Who doesn’t love birthday cake? I especially love making gluten free birthday cake for events where I’m the only gluten-free person and no one else can tell the difference!
If you’ve missed out on this tradition for even one birthday (or any other occasion, for that matter!), make up for it by celebrating now. I’ve heard from lots of readers who have used this gluten free birthday cake recipe for wedding cakes as well, so get to baking — this cake is cause for celebration! (Hop here for cupcakes recipe!)
This year, I got lucky and enjoyed this delicious recipe on my birthday without even having to make it myself! My son said it scored a 10 on a scale of 1-10 and my daughter (not to be outdone) said it scored an “infinity!”
The other cool thing about this recipe, is that it has become famous! This recipe was used (on a MUCH larger scale, to build the World’s Tallest Gluten-Free Cake in Washington DC on May 4, 2011! The Whole Foods Gluten-Free Bakehouse baked 180 (give or take) of these cakes for the 1in133.org event to raise awareness of the need for gluten-free food labeling.
After being baked en masse, frozen, shipped, stored, set out to thaw for 2 days, cut and assembled into a giant tower, ogled at for hours, then served, this gluten free recipe still pleased the crowd! Just imagine how good it is fresh baked!
I’ve also recently experimented and found a great way to make this gluten free birthday cake recipe even better without any funky ingredients. It’s kindof amazing, actually. Just buy some gluten free instant pudding mix (vanilla or chocolate, depending on which kind of cake you’re making) and measure out 1/4 cup, per my recipe. It’s like magic! It helps give this cake some extra structure and also helps it stay extra moist for days! Like I said, magic!
I’ve also given you a gluten free chocolate cake version for this recipe, if you’re more of a chocolate fan (or make a yellow cake with chocolate frosting!). And hey, if it’s your birthday, you get what you want!
And don’t overlook the possibilities when it comes to cake decorating with this delicious gluten free birthday cake recipe! This gluten free caterpillar birthday cake was easier to make than it looks! I just baked this recipe in a bundt pan and cut the baked bundt into 4 sections, then lined them up to make the caterpillar body. A couple cinnamon sticks and some frosting and voila!
A sports ball gluten free birthday cake is easy with the right cake pan … and the right recipe, of course! (hint: this is thee right recipe!)
I can’t wait to see what festive gluten free birthday cakes you bake with this recipe!
And one more thing … if you’re lacking an ingredient in this recipe, or you want to try another of my gluten free cake recipes for your next birthday party, you simply must check out THE. MOST. POPULAR. RECIPE. ON. MY. SITE! It’s my Best Gluten Free Cake Recipe! You won’t be disappointed!
Gluten Free Birthday Cake Recipe
This is the Gluten Free Birthday Cake recipe you've been looking for: white or yellow or chocolate cake that will make your celebration special!
Ingredients
Birthday Cake
- 3 cups (405 grams) gfJules All-Purpose Gluten-Free Flour
- 1 Tbs. gluten free baking powder
- 1/4 cup powdered pudding mix measure out 1/4 cup of gluten free instant pudding mix
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1/2 cup butter or non-dairy alternative (like Earth Balance® Buttery Sticks
- 2 cups granulated cane sugar
- 4 large eggs (note: for white cake, use 6 egg whites + 1 egg; yellow cake, use 4 large eggs) *for egg-free option see below
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup milk or non-dairy alternative (like vanilla coconut, soy, hemp, rice, etc. “milk”)
for chocolate cake add:
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- replace 1 cup of milk listed for white cake with 1 1/4 cup chocolate milk, dairy or non-dairy (I love chocolate almond milk in this recipe!)
- 3 Tbs. chocolate syrup
Instructions
Pre-heat oven to 325º F (static) or 300º F (convection).
Spray or oil two 8-inch round cake pans with non-stick cooking spray and dust entire surface lightly with gfJules™ All-Purpose Gluten Free Flour (line bottom with parchment paper, if desired). To make cupcakes, oil or line cupcake pans with cupcake papers (Makes approximately 28 cupcakes).
Whisk together the flour, powdered milk/pudding mix, baking powder and salt and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the butter and sugar and beat well with your mixer’s paddle attachment, until the mixture is very light and fluffy (approximately 3-4 minutes). Add the eggs next, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in the vanilla with the last egg addition.
Slowly add the milk, alternating with the flour mixture and beating in between the additions. Beat until smooth and pour into the prepared pans.
Allow cakes to sit in the pan for 15 minutes before baking. For cakes, bake for 40 minutes, turning the pans half-way through if using convection setting; for cupcakes, test after 20 minutes for doneness.
To test the cakes for doneness, insert a cake tester or toothpick in the middle of each cake and be sure it comes out clean, with very few crumbs attached. The cakes will also begin to pull away slightly from the sides of the pans. Add time if necessary to fully bake the cakes.
When done, turn off the oven and leave the oven door open to let the cakes cool slowly there for 5 minutes or so, then remove the cakes to a cooling rack. After 15-20 minutes of total cooling time, gently invert the cakes to remove them from the pans, then flip gently back onto the cooling rack until fully cooled.
Frost the cakes only when fully cooled, or in the alternative, you may wrap the cakes with wax paper or plastic wrap and seal inside freezer bags to freeze or refrigerate until ready to use. Lemon Buttercream Frosting or plain white or chocolate frosting are yummy choices for this recipe!
For all kinds of fun decorated cake ideas, hop over to my post on decorating other fun cakes! If you’re looking for something extra fancy, note that fondants are generally gluten-free, as well. Look for Satin Ice or brands like Wilton pre-made.
*This recipe and over 149 more, also available in my newest cookbook, Free for All Cooking: 150 Easy Gluten-Free, Allergy-Friendly Recipes the Whole Family Can Enjoy!!
Notes
**For egg-free, use aquafaba OR add 4 tablespoons arrowroot powder to dry ingredients. Add 4 tablespoons applesauce to beaten butter and sugar mixture. Proceed with recipe instructions.
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Thank you Jules for all you do for the Celiac and GF community. This is my family’s favorite go to cake recipe; it is very versatile. I bake many of your recipes. I don’t know what we would do without them and your flour blend.
So glad to hear it, Melissa! I’m just happy if I can help your family in some way. Thank you for taking the time to let me know!
~jules (using my hubbie’s computer!)
Thank you Melissa! We use this recipe all the time, as well. So glad it’s one your family loves too!!!
~jules
I’ve made this cake several times, and it’s always a hit, even with gluten eaters…
My birthday is coming up and I’d love a red velvet cake… How can I adapt this recipe?
Thanks for all the great recipes!
So glad you’re loving this recipe, Catherine! Why don’t you take a look at my red velvet cupcakes recipe and see if that looks good to you, too?! Happy early Bday!
Got it! Thanks so much! Can’t wait for it now…
First of all.. I am a baker and when my son was diagnosed with allergies to dairy, soy protein, wheat, peas and nuts I was so lost! Jules you have made this much easier for me!!
I made the chocolate cake version with chocolate coconut milk, jello chocolate instant pudding mix (for the powdered milk) and Spectrum’s organic all vegetable shortening (it is palm not soy). The cake was delicious! My family would not have known it was gluten free, nut free and dairy free if I did not tell them. Thanks Jules!!!
Michelle, that is SO fantastic to hear!!!! I love your subs, too! Way to go and congratulations for your success and not giving up despite a long list of restrictions. I’m so glad you persisted and happy I could help in any way!
Can I use regular liquid milk instead of powdered milk? If so, what is the conversion?
Hello
I’m making an 11×15 sheet cake for my daughter’s bday. Do you think doubling this recipe would be enough? Should I lower the temperature when baking also? Thanks!
Tracey
Hi Tracey, yes, I think doubling this recipe will work for that size pan. You will have to keep testing the cake after 30 minutes to be sure the edges aren’t cooking to fast without the middle also cooking. If that starts to happen, cover the edges or even the whole cake with foil to prevent it from cooking too much on the outside. Happy birthday to your daughter!
Ok thanks so much! Your recipes are awesome!! So I’m looking forward to trying this cake recipe
Thanks, Tracey! Hope you love it!
I doubled the recipe and did not decrease the baking temp. Sometimes the trick is to have a really heavy pan (I like the magic line brand).
I need to make a GF, Sugar Free cake. Can I use a granulated sugar substitute with your all purpose flour mix?
Hi Frank, I have used unrefined coconut palm sugar in this recipe with delicious results! Can you use that?
Is there any way to substitute for the milk powder? I have dairy and soy sensitives and unable to find coconut milk powder in any of my local stores. I would order it online but I would not get it in time for when I need to bake my cupcakes.
Hi Micah, I use DairiFree brand, which is a potato base, but if you cannot find that one, try almond meal. It’s a good sub for milk powder in recipes like this one! I have a recipe on my site showing you how to make your own almond meal, as it’s easy and much cheaper!
OMG, this is the best cake recipe. Thank you so much. Everything I was making before I started using your flour and baking tips was tasteless, dense, blah, awful. I made just a one layer 9″ round (so half recipe) and had to substitute for the eggs (used Ener-G) and rice milk powder and it was just the best thing ever. I baked it longer than recommended cuz I live at 2200 ft, left it in the turned-off, open-door oven for that 5 min after it baked, and it was PERFECT. Thanks for all the encouragement you give to everyone (people get so discouraged..)! Great day in the morning!
That’s wonderful to hear, ChrisofDan! Thanks for sharing what you did for egg substitutes, too. I know lots of readers appreciate hearing from others about what they’ve had success with! So glad you’re not stuck with the bad stuff anymore! Delicious GF baking, here you come!
Jules, do you have birthday cake recipes for a woman (my neighbor) who is not only Celiac but allergic to eggs? I noticed in one recipe that you used an egg substitute, but I had never heard of it before or seen it in any of our local stores. What was the product again, so I don’t have to go back through all your recipes to find the egg substitute?
Hi Suzanne, it’s so kind of you to want to bake for your celiac, egg-allergic neighbor! I don’t recommend egg subs in recipes calling for more than 2 eggs, like this one. I have an egg-free cake recipe in my book, Free for All Cooking, and I’ll be publishing another one on my blog next week. Is that too late for you to use it?
Hi, Jules. I’m about to make this birthday cake for the first time and I noticed that the recipe says to spray two 9-inch cake pans — but at the bottom of the recipe it says the yield is two 7-8 inch cakes. Is that a typo or do they shrink up during baking? Thanks!
Hi Josh, I prefer baking these in 7 or 8-inch cake pans because the layers are thicker that way. You can use 9-inch cake pans but there isn’t enough batter to make that size thick. I’ve used the 9-inch pans and cut them in half after baking and made a 4 layer cake that was to die for, though!
Nevermind, I think I did the math right and need to double it, based on volume. If you happen to have a recipe with sheet cake measurements, I’d love to double check it. But this is good. If I end up with too much cake that is a good problem to have.
Yes, Karen! I love having too much batter! It’s such a sweet reward to have a few extra cupcakes on the side to “taste test”!
I don’t have the sheet cake volumes, so my best guess would have been yours, as well. Let me know how it goes and how many extra cupcakes you score!
Oh my, it took 3 batches to fill. I ended up using the eggless recipe from your book and it was very thick.
And it took 50 minutes to bake and is above the pan in height. It puffed up a lot.
Wonderful, Karen!
Hi Jules, I have a decorating plan for a cake but it calls for a half sheet, which is 12×18. Do you happen to have a recipe with the amounts for that size?
Thanks,
Karen
Hi Jules. I purchase your AP flour and have tried it in some vanilla cake recipes.
I noticed that there is a chalky after taste. I’m new to gluten free baking and I’m experimenting so that I can provide gluten free cakes for my clients.
Is this chalky after taste normal?
Hi Jacqui – the chalky aftertaste, in fact any aftertaste, is not normal for my flour. If you dip a wet finger into my flour and taste it, my flour has no taste or aftertaste and has a very smooth texture. Thus, there must be something else going on in the recipe to cause that aftertaste. Are you using my recipes or converting others? Are you using milk powder? A lot of baking soda? Anything else you can think of that could be leaving that chalky taste? Feel free to send an email to [email protected] if you want us to walk through your recipes with you to see if we can help figure it out!
Hi! Hoping you still check the comments on the recipe!
I made it today and the batter was EXTREMELY thick, is this normal? It tastes good but isn’t as fluffy as your pictures.
Also, I was wondering if the Tbs of baking powder was a typo?
Thanks!
Hi Cori – I try to stay on top of comments as much as possible! Yes, the batter is very thick, and the tablespoon of baking powder is correct. It’s a moist cake and needs some extra oomph from the leavening agents. Did you whip the fat with the sugar until it was light before adding the other ingredients? That, plus beating the batter extra at the end, incorporates more air and lightens the batter a bit.
From a Jules Gluten Free customer:
I used your recipe for Birthday Cake this weekend. I had already started to make it when I realized I did not have any powdered milk. The recipe called for ¼ cup. I substituted ¼ cup of instant vanilla pudding and the cake was great. It was a really good substitute. I can always count on your flour to make any of my recipes. It is wonderful!
I am so excited! I have been using your flour for everything. Today I made my first batch of cupcakes and they are soooo good! I didn’t have powdered milk so I used Coffeemate! Just wanted people to know it works. Now onto the lemon buttercream….
Wow, Cece – what a great tip! So glad you shared that here so I & and everyone else will know that too!!! YAY!
Hey Jules, just wondering if I can cut this recipe in half? I really only want to make about 13 or 14 so I was hoping to be able to cut the ingredients in half. Thank you! -JoAnna
Hi JoAnna – this recipe should be fine if you cut it in half – nice round numbers for the measurements! Enjoy!