Donna Yen

20 Decadent Cakes You Won’t Believe Are Gluten-Free

Donna Yen

Thu, October 1, 2015 at 12:51 PM UTC

Despite its luscious looks, this cake is relatively guilt-free: It’s naturally sweetened with honey and completely gluten-free. The purple dessert comes from Liz Moody of the healthy food blog Sprouted Routes in San Francisco. **Read more about the Lavender Honey Cake**
*Photo: Liz Moody*

This sticky-sweet sour cherry cake not only looks good, but will make you feel good. Filled with non-wheat ingredients and natural sugars, it makes for a low glycemic treat. It comes courtesy of Will Frolic For Food’s Renne Byrd. **Read more about the Sour Cherry Spoon Cake recipe**
*Photo: Renne Byrd*

Megan Gilmore shares a gluten and dairy-free cheesecake that tastes like the real thing from her cookbook Everyday Detox. **Get the Vegan Raw Cheesecake recipe**
*Photo: Nicole Franzen*

This recipe is everything a chocolate cake should be – decadent, fudgy, and creamy. Avocados are the key ingredient to this dense and luscious dessert. Get the Vegan Dark Chocolate-Avocado Cake recipe
*Photo: Evi Abeler*

French blogger Aran Goyoaga of Cannelle et Vanille has a cake recipe that can pull anyone out of the winter blues. It’s a bright citrus cake made with almond and brown rice flour. Lemon zest and greek yogurt make it a sweet and tart masterpiece. **Read more about the Greek Yogurt Citrus Cake**
*Photo: Aran Goyoaga*

The Unconventional Baker, also known as Audrey Snowe, recreates tiramisu with no dairy or gluten. She happily reports, “It came out incredible! Like eating it at 2 a.m. incredible.” **Read more about the Gluten-Free, Vegan Tiramisu Cake recipe**
*Photo: Audrey Snowe*

Faring Well’s Jessie Snyder makes this cookie and cake mashup a dream come true. And as indulgent as this cookie cake looks, it’s vegan, gluten-free, and made without processed sugar. **Read more about the Magic Cookie Cake**.
*Photo: Jessie Snyder*

Everyone has had a carrot cake, but how about one baked with its sweeter cousin, the parsnip? The rich, nutty flavors of the root vegetable shine through in this winter cake from Anya Kasoff who writes the food blog Golubka Kitchen. **Read more about the Parsnip Cake with Candied Kumquats**.
*Photo: Masha Davydova*

Mochi Cake? — Cookbook Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream Desserts has a recipe for the most out-of-this-world mochi cake. It’s chewy, buttery, and shockingly gluten-free. You’ll be fighting with your friends over who gets the delicious crisp edges. **Get the Mochi Cake recipe**
*Photo: Kelsey McClellan*

This creamy, colorful treat is a berry smoothie in the form of a dairy-free ice cream cake from raw and vegan cookbook author Emily von Euw of This Rawesome Vegan Life. **Read more about the Vegan Blueberry Strawberry Banana Ice Cream Cake**
*Photo: Emily von Euw*

Mary Younkin of Barefeet In the Kitchen gives us a fresh take on this American cake classic. While not typically thought of as a beautiful cake (see here), because of its syrupy pineapple rings with maraschino cherry bullseye, this cake turns that notion on its head. **Read more about the Fresh Pineapple Upside Down Cake**
*Photo: Mary Younkin*

Amanda Powell of A Cookie Named Desire uses freshly grated ginger, cinnamon, and Bob’s Red Mill’s 1-to-1 Baking Flour to make the gingerbread cake batter celiac friendly. Living happily on top are adorable gingerbread men. **Read more about the Gingerbread Cake with Cinnamon Buttercream recipe**
*Photo: Amanda Powell*

Lemon Crêpe?Cake — Layers of thin crêpes are sandwiched between a tangy lemon filling. This is a great one for entertaining, because you can make the crêpes the day before you plan on serving. Get the **Lemon Crêpe Cake recipe**
Photo: *Patricia Green and Carolyn Hemming*

Watermelon Cake — Not Quite Nigella’s Lorraine Elliott shows us a delightful way to turn a watermelon into a beautiful cake. The best part? The recipe doesn’t require an oven and it’s a dessert that both kids and adults will love. **Read more about the Watermelon ‘Cake.’**
*Photo: Lorraine Elliott*

The classic carrot cake is made gluten-free by using Cup4Cup, a line of gluten-free flours and baking mixes co-founded by chef Lena Kwak and Thomas Keller, the force behind famed restaurants The French Laundry and Per Se. Get the **Wholesome Carrot Cake With Yogurt Frosting recipe**
*Photo: Cup4Cup*

This raw dessert is made with a grain-free crust of sunflower and hemp seeds that’s not only loaded with superfoods, but it also features almost every color of the rainbow. The bright treat comes from David Frenkiel and Luise Vindahl, the husband-and-wife duo behind Green Kitchen Stories. **Read more about the Vegan Flower Power Cake**
*Photo: David Frenkiel*

This simple no-bake green tea confection is ideal for a hot sunny days. The best part? It takes less than 10 ingredients to make this refreshing treat. **Read more about the Raw Coconut Mint Matcha Cake**
*Photo: Chris Anca*

Author of *Clean Green Eats*, Candice Kumai, shares a recipe that combines a fall favorite (pumpkin) and a year-round favorite (chocolate) into one loaf. The result is simple yet delicious. When it’s cooled, add a spoonful of pumpkin butter (yes, that exists) for an extra treat. Get the **Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Loaf recipe**
*Photo: Avi Abeler*

Nora Eisermanna and Laura Muthesius of Our Food Stories are behind this cool treat. The cake has a beautiful pink-purple center of gooseberry purée and greek yogurt that sits on a grain-free crust. **Read more about the Gluten-Free Iced Gooseberry Cake recipe**
*Photo: Nora Eisermanna and Laura Muthesius*

Katelyn Williams of The Kate Tin describes this gluten-free delight as “the darkest, richest, moistest chocolate cake you will ever have the pleasure of tasting.” **Read more about the Chocolate and Coconut Cake recipe**
*Photo: Katelyn Williams*

Eating cakes free of gluten doesn’t mean they have to be free from flavor. These days bakers from around the world are redefining cakes by developing creative and delicious ways to bake one of our most beloved desserts without the gluten. For some, being gluten-free may be a trendy choice but for others, it’s a health-driven lifestyle — so why not bake a treat everyone can enjoy? Check out the slideshow above for scrumptious cakes that will change the way you feel about gluten.

More gluten-free recipes to love:

Fresh Raspberry-Quinoa Pancakes from ‘The Quinoa [Keen-Wah] Cookbook’

Cauliflower Fried Rice from ‘Everyday Detox’

Fifteen-Minute Ginger Chicken Noodles from ‘One-Pot Paleo’

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