Gluten Free Chocolate Coconut Zucchini Cake
I have one goal here: to prove to you that gluten free can be amazing.
No, this is not a joke.
No, I’m not pulling your chain here.
I’m 100% telling you the honest to goodness truth.
Written by: Brielle Gundersen of Breezy Bakes
Since cooking and baking gluten free for the past 8 months, I feel like I’ve really started to master making delicious meals and treats.
I’ve decided to take it one step further.
Many people who struggle with gluten also struggle with other allergies or intolerances, one being dairy.
I’ve made a conscious effort to start baking a handful of dairy free products as well.
This Chocolate Coconut Zucchini Cake is the perfect answer to a rich and decadent craving for those who can’t easily process gluten or dairy.
This cake is intense!
It’s moist, fudgy, and full of chocolate.
The zucchini makes it soft and tender.
The dairy free chocolate chips add an extra punch of sweetness.
Not to mention the chocolate coconut frosting.
This vegan frosting spreads almost like a ganache and has just the right hint of coconut to compliment the deep chocolate flavor.
Think the flavor of a Mounds bar packed into a double decker cake!
That is what this Gluten Free Chocolate Coconut Zucchini Cake tastes like.
I’m telling you, you won’t be disappointed with this Gluten Free Chocolate Coconut Zucchini Cake.
If you love coconut, if you love chocolate, you will for sure fall madly in love with this sinful vixen of a dessert.
Toasted coconut makes an awesome garnish. Learn how to toast coconut flakes in 3 different ways (they’re all super easy!), how to store toasted coconut, how long toasted coconut lasts, and the many different ways you can use this fun, tasty ingredient!
Have you had success with gluten free baking? What tips do you find helpful?
Gluten Free Chocolate Coconut Zucchini Cake
A gluten and dairy-free chocolate coconut zucchini cake that is rich, moist, and fudgy. Spread with a vegan chocolate coconut frosting.
Ingredients
For Cake:
- 1 cup potato starch
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup coconut flour
- 1/2 cup gluten-free oat flour
- 1/2 cup buckwheat flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon xanthan gum
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup coconut oil (melted and cooled to touch)
- 1 3/4 granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1 cup canned coconut milk (you will use the rest for the frosting*)
- 1 cup dairy-free chocolate chips
- 3 cups finely shredded zucchini (about 2-3 zucchinis)
For Frosting:
- 3/4 cup coconut oil (room temperature)
- 4 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 2/3 cup coconut milk (remaining milk from cake)
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- pinch of salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
To Make Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and lightly flour (gluten-free flour of your choice**) two 9 inch round cake pans and set aside.
- In a small-sized mixing bowl, sift together potato starch, cocoa powder, coconut flour, gluten-free oat flour, buckwheat flour, baking powder, salt, xanthan gum, and baking soda.
- In a larger mixing bowl or stand mixer, beat together melted coconut oil and sugar until pale and smooth. Add eggs and beat until incorporated. Add vanilla and mix until combined. Add half of flour mixture and beat on low speed until fully incorporated. Add coconut milk and beat until combined. Add remaining flour mixture and mix until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Beat on medium speed for two minutes. With a spatula or wooden spoon, stir in chocolate chips and shredded zucchini until well mixed.
- Divide batter equally between both cake pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 27-30 minutes or until tops are firm and bounce back at touch of a finger. Remove from oven and cool on cooling racks until ready to frost.
To Make Frosting:
- While cakes are cooling begin making frosting. In a large mixing bowl, beat coconut oil until light and fluffy. Add 2 1/2 cups of powdered sugar and beat until mixture resembles small grains. Add coconut milk, pinch of salt, vanilla, and cocoa powder. Beat until fully incorporated. Add remaining 2 cups of powdered sugar and beat until combined. Add more milk or powdered sugar to reach desired consistency.
Assembly:
- Once cake is completely cooled, remove from pans by sliding knife around the edges to loosen. Holding one hand over the top of the cake, use your other hand to flip the bottom of the pan so cake comes out onto the hand touching the cake. Quickly use both hands to flip first cake onto a serving dish.
- Using about 1/3 of the frosting, frost the top of the first cake. Use the same method to remove second cake from pan and place on top of first cake. Frost top and sides of cake. Garnish top with sweetened coconut flakes and serve at room temperature.
Notes
*Use full fat canned coconut milk for this recipe. Make sure to shake the can before using.
**When flouring the pan, choose one of the gluten free flours in your recipe to lightly dust the pan. In this recipe I dusted with oat flour.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 10 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 910Total Fat: 55gSaturated Fat: 43gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 37mgSodium: 425mgCarbohydrates: 99gFiber: 7gSugar: 62gProtein: 10g
GoodLifeEats.com offers recipe nutritional information as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although GoodLifeEats.com makes every effort to provide accurate information, these figures are only estimates.
If you enjoyed this recipe, be sure to check out some of my other gluten free desserts at Breezy Bakes.
Katie says
I made this today and it was a big hit. I used Teff flour instead of oat, as I had that on hand. I also used butter instead of coconut oil and baked it in a bundt pan (baked for 1 hr). SO good! Thanks for sharing!
Katie says
So glad you liked it! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Carla says
Just made this cake and can’t wait to eat it! Im thinking Ill slice one cake in 1/2 and frost it. Im hoping this cake freezes well?? Thanks!
Brielle @ Breezy Bakes says
Oh fabulous! I’m so glad you tried it. The cake freezes beautifully! I freeze at least half of almost every dessert I make. We can never get through a whole thing quick enough with just the 4 of us. Hope you enjoy!
Linda Shaw says
Do you think I could substitute stevia for the sugar? Would it make a difference in the consistency? I have RA and need to watch my gluten, dairy and sugar.
Thanks for the site. LS
Brielle @ Breezy Bakes says
I’m actually not sure how stevia would affect the batter. I’ve never baked with it before. I’m a sugar gal. Haha! Let me know if you try it. I would assume it should work just fine. Thanks Linda!
Caitlin says
I love that it’s a dairy free frosting with normal ingredients! Most recipes I see call for vegan butter but I can’t find it where I live and prefer to use natural ingredients anyways. I’m keeping this frosting recipe in my back pocket for the next time I bake a cake! Which is probably soon 🙂
Brielle says
I know right?! There are some weird ingredients out there. I love that the mild coconut flavor in the frosting enhances the rest of the flavor in the chocolate cake. So so good! Thanks for commenting. =)
Tara says
Looks great, and I think will be okay for my husband who is doing low FODMAP. I’m going to use some desiccated coconut to make the coconut milk and then dry it out and grind it to flour… hope it works. 🙂
Brielle says
I hope it works too! Let us know if it turns out. Wow, and I thought I went the extra mile to make desserts. You are a superstar to do all that!
Brielle says
Thanks Natalie! I promise it’s good!!! That was my hesitation when we found out that my daughter was celiac. I LOVE baking and I thought it would never be the same. It is doable though! And it can even be quite amazing, like this cake. Let me know if you try it. =)
Natalie @ Paper & Birch says
this looks yummy! Its difficult to find good gluten free recipes, so I’m sure to be trying this. 🙂
Brielle says
Thanks Natalie! I promise it’s good!!! That was my hesitation when we found out that my daughter was celiac. I LOVE baking and I thought it would never be the same. It is doable though! And it can even be quite amazing, like this cake. Let me know if you try it. =)