Blender chocolate quinoa cake
This blender chocolate quinoa cake is flourless and can be made in your blender. Did I mention the base of the cake is made entirely out of quinoa?Â
So this is a really exciting recipe for me to share because it’s my birthday tomorrow! Woohoo!
My birthday marks the start of February, which I always find exciting because it means we’re one step closer to spring. Also, I’m a huge sucker for Valentine’s day recipes. (Anyone else out there a huge chocolate fan?)
In celebration of my birthday, I decided what better time to share a cake recipe on the blog? I’ve actually never shared a recipe for a cake before, but thought this blender chocolate quinoa cake would make a perfect “first cake” recipe!
This cake is what I like to refer to as pure magic when it comes to baking. Seriously, you’ll be able to fool anyone into thinking this cake is made with regular flour.
The base of the cake is made entirely out of cooked quinoa. Sounds pretty crazy right?
The quinoa gives this cake a fudgy texture, while still being moist and fluffy like a chocolate cake should be!
This blender chocolate quinoa cake is:
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Gluten-free
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High in Protein
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Relatively low in sugar (for a cake I mean)
 
I topped my cake off with coconut whip cream and fresh berries, but you can use whatever you like on your cake, or even just leave it bare. (I promise it’s still delicious this way!)
This blender chocolate quinoa cake calls for regular eggs, but if you are looking to make this cake vegan-friendly you can use your favorite egg substitute. I haven’t tried this recipe using a flax egg, but I imagine that could work well too!
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Blender chocolate quinoa cake
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
A healthier chocolate cake made from quinoa and entirely flourless!
Ingredients
Cake
- 2 cups cooked quinoa
- 3/4 cup coconut oil, melted
- 4 eggs (or vegan egg substitute)
- 1/3 cup almond milk
- 1 shot espresso
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup coconut sugar
- 1/4 cup xylitol (or more coconut sugar)
- 1 cup cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Fresh fruit for topping (optional)
Coconut whipped creamÂ
- 2 cans coconut milk, placed in the fridge overnight
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp coconut sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line 2 9-inch cake pans with parchment paper and grease the pan.
- Add the quinoa, coconut oil, eggs, almond milk, espresso and vanilla in a high-speed blender until smooth.
- Next add the coconut sugar, xylitol, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to the blender and mix just until combined.
- Pour half the mixture into each pan.
- Bake for 23-28 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean
- To make the coconut whipped cream, open the cans of coconut milk and scoop out the cream on top. (it should be separated from the liquid)
- Place in a chilled mixing bowl and beat on high until it forms stiff peaks
- Spread evenly onto the cake
- Top the cake with fresh fruit
Notes
No blender? You can make this cake in an electric mixer, or even a food processor.
I haven’t tried this recipe with flax-eggs, but I’m confident it will work well for a vegan substitution!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 583
- Sugar: 15g
- Fat: 41g
- Saturated Fat: 32g
- Carbohydrates: 50g
- Fiber: 7g
- Protein: 12g
If you like this recipe you’ll also love these healthy quinoa brownies!
This post contains affiliate links. I only recommend products I know, trust and love!Â
Is there a substitute for the coconut oil for someone who is allergic to nuts and coconut?
Hi Tamara, you can use any neutral tasting oil like canola oil or sunflower oil. If you don’t mind dairy you can also use butter!
YUM! Is the espresso necessary? What else could you sub? Thank you!!
Hi Jennifer, you can just leave it out!
Hey Jess, the cake looks amazing!! Just wanted to ask whether you can replace coconut sugar with anything else? maybe honey?
Hi Nastasia! You can replace the coconut sugar with regular sugar, stevia, xylitol. A sticky sweeter like honey or maple syrup will make the cake a little softer, but will still probably work ok!
Hi! Is it possible to use applesauce instead of oil? Thank you! The cake looks great btw!
Hi Georgina, I wouldn’t recommend replacing all the oil in the recipe with apple sauce as I cannot say if the cake will workout with the same texture!
We just made the cake for my birthday, somehow the coconut cream didn’t go as planned to and was really Cumberland, but it still tastes delicious. Could you give some tips for the future how to make the coconut cream fluffy.
Hi Camelia, i’m sorry to hear the coconut cream didn’t turn out well for you! There are a few things you can do: 1. try a different brand of coconut milk. Some brands are of higher quality than others. 2. Make sure to use the cream off the top of the coconut milk. Again, if the brand is lower quality it may be more watery and not mix up well. 3. If all else fails, some grocery shops sell pre-whipped coconut cream to make your life easier!
Can this be made a night ahead and then refrigerated? Would the coconut whip cream stay fluffy overnight?
Looks yummy!
Hi Shaina, I’ve kept leftovers in the fridge and the cake holds up very well! One thing you can do is keep the cake and coconut whip separate and then spread the whipped coconut on the cake the following day and top it with fruit!
Great! Thanks for the advice!
Jess! I love the idea of quinoa in the batter, It’s brilliant! Such a healthy interesting idea for a birthday cake! Take care, Dee xx
Thanks Dee! It’s a great little cake that uses no flour at all! Thanks for stopping by!
Do you think these will work as cupcakes?
Hi Pavithra, Yes I think they would work great as cupcakes! I would just make sure to spray your tin very well. I’m not sure if you put in the cupcake liners if the cakes will stick to the liners a bit, so I would just be careful with that. (Though you can also make them without cupcake liners and just spray the pan well and put them directly in)
Hey my niece, Happy Birthday! I have a friend who does only gluten-free so I’m always looking for flourless goodies to bake her. I also just found a huge Costo bag of quinoa at the back of my pantry so I’ll be trying this recipe for sure! Kisses, Lou
Hi Lou, Thank you so much! I hope you like the cake 🙂
yum! such a tasty cake!
Thanks Rebecca! So glad you liked it 🙂
Quinoa in a cake? Now I’ve heard everything! This sounds so good!
That’s right! But I promise you wouldn’t even know it’s made of quinoa!
Such a gorgeous cake! And I love that it’s made in the blender!
Thank Bethany! It’s so easy to make and has minimal cleanup!
Well….Happy Birthday! This is such a creative recipe, lately I have been on a quinoa kick, so this is right up my street
Hi ALbert, Thank you so much! I hope you like the cake!
Wow what a stunning cake!! Love that it has added protein from the quinoa. Such a clever idea Jess! 😀
Thanks Nadia! It’s like eating a quinoa salad…but in a cake;) well sort of! 😀
This cake is amazing and my husband thinks it’s the best chocolate cake ever, can’t believe it’s quinoa.
Thank you Stella! It’s my favourite too 🙂
What a beautiful cake! I never thought of using quinoa in cakes before – sounds really interesting and I’m definitely gonna try it soon.
Thanks Natalie! It gives a really great fudgy texture but still is fluffy and moist like a cake should be!
Happy birthday Jess! This cake looks gorgeous and sounds delicious. I will be keeping this in mind next time I want to bake a cake!
Thank you Kat! I think you will love this cake:)
OMG, your birthday-cake looks absolutely amazing, Jess!!! I can’t believe you used cooked quinoa, that’s so smart and creative. I will need to give it a try. 🙂
Thanks so much Ela! It was so yummy! Still have one more slice left for tomorrow;) It tastes just like regular cake!