic qualities that gluten-free flours lack. This helps to reduce the risk of your cake crumbling and falling apart.

Do gluten-free cakes need more liquid? ›

Add extra liquid: Gluten-free flours tend to absorb more liquid than regular flour, so you may need to add more liquid to your recipes to compensate. This can help to keep your baked goods moist and prevent them from becoming dry and crumbly.

Why are my gluten-free cakes so dense? ›

If gluten-free cakes aren't falling apart, they often turn out heavy and unpleasantly dense. That's because gluten creates little pockets of air, so baked goods turn out springy and fluffy; gluten-free flours and grains are lacking this crucial element.

Why is my gluten-free cake falling apart? ›

Xanthan gum (along with other thickeners like guar gum and arrowroot) acts like a binder in gluten-free baked goods to maintain their structure. Without it, there's a good chance that your brownies or muffin will crumble and fall apart.

Which flour is best for gluten-free cakes? ›

Oat Flour. With its creamy, earthy flavor and delicate texture, gluten-free oat flour is a staple of my gluten-free baking recipes. It bakes up soft and smooth, adding necessary starch to many GF baked goods and keeping them moist and tender due to its high fat content and stable protein structure.

Can you over mix gluten-free cake batter? ›

However, you can actually mix a batter containing xanthan and/or guar gum to a point of diminishing returns. You can overwork the gums and end up with a stringy cake batter or rubbery cookie dough. (Having said that, doing this takes some work. Just don't take your aggressions out on a gluten-free cake batter.)

What does cream of tartar do in gluten-free baking? ›

When combined with baking soda, it becomes a leavening agent (the stuff that makes baked goods puff up in the oven) by producing carbon dioxide gas. If you ever run out of baking powder, you can substitute 1/4 teaspoon baking soda plus 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar for 1 teaspoon baking powder.

Is it better to bake a cake at 325 or 350? ›

Baking at a lower temperature yields a lighter crust. And not only is the crust lighter, it's more tender, as well. Notice the thicker, darker crust from the cake baked at 350°F (above left), compared to the crust from the cake baked at 325°F.

Should you refrigerate gluten free cake? ›

Storage information: The cake will keep at room temperature, covered with a cake cover, for up to three days; in the refrigerator, covered, for up to one week, or in the freezer, well wrapped, for up to one month.

What is the secret of baking with gluten free flour? ›

Gluten-free flours often contain fine starches, so they absorb more liquid than conventional flour. To address this, gluten-free recipes usually call for more liquid and produce looser batters. They may also call for a larger quantity of leavening, like baking powder, to help add volume and lighten the texture.

Can I just replace flour with gluten free flour? ›

If the original recipe calls for 260 grams of all-purpose flour, substitute with 260 grams of your blend. Beat the batter more. Because gluten-free flours provide less structure than all-purpose, the batter or dough you make with them may require more beating than that which you are accustomed.

Is it harder to bake with gluten free flour? ›

Gluten-free baking is a lot harder than traditional baking because gluten protein is what gives baked goods their structure.

Does gluten free flour bake the same as regular flour? ›

These breads take longer to bake because the gums and fiber in Gluten-Free Bread Flour hold onto water more than gluten (which is typical of gluten-free flour), so they take longer to fully bake and “dry out.” If you have a digital thermometer, the internal temperature should be between 208°F to 212°F.

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