Gluten Free Chocolate Cake with Brown Sugar Icing & Almonds

A moist, yet light gluten-free chocolate cake made with almond flour, topped with brown sugar icing and crunchy almonds. Grain-free, dairy-free, low FODMAP, and easy to make!

This gluten-free chocolate cake might just become your new go-to. It’s moist, deeply chocolaty, and made entirely with almond flour, so it’s naturally grain-free and requires no specialty flour blends. Top it with the brown sugar icing and a handful of slivered almonds, and you’ve got a cake that works equally well as a weeknight treat or the centerpiece of a dinner party dessert spread.

It bakes up light and fluffy thanks to a simple trick: separating the eggs and whipping the whites before folding them into the batter. It takes about 5 extra minutes and makes a real difference.

Chocolate Almond Flour Cake Ingredients

Here’s a quick rundown of the ingredients and why they work. See the full recipe card for measurements.

Almond flour. This is the base of the cake and what makes it gluten-free and grain-free. Use finely ground, blanched almond flour (not almond meal) for the best texture. Bob’s Red Mill Super-Fine or Anthony’s are both solid options.

Avocado oil + Coconut Oil. I updated this recipe to use avocado oil in the cake itself to reduce the saturated fat in my original recipe. I do recommend keeping the coconut oil for the icing, as it stays solid when chilled and tastes amazing.

Cocoa powder. Use unsweetened cocoa powder. Natural (not Dutch-process) works best here since the recipe doesn’t use baking powder or baking soda that would need to interact with it.

Almond extract. It plays up the nuttiness of the almond flour and pairs beautifully with the chocolate. Don’t skip it.

Eggs, separated. Whipping the egg whites and folding them into the batter is what gives this cake its light, fluffy texture despite being made without traditional flour. Worth the extra step.

Brown sugar + Powdered Sugar. Both the cake and the icing use light brown sugar. It adds a caramel depth you don’t get with white sugar. Also, powdered sugar gives the icing the best consistency.

How to Make Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake (Step by Step)

Step 1: Prep your pan. Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease an 8- or 9-inch round cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.

Step 2: Make the batter. In a large mixing bowl, combine the almond flour, brown sugar, avocado oil, cocoa powder, almond extract, salt, and egg yolks. Mix until thoroughly combined.

Step 3: Whip the egg whites. In a separate large, clean bowl, beat the egg whites with an electric mixer on high speed until soft peaks form.

Step 4: Fold together. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter, adding about one-quarter at a time. The batter will be thick. This step is what makes the cake light, so fold gently and don’t rush it.

Step 5: Bake. Pour the batter into your prepared pan and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Step 6: Cool and frost. Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then run a thin knife around the edge and invert onto a serving plate. Once fully cool, spread with brown sugar icing and top with sliced almonds.

Tips for the Best Results

Use fine, blanched almond flour. Coarser almond meal will give you a denser, grainier texture. The finer the flour, the lighter the cake.

Make sure your bowl is clean before whipping egg whites. Any grease in the bowl will prevent the whites from whipping up properly. Wipe it down with a little white vinegar on a paper towel if you’re not sure.

Don’t overmix when folding. You want to keep as much air as possible in those egg whites. Fold gently until you no longer see white streaks.

Cool completely before icing. If the cake is even slightly warm, the brown sugar icing will melt and slide right off.

About That Brown Sugar Icing…. (Serving Ideas)

The brown sugar icing is seriously delicious, and I’d encourage you to go for it. That said, here are a few other ways to serve this cake:

• Plain with a cup of coffee (it’s rich enough to stand on its own)
• Dusted with powdered sugar and a pile of fresh raspberries or strawberries
• With a scoop of dairy-free coconut milk ice cream. Because cake + ice cream are the perfect pairing!