Gluten Free Dark Chocolate, Butterscotch and Vanilla Bean Ombré Cake
I’m not going to lie to you. This cake is a day-long project. It requires three cake layers, and Swiss buttercream frostings that I adapt into three different flavors. None of the cake making is difficult but it can be time consuming, just by the sheer factor of having to make three different batters. But it’s worth it at the end of the day, a glorious presentation cake, one that will feed a large dinner party. Perfect for a birthday or celebration, especially for someone who is gluten free. And if you don’t want to, or don’t have time, you can certainly pick one of the cake layers, double it, and make a regular double layer cake out of it.
Estimated Nutrition (whole recipe, rough)
Counts 11 of 19 ingredients — the other 8 aren't in our nutrition table and contribute nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume — 11 portions →
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Rice | 1 cup cooked (158g) white | 206 |
| Potato | 1 medium (173g) baked | 161 |
| Chocolate | 1 oz (28g) semisweet | 155 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Olive Oil | 1 tbsp (14g) | 119 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Vanilla | 1 tsp extract (4ml) | 12 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| Coffee | not in our table | 0 |
| Buckwheat | not in our table | 0 |
| Teff | not in our table | 0 |
| Chia | not in our table | 0 |
| Seed | not in our table | 0 |
| Chia Seed | not in our table | 0 |
| Millet | not in our table | 0 |
| Bean | not in our table | 0 |
Totals for the whole recipe, adding one typical portion per ingredient — listed above. Quantities in the recipe are not counted, so this is a rough guide only — not suitable for medical or dietary planning.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 oz (45 g) dark chocolate, chopped
- 3/4 cup fresh brewed hot coffee
- 3/4 cup (150 g) white granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup (165 g) dark brown sugar
- 3/4 cup (75 g) cocoa powder, natural not Dutch-processed
- 1/4 cup (45 g) buckwheat flour
- 1/4 cup (45 g) teff flour
- 1/4 cup (35 g) sweet rice (sometimes called glutinous rice) flour
- 1/4 cup (35 g) tapioca flour
- 3 tablespoons (25 g) mesquite flour
- 2 tablespoon (20 g) ground chia seeds
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup (90 g) teff flour
- 1/2 cup (90 g) potato starch
- 1/2 cup (70 g) sweet rice (sometimes called glutinous rice) flour
- 1/4 cup (30 g) white rice flour
- 1/4 cup (30 g) tapioca starch
- 2 tablespoons (20 g) ground white chia seeds or ground golden flax meal
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 cup (115 g or 1 stick) unsalted butter
- 1 1/4 cup (275 g) dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (100 g) white granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (100 g) shortening
- 4 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup (90 g) potato starch
- 1/2 cup (70 g) millet flour
- 1/2 cup (70 g) sweet rice (sometimes called glutinous rice) flour
- 1/4 cup (30 g) white rice flour
- 1/4 cup (30 g) tapioca flour
- 2 tablespoon (20 g) ground white chia seeds or ground golden flax meal
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 cup (115 g or 1 stick) unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (100 g) shortening
- 1 3/4 cups (350 g) white granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 vanilla bean
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- 5 large egg whites
- 1 cup + 2 tablespoons granulated white sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups (1 lb, 460 g or 4 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 vanilla bean
- 3 oz (85 g) dark chocolate, melted
- 3 tablespoon black onyx cocoa powder
- 3 – 4 tablespoons roasted cacao nibs
- 1/2 – 1 teaspoon flaked finish salt (I used Cypress Black Flake salt, but you can use Maldon, Fleur de Del or another finishing salt of your choice, just don’t use plain table salt as it’s way too harsh)