Friday, November 9, 2012

Chocolate Cake

When Z told me he wanted chocolate cake for his birthday, inside I leaped for joy! I have been waiting for just the right excuse to bake this delicious chocolate cake again.




This cake is NOT gluten-free, but it is sugar-free. And it is the moistest, ooey-gooeyest, chocolatiest cake ever. This cake actually sold me on going sugar-free. I just didn't understand how something satisfy my sweet tooth and not have refined sugar in it.

This is, in fact, The Best Cake I Have Ever Eaten In My Life!




I bake this cake, but by no means did I invent it. The original recipe comes from Cybele Pascal's Whole Foods Allergy Cookbook, one of my favorites. My adaptation of the recipe is as follows.

1 c + 2 tbsp oat flour
1 c + 2 tbsp barley flour (*barley contains gluten*)
1 1/4 c unsweetened cocoa powder
2 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/4 tsp double-acting baking powder
1 1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 c + 2 tbsp rice milk
1/2 c + 2 tbsp canola oil
1 3/4 c + 2 tbsp maple syrup
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 c warm water

Preheat oven to 350. Spray two 10" round cake pans. Cover bottoms with parchment paper cut to fit, then spray again and dust with cocoa. In a large bowl, whisk flours, cocoa, soda, baking powder, and salt. Add eggs, milk, oil, syrup, vanilla, and water. Beat on medium-low about three minutes until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl. Pour batter into pans, smooth surface, and bake in center of oven for 45 minutes, or until cake begins to pull away from sides and toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pans on a wire rack for about 30 minutes. To remove cakes, cover each pan with a large plate, flip over, and tap the bottom of the pan. Peel off parchment and flip back onto the wire rack right-side-up. Cool completely before frosting.

For the frosting...

4 oz unsweetened chocolate
1 c vegetable shortening
1 c agave nectar
2 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of salt

Melt chocolate and shortening in a pan over low heat. Stir constantly (chocolate burns easily). Once melted, remove and combine with other ingredients in a large bowl. Beat on medium speed for 15 minutes, until cooled and smooth. Frost the cake!

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