Flourless Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake With Chocolate Ganache Glaze
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This mouthwatering flourless chocolate cake is simply amazing! It’s rich, it’s smooth, and it deliciously fills your mouth with intense chocolate flavor! If you love chocolate, you must make this cake! An added bonus is that this cake doesn’t contain any flour or gluten, so it’s perfect for those following a gluten-free diet, as well as for a Passover menu!
I love chocolate, especially dark! I can eat so much of it, it’s not even funny :) If you love chocolate as much as I do, and never get tired of chocolate, you owe it to yourself to make this recipe.
This flourless chocolate cake has the most concentrated chocolate flavor you will ever find in a cake. The cake itself is made of chocolate, butter, sugar, eggs and even more chocolate in the form of cocoa! But that’s not all – the icing on the cake is the smoothest richest chocolate ganache glaze ever! Chocolate lovers rejoice – this cake is a true heaven for all chocoholics!
An unexpected bonus of the flourless chocolate cake is the fact that it’s gluten-free. This was not intentional – this is definitely not a “diet” cake, so it was never taylored to fit any particular diet ;) This cake is gluten-free because that’s how it was meant to be made – without the flour, as the flour would ruin the richness of this cake and make it too crumbly and too fluffy. We don’t want the fluff – all we want is the smooth and rich chocolate in every bite, so bye bye flour!
If you are celebrating Passover, this cake is a MUST on your Passover menu! No white flour and no leavening – this flourless chocolate cake is good for Passover and would make a WOW Passover dessert!
Another thing that I absolutely love about this cake is how easy is it to make. Until I discovered this recipe, I searched long and hard for a flourless chocolate cake that doesn’t required a double-boiler. Most recipes for the flourless chocolate cake require those ridiculous concoctions of a pan with water and a cake pan that fits inside it. Come’on – I’m not a fancy pastry chef, I just want a normal recipe that works :) And THIS flourless chocolate cake, my friends, is IT!
Making this flourless chocolate cake is incredibly easy. You just melt the chocolate and butter in a microwave, then mix with other ingredients in a bowl, put in a baking dish and bake! The glaze is made in a pot by heating up the cream and milk and mixing until combined. Spread the glaze on a cake and you are done! The glaze is also perfect for hiding imperfections on a cake surface such as cracks – the glaze makes it look perfectly smooth no matter how the cake looked when it first came out of the oven :)
Flourless Chocolate Cake Recipe (Easy, Gluten-Free)
Ingredients
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup 1 stick unsalted butter
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
- 2 tsp espresso powder optional
Glaze
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375F.
- Prepare an 8-inch non-stick round cake pan.
- IMPORTANT: cut a circle out of parchment paper to fit the bottom of the cake pan, and put inside the pan. Do not skip this step, or the cake will stick.
- Spray the inside of the cake pan with a non-stick cooking spray (including the parchment paper and the sides of the pan).
- Put the butter and 1 cup of chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl, and heat for 1 minute. Stir. Continue heating and stirring in 30-second increments until the butter and chocolate are melted and combined.
- Put the chocolate and butter mixture in a large mixing bowl. Add sugar and espresso powder (if using). Add the eggs and whisk until smooth.
- Add the cocoa powder and mix until well combined.
- Pour the batter into the cake pan.
- Put in the oven and bake for 20 minutes.
- Remove the cake from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes.
- Run the knife around the edges of the cake to separate it from the pan. Put a large plate upside down on top of the cake pan, then quickly invert the cake onto a plate.
- Peel off and discard the parchment paper. Don't worry if the cake has cracks or the edges crumble - the chocolate glaze will hide all the imperfections.
Make the chocolate ganache glaze
- Put the heavy cream and 1 cup of chocolate chips in a small pot. Heat it over medium heat, stirring every minute, until the cream is hot and the chocolate chips are melted. (Do not allow the cream to boil, reduce heat if necessary). Stir the cream and chocolate until it's well combined and smooth.
Glaze the cake
- Spoon the chocolate glaze over the top and sides of the cake. Let the glaze cool for 30 minutes at room temperature, then refrigerate the cake for at least 1 hour to set the glaze.
This cake looks so rich and chocolaty!
That is right, I don’t want any flour getting in the way of my chocolate flavor! Love this rich chocolate cake!
I could easily get lost in a chocolate frenzy here Melanie.
Delicious! :-)
I too love good dark chocolate! This looks so beautiful and so chocolatey!
You had me at chocolate! lol! This is my kind of cake. No need to waste time or stomach space on flour…just give me a cake that’s made with chocolate, sugar, and eggs…and butter too ;)
Do you think this recipe would work with Stevia powder subbed for sugar?
I haven’t tried making it with Stevia, but in theory it should work (3/4 cup of sugar = 3/4 tsp of powdered or liquid Stevia). A little Stevia goes a long way :) If you make it with Stevia, please post back and let us know how it turned out.
Made it with extra dark chips and swerve (to make keto friendly) and reduced swerve to 1/2 cup. Absolutely delish!!!!
Do you think this recipe could be effectively doubled and prepared using a 10 inch round pan?
I’ve doubled this recipe before, and that’s how I did it: I used two 9-inch pans and divided the batter between them, and baked them both at the same time using 2 oven racks. Then I turned these 2 cakes into layers to make one tall cake! I made double the glaze, first glazed one cake, then put the 2nd one on top and poured remaining glaze on top & sides. YUM!
Would Splenda instead of sugar work too? Or any other healthier sugar other than refined sugar?
I haven’t tried it with Splenda, but in theory it should work. For baking, substitute sugar with equal amount of Splenda.
Would a springform pan work?
I don’t see why not. The springform pan should work as long as it’s non-stick, sprayed with cooking spray and the bottom is lined with parchment paper.
I made this recipe today. I used flax eggs in pace of real egg and earth balance as a substitute butter. It came out delicious!
Thank you for posting a review, Kelly! I’m so glad you enjoyed the cake!
The cake is absolutely delicious! However, I had big air bubbles or holes form on the bottom of the cake that bulged out on the top. I googled elsewhere and wondered if this problem is because I didn’t tap the cake pan before I put it in the oven or if something else is wrong?
Air bubbles result from overmixing the cake batter or mixing on the speed that’s too high, causing extra air to get trapped. With this cake, it’s not a big deal, as you can just cut off the bulging parts if it happens and all the imperfections get covered up by the chocolate glaze :)
This was a fabulous cake for my gluten free daughter! I used Hersheys special dark cocoa and special dark choc chips! YUM and wicked easy.
Thank you, Tracie, for posting the review! I’m so happy you and your daughter liked the cake!
So easy, so good! I served it for a family birthday party tonight and my sister said, “I’ve had flourless chocolate cakes in restaurants that weren’t as good as this!” :)
I agree :) I always prefer this cake over the restaurant ones!
Delicious! Just made it for the in-laws and it was a hit! I didn’t have Dutch coco- only regular, and it worked. Would highly recommend! Love how easy it was, too!
Glad you enjoyed the cake! I made it with regular cocoa before, it worked just as well as the Dutch processed cocoa.
Can I make this cake one or two days ahead of serving?
Absolutely! You can refrigerate it for up to 4 days.
Should this be cooked until a toothpick comes out clean or is it supposed to be gooey in the center? I baked it for the time specified and mine is a bit gooey in the center. I’m still eating it because it’s delicious but I didn’t know if it was supposed to be like that or not. Thanks!
It’s ok if it’s a bit gooey in the center. The cake hardens somewhat after it cools down. I don’t think the toothpick would ever come out clean because this cake is so rich and moist – that’s how it’s supposed to be.
Can I make this a couple of days in advance ??
Yes, you can make it up to 3 days in advance and store in a refrigerator, just make sure it’s covered.
I made it for my birthday and my granddaughter loved it:). Thanks for the recipe!
Oh my goodness!!! I made this tonight, but substituted chopped sugar free chocolate bars and Splenda for the chocolate chips and sugar to make it sugar free/low carb. I also used duck eggs. It turned out SO AMAZING. Like, I am obsessed. It tastes like the most chocolaty moist brownie of all time and fudge mixed together. So delicious!
This is a new favorite recipe … it performs to perfection and is so easy while being absolutely delicious. Do not hesitate … make this cake! It’s delicious!
This cake is AMAZING! I made it for the birthday of a friend who is gluten free. This cake is going into my repertoire of cakes because it is delicious!
Would this cake go well with a raspberry sauce over top instead of the chocolate ganache?
Absolutely!
After wanting to make a flourless chocolate cake for a long time, I finally made this cake for Valentine’s Day. My husband and I were snowed in and were not able to go out for a special supper. I didn’t have any semi-sweet chocolate so I substituted milk chocolate chips and then cut the sugar back from 3/4 cup to 1/2 cup. I put the batter in my springform pan with parchment on the bottom. I also greased the pan and it came out without any trouble. We were so anxious to try it that we ate our dessert before supper! It turned out perfectly was delicious!
OMG….this was amazing. I made it to serve for an afternoon tea and it turned out perfect! Served with fresh whipped cream, I wanted something with a WOW factor, and this cake delivered. Thank-you for the recipe, it’s a keeper…
Easy and delicious!! Everyone wanted more cake. :)
I found this recipe on Pinterest when I was looking for something for a birthday party so that my Aunt wouldn’t feel left out with everyone eating cake. She was in LOVE! Me too for that matter! It’s like cake meets fudge. Super delicious and so easy to make. She’s already hinting around for me to make it this weekend for a Graduation party. Thanks for the great recipe!
Made this tonight for a Christmas dinner party with friends and it was a huge hit. There’s a torte I love in one of my favorite restaurants that is almost exactly like this (without the ganache) that has a mint syrup over it. So I just added about 10 drops of peppermint essential oil (doTERRA) to the ganache and it was wonderful. Easy, party worthy, and turned out perfectly – thanks for the great recipe!
I just made this cake last weekend and it turned out perfectly. Mine looked just like the picture, was super dense, rich, and delicious. Even though I’m an experienced baker, this was so much easier than I thought it might be. No tricks, nothing to worry about. Simply mix, bake, and melt some chocolate chips with whipping cream. Perfect dessert to have for guests! Thanks for sharing your recipe.
Would this be good served the next day? If I were to make it on Friday night then let it sit in the fridge until Saturday afternoon?
Yes! I make it in advance all the time!
Hi, how many grams of chocolate is a cup of chips? Also how many grams of butter? Thanks so much.
1 cup of chocolate chips = 175 grams
1 stick of butter = 113 grams
This is my new favourite chocolate cake. I made this for my gluten free friend but wasn’t expecting anything too grand as gluten free is generally pretty awful. Boy, was I wrong! This cake was so rich, so moist, so wonderful. I’ve been making it minus the espresso as some here are sensitive to it but I think I’m going to add it next time just to try and cut down on the super richness next time.
Once the parchment paper is removed, do you then flip the cake over again so the true bottom of the cake is resting on a plate? This looks delicious and I wish I had found the recipe for Christmas dessert!
Thanks.
I didn’t bother flipping it again, as it’s covered in chocolate ganache anyway :) But of course you can if you’d like!
Looks great!! Going out for the ingredients this afternoon. Can’t wait to try it. I’m assuming it freezes well???
This cake is delicious! I originally made it for my mom (GF) but everyone who has tried it loves this and I’ve made it many times since then. It also freezes well. For a smaller group, I’ve made it in two glass dishes and frozen one for another time.
Can this be frozen?
Yes, it freezes well. Thaw it in refrigerator overnight or for 2 hours on the counter.
Have you made it with coconut milk to make it dairy free? Or is there a different substitute that would better?
I haven’t tried making it with coconut milk, but I think it will work! If you try it, please let us know how it turned out!
Delish!
Rich and decadent! Perfect for chocolate lovers 😍
Amazing texture and flavor. Loved the simplicity of the recipe…