Gluten-Free Sponge Cake with Cocoa
This gluten-free sponge cake gets its airy, fluffy crumb from whisked eggs and a quality gluten-free flour mix, with cocoa swirled through the top and a scattering of dry fruits inside. It bakes in about 35 minutes at 180C/356F and slices into a light, tender loaf that holds together beautifully without any wheat.
I’m back again! I took a little break from blogging, but I cooked a lot, so I have lots of new recipes to show you. I’ll start with this amazing gluten-free sponge cake recipe, which was a huge success. I was amazed by how delicious it turned out with cocoa and dry fruits, and words just don’t do it justice.
I’ll be upfront about one thing: I still don’t have the courage to make my own gluten-free flour mixes. I’d need lots of new ingredients, like xanthan gum, which I don’t know yet how to use. Until then, I still rely on the universal gluten-free flour mix by Schar, which I think is the best one out there. My recommendation is to be very strict when following recipes at first, especially with gluten-free baking, where the flour behaves differently from what you might expect.
Key ingredients
Gluten-free flour mix is the backbone of this cake. I use Dr. Schar Mix C, a universal blend that already contains the starches and binders that replace wheat’s gluten, so you get structure without anything gummy. This is the one place I would not improvise: a good ready-made mix is what keeps a gluten-free sponge from turning dense or crumbly.
Eggs do the heavy lifting here. With four of them separated, the whisked whites trap air and become the cake’s natural leavening, while the yolks add richness and color. Use them at room temperature if you can, since cold whites are slower to whip up to a foam.
Caster sugar dissolves faster than regular granulated sugar, which means it blends smoothly into the yolks and sweetens the crumb evenly. Half a cup keeps the cake lightly sweet rather than dessert-heavy, so it works just as well with morning coffee.
Grapeseed oil is my fat of choice for this one. It is neutral in flavor and stays liquid at room temperature, so the cake keeps a soft, moist crumb even after it cools, without the buttery taste taking over the cocoa and fruit.
Cocoa is reserved for just one tablespoon of the batter, set aside and swirled on top. That little move gives you a marbled finish and a hint of chocolate without turning the whole loaf brown.
Dry fruits bring chewy pockets of sweetness throughout. I used papaya and apricots, but raisins work perfectly well too, so use whatever you have on hand.
Tips for getting it right
- Whisk the egg whites until foamy first. This is where the lift comes from. The whites should hold soft peaks and look glossy before you fold them in. Stop short of dry, stiff peaks, which fold in unevenly and leave streaks.
- Fold, do not stir. Once the foamy whites and dry fruits go in, mix gently with a spatula. The card calls for a spatula on purpose: overmixing knocks the air out of the whites and you lose the sponge texture.
- Add the flour slowly. Incorporate it into the yolk mixture in stages so it disperses evenly with no dry lumps before the whites ever touch the batter.
- Save your tablespoon of batter for the cocoa before you pour. It is easy to forget and pour everything into the tray. Set that spoonful aside first, stir in the cocoa, then dollop and swirl it on top with a teaspoon, pressing just a little.
- Know when it is done. After 35 minutes at 180C, the top should spring back when you press it lightly and a skewer inserted in the center should come out clean. Ovens vary, so start checking a few minutes early.
Storage and make-ahead
This sponge cake keeps well at room temperature for two to three days, wrapped or stored in an airtight container so the crumb stays soft. Because it is made with oil rather than butter, it does not dry out as quickly as many gluten-free bakes. For longer storage, slice it and freeze the slices with a piece of parchment between each one, then thaw at room temperature when you want one. A few seconds in the microwave or a quick warm-up in the oven brings back that fresh-baked softness.
If you enjoyed this, you might also like my gluten-free vanilla cake, my gluten-free chocolate cake with berries and pineapple, or these gluten-free vegan brownies for another easy sweet bake.
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Gluten-Free Sponge Cake with Cocoa and Dry Fruits
Ingredients
- 200 g Dr. Schar Mix C gluten-free flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 4 eggs
- ½ cup caster sugar
- ½ cup grapeseed oil + more for greasing the tray
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp cocoa
- 1 Tbsp dry fruits I used papaya and apricots. You can use raisins too
- a pinch of sea salt
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven at 356F/180C.
- Grease the tray with some oil. The sizes of my tray are approx. 10cm x 30cm.
- Separate egg yolks from the egg whites.
- Whisk egg whites until foamy. Add sea salt.
- Whisk egg yolks with sugar, oil, vanilla extract and baking powder. Slowly add flour and incorporate. Add foamy egg whites and dry fruits. Mix using a spatula.
- Pour the composition in the greased tray.
- Save 1 Tbsp of the batter and put it in a small bowl. Add cocoa and mix.
- Pour this over the batter in the sweet bread tray. You can make the swirls on top using a teaspoon. Press it just a little.
- Put it in the oven and let it bake for 35 minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
A dense gluten-free sponge usually means the egg whites lost their air. Whisk the whites until foamy and glossy, then fold them in gently with a spatula rather than stirring. Overmixing once the whites are added deflates the batter, so handle it lightly and bake right away.
A universal ready-made gluten-free flour mix works best because it already contains the starches and binders that replace wheat’s gluten. For this recipe I use Dr. Schar Mix C. A good blend gives the cake structure without turning it gummy or crumbly, which is hard to achieve mixing your own flours from scratch.
Not easily. The four separated eggs are what make this cake rise, since the whisked whites act as the natural leavening. Removing them would change both the texture and the method entirely, so this particular recipe is vegetarian rather than vegan.
I used dried papaya and apricots, chopped into small pieces, but raisins work perfectly well too. Use whatever you have on hand. Just keep the total to about one tablespoon so the fruit studs the crumb without weighing it down.
Bake it for about 35 minutes at 180C/356F. It is done when the top springs back to a light press and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Ovens vary, so start checking a few minutes early to avoid drying it out.
Keep it at room temperature in an airtight container for two to three days. Because it is made with oil rather than butter, it stays soft longer than most gluten-free bakes. For longer storage, freeze individual slices with parchment between them and thaw at room temperature.
So simple and delicious! Goes very well with a cup of tea 🙂 My favorite morning routine <3
Glad you liked it! 😀
Do you have receipe of eggless sweet bread. Thanks.
Not yet. 🙂 I’m planning to try a recipe with aquafaba instead of egg.
Wow looks good enough to eat 😉
Thanks Jo! Hope you’ll give it a try 🙂