Gluten Free Lemon Cake

I couldn’t think of a better way to welcome in spring than with a freshly baked lemon cake with a buttery lemon frosting.  With ingredients like lemon zest and freshly squeezed lemon juice, this cake recipe is sure to make your mouth water!

Here’s What You Will Need:

1 Stick Softened Butter (that’s 1/2 cup)

1 1/2 C. Granulated Sugar

2 Eggs

1/4 tsp. Salt

2 tsp. Baking Powder

1/4 tsp. Guar or Xanthan Gum

1 tsp. Baking Soda

The Juice of 1 Large Lemon (or 3 T.)

2 C. Superfine White Rice Flour

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease standard round cake pans.  Line the bottoms of each with parchment paper.  See pictures below.

1 C. Buttermilk or Sour Milk (For sour milk place 1 T. of apple cider vinegar in a 1 cup measuring cup and fill the rest of the way with plain milk.  Let sit for 5 minutes before using.)

Cream together the butter, sugar, and eggs.  Add the salt, guar or xanthan gum, lemon juice, baking soda, and baking powder, mixing just until combined.

Add the rice flour and the buttermilk 1/2 cup at a time, alternating until all is used.  Beat until fully incorporated.

Divide the cake batter between the two prepared cake pans and bake in a preheated oven for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Allow the cakes to cool before assembling and frosting each layer.  If needed, run a knife gently around the edges of the pan.  Don’t forget to peel off the parchment paper.

Buttery Lemon Zest Frosting

Here’s What You Will Need:

1/4 C. Softened Butter

2 tsp. Vanilla

5 C. Powdered Sugar

The Zest of 1 Medium Lemon

3-4 T. Half and Half or Cream

Using your mixer, combine all of the ingredients except the half and half.  Add enough half and half to form the desired consistency and then beat on high for about a minute.  Frost cakes.  If desired, top with candied lemon slices (shown).

Gluten Free Carrot Cake with Buttermilk Cream Cheese Frosting

Remember forever ago when your grandmother made homemade carrot cake and you ate it unabashedly unconcerned for calories because it had carrots in it?  Well I cannot promise this will be a calorie free morsel but I can assure you of the smiles that will follow when you bite into this old fashioned inspired dessert.

Here’s What You Will Need:

1 1/2 C. Vegetable Oil

1 C. Granulated Sugar (just a fancy way to say white sugar)

1 C. Brown Sugar, packed

4 Eggs

1 C. Tapioca Flour (also called Tapioca Starch)

1 1/2 C. Superfine White Rice Flour (use white and not brown as the sugar in this recipe browns this cake up nicely)

1/2 tsp. Guar or Xanthan Gum

2 tsp. Cinnamon (My all-time favorite is Vietnamese Cinnamon from Penzey’s)

1/4 tsp. Nutmeg

2 tsp. Baking Soda

1/4 tsp. Salt

3 C. Grated Carrot

1/2 C. Chopped Walnuts

1/4 C. Apple Butter (in a bind, applesauce will do)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease two 9″ round cake pans.  Line the bottoms with parchment (this will make it much easier to remove the cakes from the pans later – see pictures below).

For this recipe you only need two cake pans.

In your mixer, using your whisk attachment, combine the oil, sugars, and eggs.

Add the dry ingredients, mixing well.

Add the carrot, walnuts, and apple butter, mixing until fully combined.

Divide the batter among the prepared cake pans and bake in a preheated oven for 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.  The cakes will darken quite a bit (this is normal).

Allow the cakes to cool before frosting and assembling (Instructions follow).

Buttermilk Cream Cheese Frosting

2 T. Softened Butter

8 Ounces Softened Cream Cheese

2 tsp. Vanilla

1 T. Buttermilk

4 1/2 C. Powdered Sugar

1/2 C. Chopped Walnuts, plus 1/2 C. more reserved

Whip together the butter, cream cheese, vanilla, and buttermilk.  Add the powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time mixing it in slowly and adding enough to form your desired consistency.  Increase the speed to high and whip the frosting for one minute.  Stir in the 1/2 cup chopped walnuts.

Assembling the Cake

Flip one cake from its pan, peel off the parchment and discard.  Place the cake bottom side up.

Frost the first layer.  Flip the second cake from its pan, remove the parchment, and place top side up on top of the first layer.

Frost the layers, sides, and top of cake and then sprinkle with the reserved chopped walnuts.

                             Serve!

Gluten Free Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins

As tasty as they are beautiful, this muffin recipe creates a delicious velvety quick bread that makes Saturday mornings a little shinier.  Try  mixing up a batch to share at the office or over coffee with friends.  They freeze well too!

Here’s What You Will Need:

2 C. Superfine Rice Flour (I’ve used both white and brown and they turn out perfectly with either)

1/2 C. Cocoa (this time around I used Dutch cocoa but regular baking cocoa or special dark cocoa will work too)

1/4 tsp. Guar or Xanthan Gum

1/2 tsp. Salt

1 T. Baking Powder

1/2 C. Granulated Sugar

1/4 C. Packed Brown Sugar

1/2 tsp. Pumpkin Pie Spice

1 tsp. Vanilla

1/2 C. Canned Pumpkin

1 Egg

1/2 C. Vegetable Oil

1 1/2 C. Milk

1/4 Mini Chocolate Chips, reserved

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and lightly grease a muffin tin.  This recipe will make approximately 18 muffins.

In a large mixing bowl whisk together all of the dry ingredients (except the reserved chocolate chips).

Add the egg, oil, vanilla, pumpkin, and milk, whisking just until fully combined.

Fill prepared muffin tins 2/3rds full and sprinkle with reserved chocolate chips.  Bake in a preheated oven for 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Watch as they disappear like magic.

Gluten Free Banana Cake with Buttercream Frosting

Turn those ugly over-ripe bananas into something beautiful.  As a tasty alternative to banana bread, try this gluten free banana cake recipe topped with buttercream frosting and you may find you look more favorably on those blackened bananas…

Here’s What You Will Need:

Don’t worry. Those ugly bananas are about to get a makeover.

3 Large Overripe Bananas – no need to mash them (Tip:  the next time you have overripe bananas, toss them in the freezer, not the trash.  No need to peel first.  When you are ready to use them, allow them to sit on the counter and thaw slightly before peeling, or nuke them in the microwave for about 45 seconds).

Like these ones!

3 Eggs

1 1/2 C. Granulated Sugar

1/2 C. Softened Butter

2 tsp. Baking Powder

1 tsp. Baking Soda

1/2 tsp. Salt

1 T. Vanilla

1/4 C. Milk

2 C. Superfine Rice Flour

(Buttercream Frosting Ingredients and Recipe Are at the Bottom of the Page)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9 x 13 inch cake pan.

Using the whisk attachment on your mixer, mix together the first four ingredients (no need to pre-mash the bananas) on medium speed until blended.

Add the remaining ingredients except the rice flour, mixing well.

On medium speed, mix in the rice flour 1/2 cup at a time until all the flour is used.  Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed.

Pour batter into your prepared cake pan and bake in a preheated oven for 25-28 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.  Allow the cake to cool completely before topping with buttercream frosting.

Buttercream Frosting:

Here’s What You Will Need:

1/4 C. Softened Butter

1 tsp. Vanilla

1 lb. Powdered Sugar

1/2 C. Half and Half or Cream

Using the whisk attachment on your mixer, combine the butter, vanilla, and powdered sugar, mixing on low speed until crumbly.  Continue mixing while adding enough of the cream to form the desired consistency.  Whip on high speed for 30 seconds and frost your cooled banana cake.

Stand back and watch it disappear!

Gluten Free Triple Layer Chocolate Cake

This cake has become a frequent request, especially at birthdays.  It tastes just as good as it looks!

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease three round standard cake pans.  Line the bottom of each pan with parchment paper.

Here’s What You’ll Need:

2 2/3 C. Sugar

1 C. + 2 T. Vegetable Oil

5 Eggs

1 C. + 2 T. Cocoa Powder

1 1/2 tsp. Salt

1 1/2 tsp. Baking Soda

3/4 tsp. Baking Powder

3/4 tsp. Guar or Xanthan Gum (if using a gluten free flour blend that includes guar or xanthan gum, omit)

2 tsp. Vanilla

1 3/4 C. Strong Coffee

1 1/2 C. Superfine Rice Flour

1 1/2 C. Tapioca Starch

Vitacost.com has the best gluten free super finely ground rice flours I have found yet and at a great price.

Combine the first three ingredients and beat on medium speed until smooth (approximately 1 minute).

Add the next six ingredients and beat again on low for an additional 1 minute.

Alternate adding the coffee, rice flour, and tapioca starch on low speed until all are incorporated.  Don’t worry, your cake won’t taste like coffee.  The added coffee enhances the flavor of the chocolate and gives it an extra punch.

 

Line your pans with parchment if you haven’t done so yet (see pictures below).

  

Evenly divide the batter among the 3 prepared cake pans and back for 25-28 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Allow the cakes to cool slightly and then place in the freezer (yup you read it right, freezer) until ready to frost.  This will not only help the cake frost easily and not crumb as much, it also speeds up the time until you can eat it!  After about 30 minutes, remove cakes from the freezer, flip out of the pans, and peel off the parchment (see picture below).

What You Will Need for the Frosting:

32 Ounces of Powdered Sugar (check the back to make sure it’s gluten free – most are and contain cornstarch, which is fine, though every once in a while you’ll come across one with wheat starch which is a big no)

1 1/2 C. Cocoa Powder (we’re really plowing through the cocoa but it’s going to be worth it!)

3 T. Strong Coffee, cooled

1 T. Vanilla

6-8 T. Half and Half or Cream

1 Stick Butter, soft but not quite room temperature

Combine the butter, vanilla, powdered sugar, and cocoa powder, beating on low speed until crumbly.  Add the coffee and enough half and half, beating constantly on low, until the frosting holds its shape.  Whip on high speed for 3 minutes.

Time to Assemble the Cakes!

  

Sorry Walter but this cake is for human consumption. You get points for cuteness though.

And the final product.

Or…..

  

Prepare for compliments.