This gluten-free marble espresso cake is a moist and buttery vanilla pound cake, with a swirl of decadent dark chocolate espresso. Perfect paired with a cup of coffee or tea for an afternoon pick me up, or for a simple dessert.
A moist and buttery vanilla pound cake and a swirl of intense dark chocolate espresso come together in this delicious cake, that no one will guess is also gluten free.
The marble swirl makes this pound cake look fancy, but it’s actually super easy to make. You don’t have to make two separate batters; the chocolate espresso mixture is just mixed into some of the vanilla base to create the chocolate espresso batter.
Whether it’s afternoon tea, dessert or breakfast (no judgement), this espresso marble cake is always a wonderful choice!
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Ingredients
- gluten-free flour, all-purpose blend
- granulated sugar
- almond flour
- baking powder
- baking soda
- salt
- eggs
- greek yogurt
- vegetable or canola oil
- milk
- vanilla extract
- cocoa powder
- espresso powder
- hot water
See recipe card for quantities.
Ingredient Notes
Gluten-free all-purpose flour blend: Use a blend that contains xanthan gum, so the cake has enough structure and stability. Make sure your blend doesn’t contain any ingredients with strong flavours, such as bean flour. Refer to baking with gluten-free flour for more information.
Almond flour: Improves the overall texture of the cake and also adds a richness in flavour.
Cocoa powder: I use dutch-processed cocoa powder for this recipe.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease a loaf pan and line with parchment.
- Combine the gluten-free flour, sugar, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, or large bowl (if using hand held mixer). Mix on low speed until well combined.
- Add the eggs, yogurt, milk, vegetable oil and vanilla and mix on low speed until moistened, about 30 seconds. Beat at medium speed for about 2 minutes.
- In a small bowl, mix together the espresso powder, cocoa powder and hot water until smooth.
- Into a medium size bowl, add a third of the cake batter and stir in the espresso and cocoa mixture until well mixed.
- Drop alternating spoonfuls of the vanilla and chocolate espresso batter into the prepared pan. Using a knife, gently swirl the batter to create a marble swirl. Don’t over mix.
- Bake for about 45 – 50 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached. Let cool slightly in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Top Tips for Perfect Gluten-Free Marble Espresso Cake
- Line your pan with enough parchment paper to hang over the edge of the pan to create make shift handles to grip for easy removal of the cake from the pan. Spray or oil your pan and then press in your parchment paper so there’s overhang on the two long sides of the pan.
- Let your cake cool completely before slicing and serving. This serves two purposes: you’ll have cleaner slices and a better overall texture to your cake. Due to the starches and gums used in gluten-free flour blends, gluten-free baked goods can have a bit of a gummy texture if the starches and gums haven’t had a chance to fully cool and set. If you want to serve warm, reheat your slices in the oven or microwave before serving.
- If your cake isn't finished baking, but the top is starting to brown, tent with aluminum foil to prevent from over browning.
Storage
Leftovers: store 2 – 3 days, covered, at room temperature.
Freeze: the baked cake also freezes well – store well wrapped in a freezer safe bag or container for up to 1 month. I prefer to slice the cake and wrap and freeze individual slices so I can thaw and serve a slice at a time. To serve, thaw in a microwave for 30 to 60 seconds on high.
Recipe Card
Gluten-Free Marble Espresso Cake
Ingredients
- 1½ cups gluten-free flour, all-purpose blend (see note)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ⅔ cup almond flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup greek yogurt
- ⅓ cup vegetable or canola oil
- ¼ cup milk, see note
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoon espresso powder
- 1 tablespoon hot water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease a loaf pan and line with parchment.
- Combine the gluten-free flour, sugar, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, or large bowl (if using hand held mixer). Mix on low speed until well combined.
- Add the eggs, yogurt, milk, vegetable oil and vanilla and mix on low speed until moistened, about 30 seconds. Beat at medium speed for about 2 minutes.
- In a small bowl, mix together the espresso powder, cocoa powder and hot water until smooth.
- Into a medium size bowl, add a third of the cake batter and stir in the espresso and cocoa mixture until well mixed.
- Drop alternating spoonfuls of the vanilla and chocolate espresso batter into the prepared pan. Using a knife, gently swirl the batter to create a marble swirl. Don’t over mix.
- Bake for about 45 – 50 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached. Let cool slightly in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Line your pan with enough parchment paper to hang over the edge of the pan to create make shift handles to grip for easy removal of the cake from the pan. Spray or oil your pan and then press in your parchment paper so there’s overhang on the two long sides of the pan.
- Let your cake cool completely before slicing and serving. This serves two purposes: you’ll have cleaner slices and a better overall texture to your cake. Due to the starches and gums used in gluten-free flour blends, gluten-free baked goods can have a bit of a gummy texture if the starches and gums haven’t had a chance to fully cool and set. If you want to serve warm, reheat your slices in the oven or microwave before serving.
- If your cake isn't finished baking, but the top is starting to brown, tent with aluminum foil to prevent from over browning.
- Leftovers: store 2 – 3 days, covered, at room temperature.
- Freeze: the baked cake also freezes well – store well wrapped in a freezer safe bag or container for up to 1 month. I prefer to slice the cake and wrap and freeze individual slices so I can thaw and serve a slice at a time. To serve, thaw in a microwave for 30 to 60 seconds on high.
Nutrition
Nutritional information shown is an estimate only.
See full disclaimer here.
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