Chocolate Rosewater Cake (Gluten-free)

This delicious cake is gluten-free and refined sugar-free. It has a moist, tender crumb soaked in fragrant rosewater syrup. This recipe was adapted from Elisabeth Prueitt’s Tartine All Day via Food 52. I halved the original recipe, used a mix of almond and oat flours and coconut sugar to sweeten. There is no oil or butter in this recipe (except for greasing the pan), yet the cake bakes up soft. Since the cake itself is not overly sweet, I opted to frost it with a rosewater-infused dark chocolate ganache. The smooth, rich ganache contrasts nicely with the light, mealy texture of the cake. A touch of dried rose petals make it an elegant and scrumptious dessert for any occasion.

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Recipe

Chocolate Rosewater Cake

(Makes one 8” cake)

Ingredients

For the Cake -
1 1/2 cups blanched almond flour
1/2 cup oat flour (made by pulsing rolled oats in a blender)
1/4 cup + 3 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract 
1/4 cup + 3 tbsp coconut sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp apple cider or white vinegar
1/2 cup full fat milk
1/4 cup light cream (I used Amul Fresh Cream)

For the Rosewater Syrup -
2-3 tsp rose water (add more or less based on your personal preference)
3 tbsp boiling water 
2 tbsp coconut sugar 

For the Chocolate Ganache -
1/3 cup (about 50 grams) dark chocolate (homemade or store bought), chopped into small pieces
1/4 cup light cream (I used Amul Fresh Cream)
1 tsp rose water

1 tbsp dried rose petals, to decorate (optional)

Method

For the Cake -
Preheat your oven to 180°C. Grease an 8” round cake pan with butter and line the bottom with parchment paper.

In a mixing bowl, combine the almond flour, oat flour, cocoa powder, and baking soda. Whisk well, making sure to break up any lumps.

Using a handheld mixer, beat the eggs, vanilla extract, coconut sugar and salt until thick and pale in color (about 3-4 minutes).

Whisk the vinegar, milk and cream into the egg mixture. Add this to the dry ingredients and whisk until combined. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until the cake is set and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Whilst the cake is baking, prepare the rosewater syrup and chocolate ganache (method below).

Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the sides of the pan to loosen and transfer it onto a wire rack. Peel away and discard the parchment paper and place the cake (right side up) on a plate.

Use a skewer to poke small holes into the cake and brush the rosewater syrup over it. Allow the cake to cool completely, then top with the chocolate ganache and decorate with dried rose petals.

Store any leftover cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.

For the Rosewater Syrup -
In a cup or bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the syrup until the coconut sugar dissolves.

For the Chocolate Ganache -
In a small saucepan, combine the cream and rosewater. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat. Turn off the heat and stir in the chocolate. Whisk well until the chocolate dissolves completely and the ganache is smooth (alternately, you can combine the cream and rosewater in a microwave safe bowl and heat it in the microwave until it bubbles before adding the chocolate. You could also use semi-sweet chocolate chips in place of the chopped dark chocolate, if you like).

Note: If you are not keen on a gluten-free and/or refined sugar-free chocolate cake, you could use a classic chocolate cake recipe like this one.