Quinoa Chocolate Cake – Gluten-free

We recently entertained friends, one of whom benefits greatly from gluten-free food.  As in, he feels like death after eating foods laden with gluten.  So we decided to try some gluten-free baking for the first time.

I have taken issue with gluten-free desserts in the past, because they a) have strange textures that I’m not fond of, and b) usually taste like an old gonch.  So I approached all the recipes we considered with extreme wariness and an overwhelming sense of skepticism.  Maybe that’s because I’m German too.  Who knows?

This one, however, is a winner.  Frankly, I believe it will become the standard for chocolate cake in our home, and we don’t even require gluten-free baking.

 

Quinoa Chocolate Cake

2/3 cup of quinoa – bulk, organic, whatever – we’d recommend white, packaged and organic, but any quinoa will work
1-1/3 cup water
Rinse and boil for at least 10 minutes – leave in saucepan covered to cool, fluff with fork.  If the package instructions ask for a longer cooking time, follow those instructions.  Pending on the texture you’re wanting, you can adjust this to your preference.

1/3 cup milk
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup melted and then cooled butter
Combine these ingredients with the quinoa and then blend the whole business until it’s smooth

1-1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup cacao
1-1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
Add these goodies to the blended mixture and blend everything well.
Bake it in a pan (9×13 works best) at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes and you’re good to go.

 

We serve it with fresh vanilla whipping cream, dusted with cacao and a mint sprig for color.  Because that’s the kind of person my wife is.

But let’s be honest here – it’s chocolate cake – you can do anything you want with it.  And by anything, I mean eat it with ice cream.  Lots and lots of ice cream.  Also, in terms of serving suggestions, I’d heap about 4 pieces on top of each other for starters.  Why anyone would bother with just one piece of chocolate cake this good is beyond my comprehension.

It’s that simple.  I can say, with all honesty, that the person we made this for had three pieces of the cake in one sitting, and it has received rave reviews since then as well.

If you have to ask, our kids loved it.

I’d love to see your feedback once you’ve tried it.

Hope you enjoy it, and feel free to share it!