Gluten-Free Chocolate Walnut Gateau

A whisked gluten-free chocolate sponge layered with caramelised walnut cream and chocolate praline mousse — rich, nutty and not too sweet.

> Chocolate sponge, caramelised walnut cream and a chocolate praline mousse. The sponge is a whisked, egg-led gluten-free sponge with no baking powder — the eggs do the lifting. Layered and covered with mousse, then finished with walnuts and chocolate shavings.

Serves 8–10 · 20cm round tin · bake ~25 min · chill 25 min minimum

Ingredients

1. Gluten-free chocolate sponge

• 20g unsalted butter, melted
• 4 eggs
• 75g caster sugar (the original uses 125g — don't go much below 70–75g; this is a whisked sponge and the sugar gives volume, structure and softness)
• 65g gluten-free plain flour, sifted (Doves Farm FREEE plain flour)
• 25g cocoa powder, sifted
• ½ tsp xanthan gum
• Pinch of salt

Optional: 1 tsp instant coffee powder dissolved into the melted butter — it doesn't make the cake taste of coffee, it just deepens the chocolate.

2. Caramelised walnut cream

• 70ml whipping cream (goat cream if using goat dairy, or coconut cream for dairy-free)
• 20g honey
• 50g caster sugar (the original uses 100g — halving it works because the honey and the praline mousse already bring sweetness)
• 70g chopped walnuts
• Pinch of salt

3. Chocolate praline mousse

• 150g dark chocolate, ideally 70%
• 75g praline paste
• 250ml whipping cream (goat cream if available, or coconut cream for dairy-free)
• Optional: 1 tsp vanilla
• Pinch of salt

4. Decoration

• 100–150g chopped walnuts
• Dark chocolate shavings

Method

Step 1 — Prepare the tin

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F.

2. Grease a 20cm round cake tin.

3. Line the base with baking parchment.

Step 2 — Make the sponge

1. Melt the 20g butter gently, then set aside to cool slightly.

2. Put the eggs and sugar into a heatproof bowl.

3. Place the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water.

4. Whisk for 5–8 minutes, until pale, thick and doubled in volume.

5. Remove from the heat. Keep whisking until the mixture cools slightly and falls in a thick ribbon from the whisk.

6. Sift together the gluten-free flour, cocoa powder, xanthan gum and salt.

7. Fold the dry ingredients into the egg mixture in 2–3 additions.

8. Fold in the melted butter gently.

9. Pour into the prepared tin.

10. Bake for approx. 25 minutes, until springy to the touch.

11. Cool in the tin for a few minutes, then turn out onto a rack.

Don't overbake — a GF sponge dries faster than a wheat-based one.

Step 3 — Make the caramelised walnut cream

1. Warm the cream and honey in a small saucepan until simmering.

2. In a separate saucepan, heat the 50g sugar gently until it melts and turns golden caramel. Don't stir while it melts — swirl the pan if needed.

3. Carefully pour the hot cream mixture into the caramel. It will bubble aggressively — this is normal.

4. Stir until smooth.

5. Add the chopped walnuts and a pinch of salt.

6. Pour into a bowl and leave to cool to room temperature.

Step 4 — Make the chocolate praline mousse

1. Chop the chocolate and place it in a heatproof bowl with the praline paste.

2. Melt gently over a bain-marie.

3. Let the mixture cool until warm, not hot.

4. Whip the cream until it forms soft-to-firm peaks.

5. Fold about ⅓ of the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture to loosen it.

6. Fold this back into the remaining whipped cream.

7. Mix gently until smooth and even.

Step 5 — Assemble

1. Slice the cooled sponge horizontally into two even layers.

2. Place the bottom layer on a serving plate.

3. Spread over the caramelised walnut cream.

4. Add a layer of chocolate praline mousse.

5. Place the second sponge layer on top.

6. Chill for 15–25 minutes to firm.

7. Cover the top and sides with the remaining mousse.

8. Press chopped walnuts around the sides.

9. Finish with chocolate shavings.

Notes

What each ingredient is doing:

• Eggs — the main structure, and the lift when whisked with sugar. Especially important here, as the sponge has no baking powder.
• Sugar — sweetens, but more importantly stabilises the whisked eggs and keeps the sponge soft. Reduce it too far and the sponge gets fragile, dry and flat.
• Gluten-free flour — replaces wheat flour; sift it well as GF flour clumps. Doves Farm FREEE plain flour works here.
• Xanthan gum — replaces some of the elasticity gluten would give, so the sponge holds together when sliced and layered. Without it the cake is more crumbly.
• Cocoa powder — the chocolate flavour. It also dries the sponge slightly, which is why overbaking matters. Reduced from 30g to 25g to keep the sponge softer.
• Butter — softness and richness. As it's only 20g, fold it in gently so it doesn't knock out the air.
• Cream — softens the caramel and forms the mousse structure. Goat cream where available; thick coconut cream for dairy-free, though the flavour shifts.
• Honey — sweetness and depth, and keeps the caramel walnut layer softer. Rounder than sugar alone.
• Walnuts — bitterness and texture; in a reduced-sugar version they stop the cake feeling one-note sweet. Toasting them lightly first improves the flavour.
• Dark chocolate — structure for the mousse. Use 70% to balance the praline paste; lower-cocoa chocolate makes it sweeter and softer.
• Praline paste — sweetness, nut flavour and richness. Because it's already sweet, the rest of the sugar can be reduced.

Dairy-free option

Use:

• Vegan block instead of butter
• Coconut cream instead of whipping cream
• Dairy-free dark chocolate
• A praline paste checked as dairy-free

Coconut cream works best chilled first, using only the thick part. The mousse will be softer than the dairy version.

Gluten-free notes

This converts well to gluten-free because it's already a low-flour, egg-led sponge. The key things:

• Sift the flour and cocoa.
• Use xanthan gum.
• Don't overmix once the flour is in.
• Don't overbake.
• Let the sponge cool fully before slicing.