This decadent quinoa chocolate cake super is moist and fudgy, flourless, and not too rich. Plus, it's naturally dairy free and gluten free!
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Why make a chocolate cake with quinoa instead of gf flour?
Everyone loves a flourless chocolate cake for that dense fudginess that can't be beat. But this cake is different.
It's not only because its texture is more like a more traditional chocolate cake. Or because it's naturally dairy free, made with oil instead of butter.
I've made this cake so many times over the last week or so, and I broke the cardinal rule of making someone else's recipe. The first time I made it, I did the very thing I always say you should never, ever do. I made it with my own special changes.
But to be fair, since the first time I saw this recipe for a naturally gluten free chocolate cake on Mel’s Kitchen Cafe (hi, friend!), I was super curious to see if you could substitute the cooked quinoa (yes! quinoa is a gluten free pseudo-grain!) for a cooked grain or alternative porridge-like food. And I'm happy to report that… you can!
More choc quinoa cake ingredients notes
- Eggs – The eggs are really important in this recipe, helping to bind everything together and give the cake lift.
- Oil – A neutral oil, like grapeseed or vegetable oil, is perfect for making a rich chocolate cake when combined with cocoa powder.
- Vanilla extract – A flavor enhancer that also helps overwhelm any taste of quinoa.
- Sugar – Not just a sweetener, but a tenderizer, sugar is an important part of this rich chocolate cake
- Cocoa powder – Cocoa powder not only gives the cake a deep chocolate flavor, but its aroma covers any remaining quinoa bitterness.
- Baking powder and baking soda – Make sure your chemical leaveners are fresh, and they'll never fail to add the proper lift to your cake.
- Salt – Balances the sweetness and brings out the flavor of the chocolate
You can make this naturally gf cake with cooked quinoa or cooked teff
I've made this cake with either cooked quinoa or cooked cooked teff. The original recipe has a slight tendency to sink as it cools sort of like a soufflé, so I removed some moisture and changed a few other ingredient proportions.
Making this quinoa gluten free chocolate cake as I've specified below (no milk, more cocoa powder, oil instead of butter) made a similarly moist and tender cake as the original recipe I tried. It also made a chocolate cake that rises without sinking very much at all.
The cake is stable whether you make it with cooked quinoa or cooked whole grain teff. Just make them on the stovetop according to the basic package directions with water. Note that the proportion of grains to water is different for each grain.
If you're using teff to make your flourless chocolate cake
If you use cooked teff to make this flourless chocolate cake, you should know a few things about whole teff. First, be sure you're using the individual grains of this ancient nutritional powerhouse, not teff flour, for this recipe. They can be somewhat easy to confuse, since the whole grains are super tiny.
When you cook the whole grain teff in water, you'll need a ratio of 4 parts water to 1 part whole grain teff. For example, if you'd like to cook 1/2 cup of whole grain teff (raw), you'll need 2 cups of boiling water. You'll find that it cooks like porridge, and becomes firm as it cools like polenta.
You can crumble the cooked and cooled teff, or you can let it take the shape of the bowl that it's in, and throw that right into your blender to make the cake batter.
Tips for preparing the quinoa for this naturally gluten free chocolate cake
I started out making this cake in what's become the traditional manner: cooking it in water. But it turns out that you don't even need to cook the quinoa. You can just soak it in water for about 12 hours and blend away.
If you'd like more details on soaking quinoa for baking, please click through. But the general idea is to place about 1 cup (by volume, if you like) raw quinoa in a bowl or jar, and add enough tap water to cover by about in inch.
Cover the quinoa and water mixture, and allow it to soak in the refrigerator overnight, or for up to 24 hours. Drain the soaked quinoa in a fine mesh sieve or nut milk bag, measure the soaked and drained quinoa by weight in place of the cooked quinoa, and proceed with the recipe as written below.
Making gluten free chocolate quinoa cake — quick tips
Use a blender for the best quinoa cake
Even though we soften the quinoa by cooking (or soaking) it before using it in the cake batter, we need to blend it with the oil and some other wet ingredients so it doesn't add any unwanted texture to the cake.
You don't need a high speed blender for this task, but even a lower powered blender will make a smoother batter that holds everything together better than a food processor. If you don't have a blender, you can use a food processor, but your cake may be a little more fragile, and may even have a bit of texture.
Choosing the right baking pans
As written, this recipe makes a single 8-inch round cake, but you can make it easily in an 8-inch square cake pan without any modifications. If you'd like to use a 9-inch pan, just reduce the baking time as it will be ready faster.
I always recommend baking in light-colored cast aluminum baking pans for even baking without burning. To make a layer cake, just double the batter, divide it evenly among 2 prepared cake pans, and bake as directed, rotating the pans halfway through to ensure they bake evenly.
I don't recommend using a bundt pan, since this cake is not sturdy enough to hold together reliably in that quantity, and in that sort of pan.
Use parchment paper for easy removal
Most of my round cake pans are not nonstick, so I'm always sure to grease them well with cooking oil spray, and lining them with a round of parchment paper.
To remove the cake from the pan, allow it to cool until it's no longer hot to the touch, place an upside down wire rack on top, invert the pan and rack, and remove the pan by lifting it up and off the cake.
A simple frosting for chocolate quinoa cake
My favorite frosting for this simple chocolate quinoa cake is a rich whipped chocolate ganache. You'll find the recipe below. I only add the (optional) confectioners' sugar to the whipped ganache if I plan to travel with the cake and need the frosting to be firmer.
How to store chocolate quinoa cake so it stays fresh
This chocolate quinoa cake is super moist, so it doesn't dry out easily. However, when it's plain and not covered in frosting, it can be somewhat fragile so be sure to keep it wrapped tightly or on a stable base like a serving platter before you serve it.
Quinoa gluten free chocolate cake: Ingredients and substitutions
Dairy free quinoa chocolate cake
This cake is already dairy-free by nature, since it's made with oil instead of butter. To make the chocolate ganache dairy-free, make sure you're using dairy free chocolate, and replace the heavy whipping cream with chilled coconut cream from the can (liquid set aside or discarded).
Can you make quinoa chocolate cake without eggs?
That is a tough one. There are two eggs in this cake, and you can try a “chia egg” (1 tablespoon ground chia seeds + 1 tablespoon lukewarm water, mixed and allowed to gel), but the eggs are very important in this cake.
Quinoa/teff
I haven't tried this recipe with any other cooked seed or grain, but I suspect that it would work with anything that cooks in water like a porridge. Feel free to experiment!
Try to steer clear of anything that has a very strong flavor and that doesn't pair well with chocolate. Teff and chocolate are very compatible. Or just make our one bowl gluten free chocolate cake if you can't have teff or quinoa.
FAQs
I recommend baking with white quinoa, since it disappears most readily into the cake after being blended. We don't need to remind you of cooked grains when you're eating chocolate cake. :)
No, you can't use quinoa flour to make this cake. It calls for cooked (or soaked) quinoa, and is balanced in favor of the extra moisture and tenderness of the cooked grain.
No, I haven't had any luck making a yellow cake with quinoa as a base instead of flour. The slightly bitter flavor of quinoa simply must be masked with another strong flavor, like cocoa powder.
You can! I have all the details in our quinoa chocolate cupcakes post. I use the same ingredients in different proportions, though, and prepared a bit differently, so click on over.
Yes! The cake freezes so well and defrosts really quickly. You can even keep it in the refrigerator for a day or so if it's wrapped tightly.
Any cake made with perishable ingredients shouldn't stay at room temperature for too long. But this cake, especially if it's unfrosted, will stay fresh on the counter for about 2 days if it's under a cake dome.
Yes! I would recommend freezing the cake unfrosted. Just wrap it very tightly in freezer-safe wrap, place it in a flat surface, and then in the freezer. Once it's frozen, you can remove the flat surface.
How to make quinoa chocolate cake
Quiona Chocolate Cake
Equipment
- Blender
- Handheld mixer (for making whipped frosting)
Ingredients
For the cake.
- 2 (100 g (weighed out of shell)) eggs at room temperature
- 6 tablespoons (84 g) neutral oil (like sunflower, grapeseed, canola or vegetable oil), at room temperature
- 1 cup (165 g) cooked and cooled quinoa or whole grain teff cooked in water according to package directions (See Recipe Notes), at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- ⅝ cup (50 g) unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
For the frosting.
- ⅜ cup (3 fluid ounces) heavy whipping cream
- 5 ounces dark chocolate roughly chopped
- ½ cup (58 g) confectioners' sugar (optional)
Instructions
Make the cake.
- To make a layer cake, multiply every ingredient by two and bake the batter in two separate 8-inch round cake pans. Double the frosting recipe, too.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease an 8-inch round cake pan, and line the bottom with a round of parchment paper. Set the pan aside.
- In a blender or food processor, place the eggs, oil, cooked quinoa or teff and vanilla, and blend or process until smooth. The mixture should become lighter in color.
- You will still see flecks of the cooked quinoa or teff, but process until it’s as smooth as possible.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Add the eggs and oil mixture, and mix until well-combined. The mixture will be thick.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared cake pan, and smooth into an even layer with a wet knife or offset spatula.
- Place in the center of the preheated oven and bake until the cake is set in the center and springs back when pressed very gently in the center (about 28 minutes).
- A toothpick shouldn’t come out wet, but it won’t be completely clean.
- Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- The cake may sink a bit as it cools, but it should mostly maintain its shape.
- The finished and cooled cake can be wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and frozen for storage of up to 2 months. Allow to thaw at room temperature before serving.
Make the frosting.
- In a small, heavy-bottom saucepan, heat the heavy whipping cream until it just begins to simmer.
- Place the chopped chocolate in a medium-size bowl, and pour the hot cream over the chocolate.
- Allow the cream to sit on the chocolate for about a minute, until the chocolate begins to melt. Mix until the chocolate is melted, and the mixture is smooth and glossy.
- Allow the ganache to cool at room temperature until no longer hot to the touch.
- Cover and place in the refrigerator until firm enough to scoop with a spoon, about 2 hours.
- Transfer the cooled ganache to a large bowl and beat with a handheld mixer or stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until thickened and fluffy. The ganache will also lighten in color as it whips.
- Add the confectioners’ sugar and whip to combine, if you’d like your frosting a bit sweeter, and a bit more firm.
- Frost the cake as desired, and serve.
Notes
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Thanks for stopping by!
Hi, I’m Nicole. I create gluten free recipes that really work and taste as good as you remember. No more making separate meals when someone is GF, or buying packaged foods that aren’t good enough to justify the price. At Gluten Free on a Shoestring, “good, for gluten free” just isn’t good enough! Come visit my bio!
Susan says
I don’t know what I did wrong. I diubled everything to make avlayer cake and ysed 8 inch round pans. Cakes were nice and moist coming out of the oven but once cooled turned to structural concrete. The frosting became completely solid in the fridge and there was no whipping possible. I added more heavy cream and got wet chocolate sand. So I rewarmed, mixed and have put back in the fridge. I’m glad it worked out for everyone else. I used to be a good baker before gluten free. Sadly I have ruined my son’s 15th birthday.
Nicole Hunn says
That’s very disappointing, Susan. It sounds like you underbaked the cakes, which can happen in many different ways, but most commonly when an oven runs hot. The outside of the cake cooks very quickly, and appears “done,” but the inside can’t support the structure, so it falls as it cools. It’s also easier to make a mistake in a recipe when you’ve doubled it, so you may have added too much of one ingredient or too little of another. I’m afraid there’s no way for me to know.
For the ganache, when it’s grainy like that, it’s usually because the chocolate seized, which happens when it’s too hot. The cream is only meant to simmer, nothing more, which is specified in the recipe.
Olinda Paul says
THIS….is a FABULOUS cake. I made it in a 6 inch pan and baked it an extra 10 min. It came out fabulous both times.I weighed everything except the 2 eggs.I used Brute Forte Chocolate. I can’t have sugar so I didn’t make the frosting. Sugar feeds cancer. I like to make the recipe exactly before I go messing with the ingredients. However, I had a tiny piece with some coconut whipped cream. You can put anything on this wonderful flourless chocolate cake. All I can say is WONDERFUL JOB Nicole! It’s so freaking easy to make even my autistic child (he’s 27 now) can do it. He LOVED IT and wanted the recipe. I will try Monk fruit for the sugar next time. Everyone that had a piece were shocked that it was made with Quinoa. So was I.
Nicole Hunn says
Great to hear, Olinda!!
Amber says
What did you use in replace of the sugar in the cake?
Nicole Hunn says
There isn’t a sugar alternative that won’t alter the taste and texture of the cake since this cake recipe is developed to be made with sugar. You can try granulated monk fruit sweetener, but it tends to be drying
Sue says
I was REALLY skeptical about this cake because, well, most GF recipes are not very similar to “real” ones. However, this one was AMAZING! I have been on a strict GF, corn-free, potato-free, sugar-free protocol to heal my body from mold, so I made this with Lakanto monk fruit + erythritol sweetener instead. It worked out perfectly.
I did NOT try the icing because I don’t have a powdered sugar option. I made up a glaze with the Lakanto mix that I wouldn’t recommend. LOL!
But the cake was REALLY REALLY good. I’ve requested a copy of one of your cookbooks for Mother’s Day. Thank you!
Nicole Hunn says
I know I know it seems crazy, especially this recipe, Sue. Those are a lot of restrictions, and that does complicate things considerably, but if your experience is that GF recipes aren’t good, then you’ve been using the wrong GF recipes. My motto is that good, for gluten free isn’t good enough! Lankato monkfruit sweetener is my favorite sugar alternative. They do also have a powdered sugar option, but I haven’t tried it so I can’t vouch for it.
Barbara Hayes says
EXCELLENT CHOCOLATE CAKE. I did lightly pack my cooked quinoa in the measuring cup and used a couple tablespoons of Hersheys Dark Cocoa with my regular organic cocoa. (might reduce the sugar a couple of tablespoons next time)..when cooled I heaped on a couple spoons of my chocolate avocado honey mousse, topped with an extra dollop of cream cheese whipped with honey and it’s just heaven in a spoon..THANKS Nicole
Nicole Hunn says
Sounds delicious, Barbara!
Olinda says
Made this last night…just the cake part since I can’t really have sugar…(I just found out I have breast cancer) But I had a tiny piece to test it. PEOPLE…this is Company Worthy Cake. It’s so darn easy to make. I used a 6″ cake pan but it turned out beautiful. I just baked it a tiny bit longer.
This is such a versatile cake, you can do whipped cream, Berries, fruit, etc. I used Brute dry Chocolate. It was very rich tasting. The crumb is fantastic. THIS ONE IS A KEEPER and something I would serve to guests anytime.
Thank you so much, I love recipes that are easy to do, taste good and make me look like a fabulous baker.
Nicole Hunn says
I’m thrilled you loved the cake so much, Olinda! Thank you for taking the time to share that. I’m so sorry to hear about your cancer diagnosis, and I hope you’re taking good care of yourself. ❤️
Paul says
Wonder if rinsing the quinoa several times to remove the white powdery seed coat prior to cooking would help reduce the bitterness. Many quinoa recipes suggest this technique. The coating on many seeds is nature’s way to help grain survival till it can naturally sprout somewhere, it’s unpleasant tasting to many animals that might otherwise eat it.
Maybe a vanilla or yellow cake is possible…
Nicole Hunn says
I always rinse quinoa before cooking it, Paul. There’s no bitter taste, or any quinoa taste at all, in this recipe. No, I don’t recommend a vanilla cake here, as I discuss in the text of the post.
Donna says
Could I be substitute Honey for the sugar?? Doing that how much would I cut back on liquid?
Thanks!
Nicole Hunn says
No, you can’t substitute a liquid sugar for a granulated sugar, Donna. That would require a different recipe entirely!
Debs says
I make a version quite similar to this one. It does call for 3/4 cup melted butter which I halved by using tangerine purée. ( boiling them in water then processing them) . Nothing like orange and chocolate! So good
Nicole Hunn says
Wow that’s a lot of butter! Your version sounds lovely.
Criselda DOMINGUEZ says
I made this for my son’s birthday and IT WAS DELICIOUS!! I did not have enough cocoa powder, so i used melted chocolate chips instead and it turned out great! I only made one layer and it was gone in less than 30 minutes. I will be making another one next week and will do 2 layers with raspberry filling. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
Nicole Hunn says
So glad you loved it, Criselda, and that your substitution worked out!
Mare says
Nicole, Amazon just let me know you ate putting out a 2nd Edition of your first book! Is it different from book 1?
Nicole Hunn says
Hi, Mare,
Yes! It’s significantly different than the first edition. It has full color photos throughout the book, and many, many new recipes. It’s available for preorder and on sale officially on Oct. 10! :)
Olinda says
Thank you as Pictures are very helpful for people that are kitchen challenged.
Karen O'Sullivan says
I love this cake !
I will double the mixture next time .
Very moist not too sweet.
So easy to make.
Thanks Nicole.
Nicole Hunn says
I’m so glad, Karen! Thanks so much for letting us all know. And definitely double it! It keeps really really well in the refrigerator or the freezer.
Mikki says
This looks very interesting! I’ve been wanting to know how to use teff for more than just a mush, even though the mush tastes good. If you have more teff recipes then perhaps you could make a category for them? Looking forward to trying this one out. Thanks.
Nicole Hunn says
I use teff in a brown bread recipe here on the site, Mikki. But no, I don’t have a category.
Antonia Sheldrake says
Would this work as a small tray of brownies?
Nicole Hunn says
Hi, Antonia,
This is a cake, not brownies. I have some flourless brownie recipes as well, like my Black Bean Brownies. Just use the search bar to find the recipe here on the site.