Labor Day: Gluten Free Cake Recipes

I know that the odds of any of you also hosting a birthday party this Labor Day weekend are probably on the low side. I offer up to you my family’s most recent Labor Day-Birthday Cake. Four orange-perfumed gluten-free layers, stained with wild blueberry sauce and wrapped up in orange whipped cream, with a crown of the season’s best berries. A cake to elevate any occasion, and a cake that will certainly make everyone feel special.

Gluten Free Cake Recipes

I know that the odds of any of you also hosting a birthday party this Labor Day weekend are probably on the low side. But I’m willing to bet that most of you will be doing some sort of entertaining with friends and family, and if that’s the case, I advocate for the presence of cake. A cake that makes the adults really feel the extraordinary nature of a day paying homage to all the hard-working people in their lives; really celebrate this Labor Day event. And a gluten free cake to make the kids realize that jobs in the labor industry are important, and honorable, and definitely deserving of a day of respect, gratitude, and celebration.

But in case you need just a bit more encouragement, I offer up to you my family’s most recent Labor Day-Birthday Cake. Four orange-perfumed gluten-free layers, stained with wild blueberry sauce and wrapped up in orange whipped cream, with a crown of the season’s best berries. A cake to elevate any occasion, and a cake that will certainly make everyone feel special.

Be sure to check out Tara’s professional cake making tips.

Orange-Berry Gluten-Free Chiffon Cake

Yields one 9-inch layer cake

The Cake

• 2¼ cups (296gr) sifted Tara’s gluten-free pastry flour mix (recipe follows)
• ¾ tsp xanthan gum
• ¼ tsp guar gum
• 1½ cups (300gr) granulated sugar
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp plus 1¼ tsp cream of tartar, divided
• ½ tsp fine sea salt
• ½ liquid cup (110gr) safflower oil (canola would also be fine)
• 7 large (130gr) egg yolks, room temperature
• 10 large (300gr) egg whites, room temperature
• ¾ liquid cup (182gr) fresh-squeezed orange juice
• Zest of two large oranges
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

- Preheat oven to 325ºF. Have ready two ungreased 9-inch round cake pans.

- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, xanthan and guar gums, all but 2 tablespoons of the sugar, baking soda, 1 teaspoon of cream of tartar, and salt. Mix briefly to combine. Add the oil, egg yolks, orange juice, orange zest, and vanilla, and beat for one minute, or until smooth.

- In a clean metal bowl, beat the egg whites until frothy, then add the 1¼ teaspoon cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form. Add the 2 tablespoons sugar and beat just until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the egg whites into the cake batter with a balloon whisk just until no streaks of white remain.

- Divide the batter between the two cake pans and run a small knife through each, to pop any air bubbles. Bake for 50 minutes, or until a tester inserted near the center of the cake comes out clean and the cake springs back when lightly pressed.

- Cool cakes upside-down (I like to suspend them by their rims over three glasses arranged in a triangle). Allow to cool completely, then loosen the sides by running a knife or offset spatula around the perimeter and carefully pry the cake loose onto a cake round or serving plate. Wrap in plastic wrap. Cake will keep for up to three days at room temperature, and 10 days refrigerated, so you can make it in advance.

Orange Stabilized Whipped Cream

• 3 tsp powdered unflavored gelatin
• 4 Tbsp water
• 3 liquid cups (696gr) heavy cream
• 3 Tbsp granulated sugar
• ¾ tsp vanilla extract
• ¾ tsp orange extract

- Refrigerate the bowl of a stand mixer and the whisk attachment for at least 15 minutes.

- In a small heatproof measuring cup, combine the gelatin and the water, and allow to soften for 5 minutes. Microwave on high, stirring once or twice, until the gelatin is fully dissolved. (This can also be done in a pan of simmering water.) Cool to room temperature. It is very important that the gelatin still be liquid, but not warm, when you add it to the cream.

- In the chilled mixing bowl, beat the heavy cream and sugar until the whisk starts to leave tracks in the cream. With mixer running, pour in the gelatin mixture in a steady stream. Add the vanilla and orange extracts, and beat just until stiff peaks form. Whipped cream can be refrigerated for several hours before using.

Blueberry Sauce

• 1 cup fresh wild blueberries, crushed (leaving some blueberries whole)
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

- Combine blueberries, sugar, and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, and boil for 1 minute. Cool, and refrigerate. Sauce keeps, refrigerated, for 3 weeks.

To Assemble the Cake

Additional ingredients needed:

• 2 cups fresh raspberries
• 1 cup fresh blackberries
• ½ cup fresh wild blueberries

- Split the two cakes horizontally so that you have four layers. Place one layer on a cake stand or serving platter. Brush the surface with an even layer of blueberry sauce, making sure that some whole berries get on there, too. Spread a layer of orange whipped cream over it. Repeat with the second and third cake layers. Center the last cake layer on the cake, flattest side up, and frost top and sides of cake with remaining whipped cream.

- Top the cake with fresh berries. Serve cake at room temperature or slightly chilled. Cake keeps, covered and refrigerated, for up to 3 days

Tara’s Gluten-Free Pastry Flour Mix

• 2 parts white rice flour, as finely-milled as you can find (I like Bob’s Red Mill)
• 2/3 part potato starch (NOT the same as potato flour)
• 1/3 part tapioca starch (sometimes labeled tapioca flour)

Blend well with a whisk, in whatever quantity is right for you, and store in a cool, dry place, or refrigerate it.

Why a Cake on Labor Day?

Growing up, I had only a vague sense of what Labor Day was about. In my all-natural, leaning-towards-a-hippie-lifestyle family, “labor” was what immediately preceded the birth of a sibling. Thanks to my mother choosing homebirths for both of my sisters, I had intimate knowledge of the word in that sense.

I don’t remember having the meaning of Labor Day explained to me, but I know that somewhere along the line I gained the understanding that it was a day for people who “worked.” To my young self, this meant anyone who had a job – I was still missing the point of honoring true “laborers.” (And, admittedly, even this awareness was an afterthought, since – to this day – the term “labor” still instinctually calls up images of childbirth for me.)

But I grew up, and surprisingly found myself working some pretty physically-demanding jobs. Suddenly, I was a laborer. Most of these jobs have revolved around food in one sense or another, and if the food and hospitality industry isn’t one of the most exhausting (yet rewarding!) fields out there, well, I don’t want to know what is. Finally, I understood what Labor Day was really for. And I was appreciative and thankful.

Then, two years ago, I gave birth to my second child on the day before Labor Day, and that was it. There was no turning back. For me, Labor Day is about having babies. And more specifically, in my life it will forever be wound around the birth of my child, and all his ensuing birthdays ever after. But thanks to the enormous amount of physical work childbirth entails, I’ve still got a healthy respect for people who labor in other ways, every day.

My semi-distorted view of Labor Day feels okay to me. Actually, this makes it easier for my family to celebrate it. Because, ironically, Labor Day (as with most holidays) is rarely a day of rest for those of us in the food industry. This is especially true where I live, where so much of our annual income is based on the seasonal tourism industry, and so Labor Day weekend signifies our Last Chance – we have just a couple more days before the vacationers and summer residents head home, and we need to work hard to make the most of that quickly retreating source of steady business. But with our baby’s birthday right in the middle of it? We are forced to make time over the weekend for a party! (It’s really not that hard to convince us to celebrate our children. But a birthday erases any guilt we may feel for doing it during such a busy time!) So party we do.

The other great thing about celebrating a birthday over Labor Day weekend is cake. Cake probably doesn’t make it onto many traditional Labor Day menus. In fact, lately I’ve realized that cake is served far too infrequently at parties of any type, birthdays, of course, excluded. Which is too bad, because I love cake. I love dessert in general, but there’s something about a tall layer cake that just screams Today is special! Enjoy it! And there are so many ways to customize cakes, from the cake itself to the fillings and frostings, and the garnishes and decorations. If you wanted to, you could probably make a cake every week and never repeat yourself. Or you could create that one masterpiece that everyone swoons over and requests again and again, and suddenly you have a Signature Cake. Variety or consistency – whatever your preference, you can do it with cake.

About the Author

Tara Barker is the owner and author of A Baking Life, a gluten-free blog devoted to eating and living well on the coast of Maine. Drawing on her previous work as a professional pastry chef, she strives to make gluten-free cooking and baking as easy and delicious as possible, so that no one has to feel deprived. When she is not writing or playing in the kitchen, she can be found chasing after her young sons and trying to find time to relax with her husband. Contact her at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).