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If there's a person alive who doesn't love pound cake, then I've never met him. Or her. And this gluten free chocolate cinnamon pound cake, a copycat of the beloved Starbucks slice, is just the thing to enjoy with a hot cup of coffee. But let's make it good coffee, okay? This smooth chocolate butter pound cake deserves it.
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With its comfy chairs and its thick special mugs for sale, Starbucks is like the coffee mother ship. It doesn't matter one whit that, if I were one to cast aspersions, I might have a few choice words to say about their burnt coffee.
I still end up there from time to time, even if I meant to be somewhere else. It's really better for everyone involved (especially my children, who know this all too well) if I have coffee every.single.day.
And even though I was never even drawn to those treats in the treat case at Starbucks before gluten free was a way of life for my son and me, I now find myself staring into that glass enclosed case, longingly.
That – and a very special reader (you know who you are) told me a very compelling sob story about this particular pound cake treat (complete with photos from a recon mission).
This pound cake doesn't start out in a cold oven, like the Gluten Free Iced Lemon Pound Cake (also a Starbucks copycat recipe) we made not so very long ago. It simply bakes low and slow (325°F, for about an hour). It cracks a bit on top, but the crackled cinnamon-sugar-cocoa top is what we seek.
This pound cake is smooth and rich in chocolate, with just the right cinnamon to highlight and enhance the chocolate taste. It's an all-butter gluten free pound cake, not a cream cheese and butter pound cake, so the chocolate and cinnamon really shine.
Looking for more Starbucks gluten free copycat recipes?:
Gluten Free Starbucks-Style Iced Lemon Pound Cake.
Gluten Free Starbucks-Style Vanilla Almond Biscotti.
Gluten Free Starbucks Chocolate Cinnamon Pound Cake Recipe
Equipment
- Stand mixer or handheld mixer
Ingredients
- ¾ cup (60 g) unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa powder, plus more for sprinkling
- 1 ¼ cups (250 g) granulated sugar, plus more for sprinkling
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon, plus more for sprinkling
- 2 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
- ¼ cup (2 fluid ounces) milk
- 1 cup (140 g) all purpose gluten free flour blend, (I used Better Batter; please click thru for full info on appropriate blends)
- 1 teaspoon xanthan gum, (omit if your blend already contains it)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 16 tablespoons (224 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 4 (200 g (weighed out of shell)) eggs, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 325°F.
- Grease an 8 1/2 inch x 4 1/2 inch loaf pan, sprinkle evenly but lightly with cocoa powder, sugar and ground cinnamon and set the pan aside.
- In a small saucepan, place the chopped chocolate and milk over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth. Set the mixture aside to cool briefly. In a medium-sized bowl, place the flour, xanthan gum, salt, cocoa powder and cinnamon, whisk to combine well and set the bowl aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or a large bowl with a hand mixer), beat the butter and sugar until the mixture falls from the beater in a ribbon when the paddle is lifted (about 3 minutes). Add the eggs, one at a time, and the vanilla, and beat again until well-combined. Next, add the chocolate and milk mixture, and beat again until combined. Finally, with the mixer on low, add the flour and cocoa powder mixture slowly. Beat briefly until well combined. The mixture should be smooth and thickly pourable.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared pan, and smooth the top with a wet spatula. Sprinkle the top lightly with sugar, cinnamon and cocoa powder. Place in the center of the preheated oven and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with no more than a few moist crumbs attached (about 1 hour).
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
