Today is my birthday. I didn’t plan anything for it, other than to do my usual Tuesday evening activity of aerobics and dinner with everyone afterwards. I did a lot of celebrating last year, so this year I was happy to keep it low key.

The only thing I wanted was to make a birthday cake to have at work. One of the girls at work has found she is intolerant to gluten, so I decided to look into a gluten free chocolate cake so that everyone in the office could enjoy it.

Those of you who know me know that I am a chocolate fiend. So this really had to be a good cake for me to be happy with it.

I’ve also not really had a birthday cake for the past couple of years. I’ve had cheesecakes, cupcakes and desserts with “Happy Birthday” written on them, but I’ve not had a typical birthday cake in a while. So, I figured I’d make one for myself.

There’s a lot of sugar in and on this cake, so this was definitely a birthday treat and not your everyday just-for-fun bake. I did reduce the calories a little bit by using 0% Greek yoghurt instead of butter in the cake itself, but that is minor.

Anyway, this cake is a beast. I used a 25 cm springform cake pan to make two layers. Meaning… I used the same pan twice because I own 2 cake tins, but they’re both different sizes. Yep. I’m that person.

Right… it’s getting late, I want to get this up while it’s still my birthday and I also want to go to bed. On with the recipe. I apologise for the mix between weight and cups in this recipe, it’s what happens when I adapt from two different places.

Ingredients

Cake:
2 1/4 cups gluten free flour
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
1 1/2 cups cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 + 1 1/2 cups 0% Greek yoghurt
1 1/2 cup caster sugar
1 1/4 cup soft brown sugar
2 large eggs
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup milk

Frosting:
600 grams icing sugar, sifted
200 grams butter, softened
80 grams cocoa powder, sifted
80 ml milk

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. In a medium-sized bowl, mix together the flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch, salt, baking powder and baking soda from the cake ingredients.
3. In a large bowl, cream together 3/4 cup of yoghurt and the two sugars.
4. Add the eggs one at a time to the sugar mixture, beating until well incorporated each time. Add the vanilla and mix. Then add the milk and mix well.
5. Add the flour mixture and Greek yoghurt mixture alternately to the sugar mixture, one half at a time. Beat until all is well combined.
6. Grease 2 25cm springform cake tins (or one at a time, if you have to bake each layer separately like I do). Add half the batter into each cake pan, then gently tap on the counter to remove any large air bubbles.
7. Place in the oven and cook for 40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
8. Remove from the oven and allow to cook inside the cake pan for 10 minutes. Then, remove the cake and allow to completely cool on a wire rack. If needed, use a knife to level the layers.
9. For the frosting, beat together the butter, cocoa powder and sugar, in a large bowl, until well combined.
10. Add the milk, and beat until light and fluffy.
11. Spread or pipe frosting onto one layer of the cake, then place the other layer on top. Frost the top of the cake and decorate with sprinkles.