There is so much you can do with Quinoa more than just use it for salad. This recipe is a proof to that, a super decadent flourless Chocolate Quinoa Cake. Yes, quinoa for cake! This is super easy to make, all you need is blender or food processor, blend, pour, bake, cool, decorate then Enjoy!

What is Quinoa?

First thing first. Let get one thing straight, Quinoa is actually a seed from the Chenopodium quinoa plant, it is not a grain. If you already know that, good for you because I was actually in the impression that was a grain. I guess I was not just thinking much of it and definitely not looking at it clearly. But we got that settled now. Seed not a grain. This one, maybe you already know that Quinoa is gluten free which makes it a great substitute for rice. Not only that, as compared to normal grains, Quinoa seeds are rich in protein, dietary fiber, B vitamins, and dietary minerals in amounts greater than in many grains, no wonder it is considered as super food. Quinoa is commonly use and served as plain or as a savory item, but that was before. Because of its many health benefits, Quinoa is now used as well for making desserts, like this Chocolate Quinoa Cake that I am sharing with you today.

Types of Quinoa

There’s about 120 different variety of Quinoa, but for the sake of this recipe, I we are only going to talk about the most common Quinoa colors found across North America, which are the white, red and black. Sorry purple, you did not cut it to the list. I’m not kidding, it appears that there is actually a purple Quinoa which I haven’t seen. All these 3 types of Quinoa taste and cooks differently.

• White Quinoa – Produces a fluffy softer texture after cooking. This characteristics makes it great for use in baking on top of using it as salad.
• Black Quinoa – This type of Quinoa hold its shape even after prolong cooking. It tastes somewhat crunchy and slightly sweeter than either red or white.
• Red Quinoa – Just like Brown Quinoa, this also hold its shape even after prolong cooking. Red quinoa also has a heartier taste and chewier texture than the muted, bitter taste of white quinoa.

How to Cook Quinoa

It depends on the type of quinoa. Some recipe recommends 1:2 ratio. 1 part quinoa to 2 parts liquid. I always stick to this ratio when I use quinoa for salads. For this recipe, we need to be overly generous with water because we want the quinoa to be really mushy.

I cannot contain my excitement, I have to say it now. This Quinoa Cake is AMAZING! Yes, you heard me right. QUINOA … CAKE .. AMAZING! I totally understand if you are skeptical about this and if it sounds weird to you.I had the same reaction when someone once asked me if I wanted to try this Quinoa Cake. Although it sounded weird to me, I was excited that time because I found it interesting. I was curious, and so I gave it a try. I am glad I did.

I can still recall my surprise reaction when I first tried Chocolate Quinoa Cake. I was in denial that I was actually eating a cake made from Quinoa, the same Quinoa that I use to make my salad. It took awhile to sink-in, and when I no longer in denial stage, I had to ask my boss to ask his wife for the recipe. From then on, I never looked at Quinoa the same way again. 

Can I use Black or Red Quinoa?

Although you can, I wouldn’t recommend it as your first option. I had tried making this using white Quinoa and I also tested it using tri color Quinoa. The cake that used white Quinoa turned out to be software and smoother. The cake that uses tri-color Quinoa turned out to have a coarser chwier texture. I can feel the granules, the bits and pieces of Quinoa when I chew on it. It seems to me that the white Quinoa had a softer texture that gets mushy easily and it gets process smoothly too. The colored Quinoa seemed to be firmer and it doesn’t get mushy to get a smooth consistently. Stick to white Quinoa for better cake texture. 

Food Processor or Blender both Works

This recipe can be made either by using a food processor or a high power blender. You might something powerful than just a single serve smoothie blend because you need to really break down the Quinoa in a smooth consistency. A hand-mixer will not work, sorry to disappoint you. There is not enough power for the hand mixer to mash the cooked Quinoa in smooth consistent. 

You don’t have to like Quinoa to like this cake. You don’t have to dislike Quinoa to not like this cake either. Believe me, you wouldn’t be able to taste any trace of Quinoa in this cake (just make sure to use white Quinoa).

This cake is super moist and soft, it taste just like a normal fudge chocolate cake. No, it taste even better than normal fudge chocolate cake and it is a little bit healthier. The texture is smooth, and the chocolate flavor is very intense, and it smells so good.You can literally smell the chocolate from this cake.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup uncooked Quinoa
• 1 1/3 cup Water (for cooking the Quinoa)
• 1/4 cup Milk
• 1/2 teaspoon pure Vanilla Extract
• 6 tablespoon melted unsalted Butter – If you use salted butter, remove 1/4 salt in the recipe
• 2 Eggs – room temperature
• 3/4 teaspoon Baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon Baking soda
• 3/4 cup granulated white Sugar
• 1/2 cup Unsweetened/Natural Cocoa Powder
• 1/4 teaspoon Salt

Instructions:

1. Cook the Quinoa: In a medium saucepan, bring quinoa and water to a boil. Cover,reduce to a simmer and cook for 18 minutes.Turn off the heat and leave the covered saucepan on the burner for another 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork and allow quinoa to cool.
2. Preheat oven to 350F/180C. Lightly grease 7″ round pan and line with parchment paper.
3. Wet Ingredients: Transfer the milk, eggs, vanilla, cooked quinoa and melted butter in a blender or food processor. Blend/processed for 15 minutes in high speed and 5 minutes in low speed or until texture becomes smooth. This is very important. If you do not processed it well, you will end up with a coarse batter, so take as much time as you need to really break the Quinoa apart.
4. Wet Ingredients + Dry Ingredients: Add the sugar,cocoa powder,baking powder,baking soda and salt in the wet ingredients mixture. Fold until fully combined. The texture of the batter is slightly light and runny.
5. Pour the batter into the pan. Pour the batter in prepared pan. Tap the pan 2 times to release the bubbles.
6. Baking Time:
   • For 6-inch round pan: for 50 – 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
   • For 7-inch round pan: for 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
7. Let the cake cool before adding any frosting. I have left frosting suggestions below, check out the featured posts section.
8. Decorate as desired.

Serves 6 people

Featured Video – Classic Chocolate Ganache

Decorate

This cake is very flexible. You can serve it as is with just a dust of confectioner/icing sugar on top with some side or toppings of fresh or frozen fruits and doll-up of whipped cream. Be informed though that this cake is quite dense, decadent and have a very strong chocolate flavor. When serving is plain, you might find it having too strong chocolate flavor. If you have time, a simple frosting like Espresso Frosting or Strawberry Buttercream works well here. Check out my frosting suggestions below.

My Latest Video

Featured Posts:

Here are frosting options that you can use for this cake. Choose to your hearth content. Enjoy!

• [VIDEO] How To Make Classic Chocolate Ganache & Tips on How To Use It
• [VIDEO] Small Batch Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
• [VIDEO] How to Whip Cream Successfully
• Small Batch Cappuccino Buttercream Whipped Frosting
• Classic Cream Cheese Frosting
• White Chocolate Buttercream Whipped Frosting
• Mocha Whipped Buttercream Frosting – Italian Meringue Style
• REAL Strawberry Buttercream Whipped Frosting (No Artificial Color)
• REAL Raspberry Buttercream Whipped Frosting, A Unique Buttercream Frosting That is Not Too Sweet
• Small Batch Cappuccino Buttercream Whipped Frosting

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