Birthdays are a huge thing in our house, we love celebrating each other. And, who doesn’t love a Gluten Free Vanilla Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting birthday cake?
Gluten Free Vanilla Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
My Gluten Free Vanilla Cake recipe is made with six ingredients total. Yes! You’ve got that right. You can have an amazing gluten-free dessert for birthday celebrations that turns out perfectly every time.
Easy Gluten-Free Cake
Better yet, mixing the batter for this cake is as easy as using a cake mix. The difference? Homemade Birthday Cake tastes so much better, and it’s healthy too!
People fell hard for my Chocolate Birthday Cake, and then asked for a Vanilla Birthday Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting, so I had to make another fabulously healthy dessert for y’all.
Happy Birthday Cake
This easy Gluten-Free Birthday Cake recipe is so simple that my boys used to throw it together when they were in grade school.
I love it when readers show me their little ones making my cake recipes over on Instagram.
Homemade Birthday Cake Recipe
Yup, my cake recipes from scratch are so easy an elementary school student can make them, and this homemade birthday cake recipe is one of my faves!
Gluten Free Vanilla Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients
- ¾ cup coconut flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 9 large eggs
- ½ cup salted butter, melted
- ½ cup maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Pulse coconut flour and baking soda in a food processor
- Pulse in eggs, butter, maple syrup, and vanilla
- Grease two 6 inch springform pans
- Pour batter into prepared cake pans
- Place cake pans on a baking sheet, then bake at 350°F for 25-35 minutes
- Cool and frost with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
- Serve
Birthday Cake Recipe
For this birthday cake recipe, all you do is throw the coconut flour and baking soda in the food processor, then pulse in the wet ingredients –eggs, butter, maple syrup, and vanilla. That’s it!
To learn more about the main ingredient, coconut flour, check out my Ultimate Guide to Coconut Flour.
How to Make a Cake Tall
After that, transfer the batter to two greased 6-inch pans. If you want your cakes to be tall like mine, be sure to use the 6-inch pans.
If you use an 8-inch pan the batter will not fill the pan properly, in turn, your cake will be sad 😟 and flat.
Bake Cake
If you need to know how to bake cake, well, that’s even simpler. Place your cake pans with the batter on a baking sheet, put it in the oven and you’re off to the races.
Frosting Cake
Now let’s talk about frosting cake. There’s one basic step that ensures the results of frosting the cake will be gorgeous.
Let the cake cool for two hours minimum after it comes out of the oven. I have the best results frosting the cake when I bake the cake the night before, and then let it cool overnight at room temperature.

Make-Ahead Birthday Cake Recipe
When we throw a birthday bash that requires a lot of set-up, I make Vanilla Birthday Cake a couple of days ahead of time.
I bake the cakes and cool them in the pans overnight. The next morning, I remove them from the pans and then wrap them individually in foil. I store the Gluten Free Vanilla Cake in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
I frost the cake with my homemade frosting the day of the birthday party.
Chocolate Frosting
My homemade chocolate frosting recipe really takes the cake here, no pun intended. I am one of those people who likes a little cake with my frosting.
Homemade Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Use a double batch of Chocolate Buttercream Frosting for this birthday cake. That’s what you see in the photo.
I serve my cakes on cake stands because they have a big wow-factor and look incredibly special this way. More on the best cake stands below!
Dairy-Free Frosting Recipes
If you don’t eat dairy, try my Dairy-Free Chocolate Frosting recipe for an all-out dairy-free birthday cake celebration.

Happy Birthday Wishes
Did you know I launched Elana’s Pantry in 2006? This year is our fifteenth birthday! I love this community so much.
We are a motley crew when it comes to food allergies and I work to create recipes that meet the needs of each person here.
Food Allergies
I want you to be able to break bread, and cake, with friends and loved ones. If a recipe doesn’t meet your food allergy needs, experiment and use substitutions to customize it for you.
That includes substitutions for this Gluten Free Vanilla Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting recipe.
Substitutions
I wish I had a crystal ball when it comes to knowing how to make perfect recipes. Unfortunately, I don’t. This means I test each recipe dozens of times.
So, the only way to know if a substitution works is to try! Don’t be afraid to experiment.
Cake Stand
Here are some of my favorite cake stands! Use them to create a breath-taking presentation when you make Vanilla Birthday Cake with Chocolate Frosting or any of the cake recipes from scratch below:
Cake Recipes
Although these cakes may not be labeled as birthday cakes, I’ve received several comments that they have become family favorites for birthday celebrations.
Low-Carb Strawberry Shortcake
Most strawberry shortcake recipes from scratch are complicated. My homemade Low-Carb Strawberry Shortcake recipe is incredibly easy to put together.
I love it because the vanilla cake is made with six ingredients total. My family loves it too and tells me it’s one of the best cake recipes with fruit they’ve ever had.
Cinnamon Coffee Cake
Homemade Coffee Cake is one of my favorite comfort foods, and my gluten-free coffee cake is super healthy.

Nut-Free Carrot Cake
This Nut-Free Carrot Cake recipe made with coconut flour is another cake recipe from scratch that’s healthy and super easy to assemble. Throwing a party is enough work, why make the cake difficult?
Mug Cake
My Mug Cake is the perfect single-sized treat. It’s made with five ingredients total –almond flour, cacao powder, an egg, maple syrup, and baking soda.
Make this when you’re craving dessert, but either don’t want to take time to bake a full cake or want to allow everyone to add their own toppings. This would be so much fun with a group of friends.
Strawberry Cupcakes
Back when the boys were growing up, this strawberry cupcakes recipe was the perfect nut-free treat for school!
The recipe is an exclusive from my book Gluten-Free Cupcakes, but I’ve also shared the recipe here on the website with our Elana’s Pantry community.
Get the Book! Gluten-Free Cupcakes
Speaking of cupcakes Gluten-Free Cupcakes is a great investment if you’re looking for birthday cake style recipes.
And I have a Vegan Chocolate Cupcake recipe in the book for all of my egg-free, dairy-free readers!
Gluten-Free Orange Cake with Almond Flour
Because I loved chocolate-covered orange peel growing up, I’ve always wanted to smother Orange Cake in my Chocolate Buttercream Frosting recipe, the same frosting used here in my Vanilla Birthday Cake recipe. I’ve had many readers try this and they all tell me it’s incredible!
Cake Recipes from Scratch
Vanilla Birthday Cake with Chocolate Frosting is one of my favorite cake recipes from scratch. Leave a comment and let me know what your favorite is!
This post is an oldie but goodie from the archives. I first shared this Vanilla Birthday Cake with Chocolate Frosting in September 2016.















Nicole Bonner says
I made this cake 2 days ago and it was amazing. My mum (anti gf anti paleo anti anything ?) loved it! Best ever paleo cake. Agree with leaving it 24hr for less eggy taste it was amazing. Thanks so much for sharing. Plus kids and baby devoured it ?????
Elana says
Nicole, great to hear this was the best paleo cake ever!
Joanna says
Hi! Instead of a food processor, could I use my KitchenAid mixer? Going to try to attempt for my daughter’s birthday.
Thank you!
Elana says
Joanna, I haven’t tried that so not sure. If you do please let us know how it goes :-)
demi says
should batter be thin or thick?once it turned dense because it was thick batter and the other I used less flour and was pourable,little thin so it was moist,still didn’t rise way up the tins…why?
Elana says
Demi, the batter for coconut flour baked goods is a little different than for wheat flour baked goods. However, the key to getting this cake to rise is using a 6-inch cake pan. If you use a larger pan, the cake will not be tall like it is in the photo :-)
Joan Frome says
I do not have a food processor, will using a hand mixer or Kitchen Aid mixer work?
Elana says
Joan, I haven’t tried that so cannot confirm, but I would guess that it would be ok :-)
Katherine Buchanan says
Hi all. What an excellent page I’ve stumbled across!
I’m going to give this one a go – but as a cake filling I’m also looking for a thick paleo custard (the sort I would normally use between the layers and all over the outside) for what the kids call my ‘Italian cake’.
Would anyone have a thick paleo custard recipe that might be suitable (they’ve tried)?
I’m thinking the sort for canolli but using arrowroot flour and stevia / agave drops as a sweetener.
Elana says
Thanks Katherine! Here’s a link to my Vegan Pumpkin Custard recipe for you:
https://elanaspantry.com/pumpkin-custard/
Please let us know how everything turns out!
Elana
Katherine Buchanan says
Thanks Elana – I will x
Ana says
Hi, Elana, as always, great recipe. Did 1/4 of it as cupcakes just as as a trial for my sons birthday and it turned out delicious. Did also the same thing with your paleo chocolate birthday care and it turned a tad bit greasy.
Thank you!
Elana says
Thanks for your comment Ana and glad to hear this was a great recipe! For the Paleo Chocolate Birthday Cake, be sure to use one of the recommended brands of coconut flour so that it turns out light, fluffy and amazing!
https://elanaspantry.com/ingredients/coconut-flour/
Happy birthday to your son!
Elana
Ruth says
DAIRY FREE VERSION: I substituted one stick of Earth Balance soy free buttery sticks instead of the butter, and it came out DELICIOUS!
Elana says
Thanks Ruth!
Nan says
Used this to create my husband’s favorite cake, a must have for his birthday this month–an apple cake popular here in the Philly area: thinly sliced apples, tossed in cinnamon sugar, layered with a kind of vanilla cake batter. Instead of sugar I used stevia drops and swerve, plenty of cinnamon, and this cake batter using butter.. Better thsn the old family recipe I used to make! A big hit!
Elana says
That’s great Nan! Happy birthday wishes to your husband :-)
MamaCassi says
Ooooh- a new cake recipe to try! I love using coconut flour as a little goes so far, but it isn’t my favorite. That said, the real cake fans in my house are not nearly as critical and love ALL your recipes and would love yet another cake.
I love that you use 6″ pans- that is now my favorite presentation and I LOVE cake stands!
Elana says
Thanks MamaCassi!
Michelle says
I made this cake yesterday in a loaf pan. I tagged you on Instagram. Currently devouring for my pre-lunch snack. Turned out great! I’m trying to find a GF mini-muffin friendly recipe for a fundraiser. Any tips? This one might not be the best for mini-muffins, but it makes and EXCELLENT cake! I wasn’t able to find 77% dark chocolate so I purchased one 88% bar and another 70% bar. I mixed them and it worked alright. Easy peasy!
Elana says
Michelle, thanks for letting us know this was excellent!
Michelle F says
Yes, this recipe works for mini-muffins, too! At sea level it took me about 12-15 minutes for them to cook at 350 F. They taste eggy right out of the oven. Letting them sit longer makes them taste better. Even overnight they tasted great.
Elana says
Michelle, so glad to hear these tasted great!