Gluten-Free Yellow Cake Recipe - Gluten-Free Baking (2024)

FAQs

How do you keep gluten-free cakes moist? ›

Pillsbury^™ Gluten Free Classic Yellow Premium Cake Mix is a must-have pantry pick for any occasion.

The good news is that you can also use plenty of naturally gluten-free flour alternatives (rice, soy, chestnut, buckwheat, corn, potato and chickpea flour) for cakes, breads and pastries. And there are many recipes to show you how.

Moisture. There are many ways to increase moisture in a recipe. In general, recipes that call for pureed fruit, sour cream or yogurt are ones you can rely on for a moist product. In case your recipe does not call for these things, using brown sugar instead of white sugar to add moisture.

Oat Flour. With its creamy, earthy flavor and delicate texture, gluten-free oat flour is a staple of my gluten-free baking recipes. It bakes up soft and smooth, adding necessary starch to many GF baked goods and keeping them moist and tender due to its high fat content and stable protein structure.

YES, Cool Whip is gluten-free!

Although it does not carry a gluten-free certification on the label, Cool Whip doesn't contain any sources of gluten. In addition, Kraft Heinz states that cross-contamination with gluten has not occurred during the manufacturing of Cool Whip products.

Living gluten-free can be a challenge. It's important to know that peanuts, peanut butter, peanut flour and peanut oil are considered naturally gluten-free foods. Gluten is a form of protein found in wheat, barley and rye (2).

While many gluten-free flours do taste awful, several of the flours actually create baked goods that taste just as good if not better than those made with wheat flour. For example, rice and nut flours hold moisture better than wheat flour. They create a better tasting product that lasts longer.

When combined with baking soda, it becomes a leavening agent (the stuff that makes baked goods puff up in the oven) by producing carbon dioxide gas. If you ever run out of baking powder, you can substitute 1/4 teaspoon baking soda plus 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar for 1 teaspoon baking powder.

Why do gluten-free cakes not rise? ›

YOUR CAKE IS SINKING IN THE MIDDLE OR NOT RISING

You may not have used enough raising agents. I do recommend experimenting with double action baking powders. Otherwise try using 25 percent more chemical raising agents (baking soda or baking powder) if you're converting a recipe to gluten free.

If the original recipe calls for 260 grams of all-purpose flour, substitute with 260 grams of your blend. Beat the batter more. Because gluten-free flours provide less structure than all-purpose, the batter or dough you make with them may require more beating than that which you are accustomed.

Owing to the challenge of gluten-free flours to form a protein network that provides structure and strength to dough, breads produced in the absence of gluten tends to be flatter, denser, crummier, less chewy and less tasty.

Gluten-free baking is a lot harder than traditional baking because gluten protein is what gives baked goods their structure.

If gluten-free cakes aren't falling apart, they often turn out heavy and unpleasantly dense. That's because gluten creates little pockets of air, so baked goods turn out springy and fluffy; gluten-free flours and grains are lacking this crucial element.

Moisture – for some reason gluten-free cakes tend to get a little dry. Any gluten-free cake will dry out super-fast and get hard on the outside if it's not properly refrigerated and covered. I swear by always using buttermilk and adding a little more fat into the batter to compensate for the dryness.

Some gluten free flours will produce a cake which is on the dry side. This might be due to the lack of gluten but can be for many other reasons. Lots of gluten free flour is rice based and this can result in a dry and slightly gritty texture.

These ingredients take longer to set than regular gluten-containing flour, meaning they may remain slightly “gummy” or sticky until they have cooled. That's why when you test your gluten-free cakes with a toothpick, even if it looks done, your toothpick might not come out completely clean!

Xanthan gum (along with other thickeners like guar gum and arrowroot) acts like a binder in gluten-free baked goods to maintain their structure. Without it, there's a good chance that your brownies or muffin will crumble and fall apart.