Gluten-Free Vegan Double Chocolate Cake

GLUTEN-FREE VEGAN DOUBLE CHOCOLATE CAKE

PREP: 30 Minutes

YIELD: (2) 9-inch layer cakes

Batter Ingredients:

• 2 cups AP Flour 1 cup Almond Flour*, ground extra-fine 2 cups Sugar** 6 Tbsp. Cocoa, Dutch processed (¼ cup + 2 Tbsp.)
• 2 tsp. Baking Powder ½ tsp. Salt, fine crystals ¼ cup neutral Oil, like algae or canola (Algae oil is also a good source of Vitamin E)

 

BATTER INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. 1 cup Hass Avocado, mashed until smooth (about 2 small) 1 ¾ cups Beet Juice, fresh or bottled (about 4 large beets) 2 Tbsp. Vinegar (white distilled) 1 Tbsp. Vanilla Extract
3. Line appropriate pan with parchment and lightly oil and dust with flour. If making a buche de Noel, use an 18×13 inch half sheet pan. For a layer cake, prepare two round 9-inch cake pans.
4. In an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, thoroughly mix together the dry ingredients.
5. Add the avocado and slowly pour in the remaining ingredients.
6. Mix until thoroughly incorporated. Beat on a higher speed for one minute.
7. Bake on the middle rack until a cake tester comes out clean, about 30 minutes for the round cakes, about 15-20 minutes in the sheet pan.
8. Remove from oven and set on a rack to cool before removing from the pans.

Chestnut flour or gluten-free flour may be substituted for the almond flour. **Vegan white sugar can be found in most health food stores. Most regular sugar brands use bone char during the refinement processing of white sugar.

 

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Frosting Ingredients:

• 1 cup Sweet Potato, cooked and mashed 1 cup Nut or Seed Butter (preferably almond butter) 1 cup Cocoa 2 Tbsp. Espresso Powder, instant 1 cup Maple Syrup 1 Tbsp. Tamari Soy Sauce (gluten-free)* 1 tsp. Vanilla Extract Raspberry jam, seedless or Kirsch (optional)

 

FROSTING INSTRUCTIONS:

1. In a mixer fit with a whisk attachment, mix together the sweet potato, nut butter, cocoa, and espresso powder.
2. Slowly pour in the maple syrup, the vanilla and the soy sauce.

 

Although Tamari soy sauce is typically gluten-free, make sure to read the label on the bottle because some brands labeled Tamari are not gluten-free.

 

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MAKING THE BUCHE DE NOEL:

1. Remove the cake to a flat surface and cover with a lightly oiled piece of parchment. Cover with an inverted half sheet pan and flip the cake so it rests on the pan. Carefully peel off the top parchment.
2. Spread thin layer on raspberry jam (optional) over surface of the cake layer, within an inch of the edges.
3. Add a thin layer of frosting, also within an inch of the edges.
4. Using the parchment lining as a guide, begin rolling the layer from the long end, as tightly as possible.
5. The cake is very moist and shouldn‘t crack easily, but do not worry if it does, the frosting will cover up any imperfections.
6. On a diagonal, slice a piece off of each end. These slices will be used to create log stumps.
7. Use a spatula (preferably an offset spatula) or a knife to coat the log with frosting. Set the cake stumps on the side of the log and continue to coat completely with more frosting. 8. Use a fork (plastic forks work well) or a serrated cake decorating tool, create lines along the surface of the frosted log to give it a log design.
8. Decorate with ground pistachios and meringue mushrooms (make with aquafaba for a vegan meringue).
9. Cake may be refrigerated in an airtight plastic container.