Luscious Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Sauce (Gluten Free)

This chocolate cake with raspberry sauce is a lovely dessert. It is very tender and never dry, the perfect foil for any topping you love. I like to serve it plain with a little powdered sugar sprinkled over the top and some raspberry sauce on the side. It is the perfect dessert that always gets rave reviews.

I have said for many years that some of the best recipes ever created are the ones on the backs of ingredient packages. Think about it – the company paid someone to create that recipe so that it would showcase their product.

I often will use this type of recipe as a jumping off point to creating something different. But in this case, the original is still the best. The only thing major change is to convert it to gluten-free. It is the cake that The Artist’s father loves and asks me to make for every family get together. This is one recipe that has stood the test of time. I just wish I knew who the recipe developer was so I could thank them!

I have made this cake dozens of times since I discovered it and they have all been perfect. Today when I started assembling the ingredients, I realized that I was out of my gluten-free flour blend. So I stopped what I was doing and whipped together a bucket of the blend. In and of itself not a memorable action.

But subconsciously my focus was on the GF blend and I started assembling the dry ingredients with the flour blend, adding the remaining ingredients. When I mixed up the batter it seemed thicker than normal and a bit less of it, but it’s been a while since I’ve made the cake and this is gluten-free so things always look different. Luckily, I wiped the spatula with my finger to get the final bits of batter back in the bowl and tasted it … I had forgotten to add the sugar!!

So I went back to my recipe to double check the ingredient list and the sugar wasn’t there … again I had started reading the list at the flour and completely missed seeing the sugar a second time. So I took a deep breath, stepped away for a couple of seconds and then went back to the recipe and I finally saw the sugar. Man, that was close!

See, even someone who has been baking forever can make a mistake – we are all far from perfect! The point is that even if you’ve forgotten an ingredient, you can still add it and save your recipe. I added the sugar last and the cake is beautiful.

This is a wonderful cake and is perfect for any occasion. Because it is baked and cooled in a 9×13-inch pan, it is simple to take with you to someone else’s home, a potluck dinner, church supper, or summertime picnic. I love to serve it with a spoonful of raspberry sauce – often the one from Fran’s Chocolates. If I have time, I will put some frozen raspberries in a blender with a little sugar and maybe a touch of booze (if it’s been a rough week LOL). Blend until smooth and you’ve got a beautiful sauce!

But if time is short, Fran’s is my go-to sauce. It is sold in most major grocery chains and you’ll find it by the ice cream sauces and cones. It is a great back up to have in your pantry. Look for her chocolate fudge and caramel too, yum!

I hope you give this chocolate cake with raspberry sauce a try – who knows, you may be starting a new tradition in your family too!

Did you enjoy this recipe? Let me know in the comments and leave a star rating, I love hearing from you!

 

Ingredients needed for Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Sauce:

• Milk, oil, eggs, vanilla, sugar, flour or gluten-free flour blend
• Cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, mint
• Raspberry sauce, powdered sugar

 

PRO Tip:

One of my tricks to be sure I’ve added everything and don’t double something, is before I begin I place all my ingredients on the left side of my mixer and once they are added, move them to the right side of the counter. I can instantly see that everything has been added or if I’ve forgotten something. And because I move it to the other side, there is no chance that I will add it twice. This is especially helpful if you’ve got a lot of distractions happening while you’re baking.

 

How to make Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Sauce:

1. Bring the water to a boil in the microwave and leave it in there while you mix up the rest of the batter; combine the milk, oil, eggs, and vanilla in another measuring cup and set aside
2. Place all the dry ingredients in the bowl of your stand mixer or a large mixing bowl and stir on low until completely blended; pour in the milk/oil mixture and mix on low, once incorporated increase the speed to medium and beat 2 minutes, then scrape the bowl and beater(s)
3. With the mixer running on the lowest setting, slowly add the boiling water, about 1 tablespoon at a time to avoid splashing, the batter will be very thin, scrape the bowl again; pour batter into a buttered and floured 9×13-inch baking pan and bake at 350°F for 35 to 45 minutes until a toothpick comes out mostly clean
4. Set the cake, still in the pan, on a wire rack and let cool completely then cut into squares; pour some raspberry sauce on serving plates, set the cake alongside the sauce, dust the top with powdered sugar and tuck a sprig of mint beside the cake and serve

 

PRO Tip:

Read the recipe through thoroughly. When you see several ingredients that are added at the same time you can pre-assemble them to make it easier and faster to put your recipes together. In this case, all the dry ingredients are added together and then you put the liquids in (all but the boiling water, that goes in last) – so mix them up ahead and make it really easy on yourself!

 

Recommended Tools (affiliate links; no extra cost to you):

• Kitchen scale
• 9×13-inch baking pan
• Microwave-safe measuring cup
• Stand mixer or hand mixer
• Wire cooling rack
• Fine wire sieve

 

Gluten-Free Tips:

Remember to use the same gluten-free flour to coat the buttered pan!

 You can adjust any baking recipe to gluten-free by using 120 grams per cup of my favorite gluten-free flour blend. If you are using another brand of gluten-free flour, whisk the mix, spoon it lightly into a measuring cup until mounded, level off the top with the back of a knife, and weigh the flour left in the cup. Use that weight as your standard per cup of that specific flour. Do this for each flour blend you use. Commercial blends such as Pamela’s All-Purpose Artisan Blend, Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1, or King Arthur Measure for Measure are all good choices.

All recommended ingredients are gluten-free as of the writing of this article. Always check to be sure the products haven’t changed and are still safe to consume.

 

 

 

 

 

Create a New Tradition Today!

 

Welcome! The suggestions here are not intended as dietary advice or as a substitute for consulting a dietician, physician, or other medical professional. Please see the Disclaimers/Privacy Policy page for additional details. Unauthorized use, distribution, and/or duplication of proprietary material from The Heritage Cook without prior approval is prohibited. If you have any questions or would like permission, please contact me. We participate in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small amount from qualifying purchases without any additional cost to you. This page may contain affiliate links. This post was first shared in May 2015. The article was updated in 2023.