This dairy-free, gluten-free chocolate and vanilla sponge cake is delicious. The chocolate is brownie-like, the vanilla is light, and it’s all arranged in a chequerboard design and smothered in rich, dairy-free chocolate frosting.
To achieve this light consistency, I used Pure Sunflower Spread, which is completely dairy free and fantastic to use in baking.
Dairy free, gluten free chocolate and vanilla chequerboard cake
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Author: Emily Leary
Serves: 10
Ingredients
For the sponges:
- 280g Pure Dairy Free Spread
- 350g caster sugar
- 4 medium free range eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla paste
- 350g gluten free self raising flour
- pinch salt
- 50g cocoa
- 2 tbsp water
For the frosting:
- 250g Pure dairy free spread
- 250g icing sugar
- 100g cocoa powder
Instructions
To make the sponges:
- Preheat the oven to 140C fan.
- Beat the spread, vanilla and sugar together until fluffy.
- Beat in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
- Beat in the flour and salt until pale.
- Divide the mixture between two bowls. Beat 50g cocoa into one of them.
- Grease and line 4 square 7", straight-sided baking trays. Fill two with the chocolate mix and two with the vanilla mix.
- Bake the chocolate ones for 25 minutes and the vanilla ones for 35 minutes (or until everything is just firm).
- Leave to cool completely. (Tip: If you wrap them in clingfilm and place them in the fridge for an hour or even overnight, they're easier to work with when it comes to the cutting and assembly)
To make the frosting:
- Beat the spread, icing sugar and cocoa together, starting slowly and working up to full speed until the mix is fluffy.
To bring it all together:
- Take a slab of cake and cut in half, then quarters, then eighths, then sixteenths. Repeat for the other three cakes.
- On a clean board, begin to reassemble the first layer in a chequerboard fashion, smearing a little frosting along each edge as you go.
- When you have your first layer done, cover the top with a thin layer of frosting, then begin building your second layer.
- Keep going until you have 4 layers, then cover the whole of the outside with frosting and place in the fridge for an hour to set.
Enjoy!
#BakeDairyFree to win!
If you’ve been making any dairy free creations of your own, why not tweet or Instagram @PureDairyFree along with the hashtag #BakeDairyFree? It could win you £1,000 worth of baking kit. Check the Pure website for full details.
This is a commissioned post for Pure.
Thank you so much for making this delicious cake free from dairy and gluten! We’re loving it :) Thanks for spreading the dairy free love :)
Finally, a cake recipe without dairy products. I’ve been searching for a good recipe for quite some time now, but alas I had no success. I will definitely give this a go. I haven’t eaten cake since forever.
Thanks, Emily : )
I really like this one and apart from the vanilla cake being a little lighter and airier in texture than a really buttery, gluten-based cake, there’s nothing in the texture and flavour to give away that this is a ‘free from’ cake!
Looks amazing I hope its also yummy in taste..
Thank you – it really is very tasty. My daughter literally cried in the hope of getting seconds!
Great to know that Emily its also tasty now after knowing that its also yummy I am excited to eat this dish…
Well done Emily! Great looking cake and lovely checker-boarding. It’s good to see some GF baking from such a great blogger. Should I feel threatened that you have made it look so easy?? AND so perfect??
Thank you! I am really enjoying experimenting with GF ingredients but I bow down to your expertise – you always post amazing ideas!
Thanks Emily…. But I can’t wait to see what else you invent! Keep up the good work x
:D I posted a vegan, raw, GF cheesecake recipe today…
Wow, these look fantastic, it surely costs the effort to making one of these!
Thanks! It’s great fun to make, and I promise it is indeed worth the effort :)
This cake has my name written all over it!
:) so glad you like it. Let me know if you try it!
We use Pure, the sunflower one as LJ is allergic to soya too. This is a fab recipe!! x
The sunflower one is my favourite too. So glad you like the recipe – do please let me know if you try it :)