We don’t really need to say anything about this paleo nutella mud cake! It’s that good! You should definitely make it and pretty please share a photo with us on social media. We’d love to see your merry creations!
We’re not gonna lie we had several epic fails when attempting to perfect the paleo mud cake. We tried it with almond meal, coconut flour, more butter/coconut oil, less cacao etc etc. And let’s just say we had a couple very dry mud cakes… blurghhhh.
So we welcome quinoa! Not quinoa flour but actual cooked quinoa! If you’re thinking hmmmm isn’t quinoa a grain?! Well it’s a pseudo-grain and actually a seed. Read more about this. But the most important fact of the matter is that it makes for one hell of a delicious paleo nutella mud cake! BOOM! We win!
We actually saw quinoa-cake making the rounds on The Whole Daily and Not Quite Nigella (so thanks you two for the delicious inspo!).
It makes the perfect healthy sugar free birthday cake. This very cake was Carla’s Birthday cake! So it just had to be extra special with double layer action. Yes, it takes a little extra time but wowee it’s impressive! If you don’t wanna do the double layer, halve the cake and frosting ingredients!
We highly recommend serving this cake with coconut ice cream and strawberries. Just to up the yum factor, oh and the pretty factor!
We also highly recommend inviting all your friends over to enjoy the cake with you! Because once you pop… you cannot stop with this cake. Or like instead of eating the whole darn thing, you can freeze slices separately!
Always merrymaking,
Emma + Carla
ps. hope you have the best Birthday Carla! Love you heaps my #sisterbestfriend.
Em xoxo
pps. did you know we’re Yoga and Pilates teachers? We have a bunch of classes you can try for FREE! JOIN HERE and get them sent right to your inbox.
- 1 1/2 cups quinoa (any colour)
- 3 cups water
- 1 1/2 cups butter melted (can also use coconut oil!)
- 1 1/2 cups cup raw cacao powder
- 2/3 cup coconut milk (canned)
- 1/2 cup rice malt syrup (or natural sweetener for choice)
- 8 eggs
- 2 tsp. apple cider vinegar
- 2 tsp. 100% vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- 2 cups roasted hazelnuts
- 1/2 cup coconut oil
- 3 tbs. raw cacao powder
- 2 tbs. butter or tahini
- 1 tbs. natural sweetener of choice
- 1 tsp. 100% vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- Preheat oven to 170 °C (340°F) and line a 2 x 20 cm (8 inch) spring form cake tins with baking paper.
- Bring quinoa and water to boil in a saucepan.
- Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until most of the liquid has been absorbed.
- It should take about 20 minutes.
- Rinse and allow to cool (you can make this the day before!).
- In a blender or food processor, whiz the eggs, coconut milk and vanilla.
- Add the quinoa and butter and mix on medium speed for about 2 minutes.
- Finally, add the cacao, rice malt syrup, salt, and apple cider vinegar, mix on super low speed until just combined. The batter is quite runny!
- Evenly divide the cake batter in to the 2 prepared cake tins and place into the oven for 30 minutes.
- Allow to cool, turn out, then ice! Yum!
- For the frosting, place all the ingredients, into a blender or food processor and whiz on medium until smooth and creamy.
- Spread half the icing evenly on top of 1cake. Place another cake on top, then use the rest of the icing on top of the second cake!
- Enjoy! Store this cake in the fridge, share with friends, or freeze individual slices for later!
- Merrymaker tip...
- Make the quinoa the day before so you don't have to wait for it to cool down! 🙂 Oh, you can also make the cake the day before you ice it... that way you don't have to wait for that to cool either! #winning
Comments 62
Hi Ladies, do you think we could we make this into cupcakes/muffins? Would there need to be any ingredient adjustments?
Author
Hi Lauren! TOTALLY! They’d be so super delicious! No need to change anything, just the cooking time… keep an eye on them. Perhaps they’ll only need around 20 minutes 🙂
What type of Quinoa …. I mean colour?
How much cooked quiona will I need? I have some already cooked & frozen
Seriously??? I CANNOT wait to try this but will wait til post October and I’m all super charged and bouncy after the 4 week program. Bring on November, lol 🙂
Hi girls is that 1.5 cups of uncooked or cooked quinoa? xx
phwoar! What size cake tins lovelies? Think I might make this for my Dad’s bday in Oct 🙂
Author
Hi Danielle 1.5 cups uncooked 🙂
Author
Hi Liz, it usually doubles so about 3 cups. 🙂
Author
YAY! We have a choccy cake recipe included in the challenge! You can try that one too! YAY YAY YAY! xoxo SO EXCITED!
Author
Hey Libby! We used tri-colour but you can prob use whatever you want! 🙂 We need to email you! Hehe. xxxx
Author
Hey Alison! We hope your Dad loves it! We used 20cm cake tins 🙂
Hi girls…. that looks delicious …. i would love to make it but cant eat quinoa … is there another ingredients that would work like wholeneal flour or oat flour. If yes what measurents and would it be self raising or plain thanks ☺
thanks – that is what I have! All cooked and ready for the rest of the recipe! I will post but I am a little ‘scared’. haha, more about eating it all at once.
Hi, did you find the mixture a bit .. a lot runny? What have I done? I added some vanilla pea protein to thicken a little ,,, seemed to work while uncooked.
can you omit sweetener ??
Hey lovelies. When substituting coconut oil for butter, is it the same quantity? Seems like a lot of oil! :+S
Author
Hi Bee-ridge! Yep, the same 🙂 🙂 It’s what makes it nice and moist 😀
Author
If you’re used to that more savoruy/bitter sweet treat… then YES! All up to your taste buds 🙂
Author
Hi Libby! The mixture is quite runny 🙂 🙂
Author
Hmmm… good question! We’re not too sure! It could work with oats or buckwheat perhaps? But it would be an experiment! 😀
I’m going to give this a go for our AFL grand final party this weekend 🙂
What type of sweetener did you use for the frosting?
Author
Hi Kate! Awesome! Let us know how it goes! We used rice malt syrup 🙂 e + c p.s be careful not to over blend rice malt syrup as it can separate! So low speed is best 😉
Hello Emma and Carla. I know you have posted bread recipes before but was wondering if you were wgoing to try one with the quinoa like in this recipe?
Thanks
Maris
Author
Great idea Maris! We were actually enjoying a piece of cake the other day and thought… HMMM this would be a delicious healthy savoury bread!! YAY! We are def gonna do that! Thanks for your comment 🙂 xox
Great recipe Merrymakers :). Mine is falling apart a bit in quinoa chunks – should i have put the quinoa through a food processor after i cooked it? Thanks lovies. Xo
Author
Hey Mel! It should have worked ok with just the mix master as it combines well… but if it wasn’t mixed thoroughly this may have caused the breaking apart! <3 hope it still tastes yum! 😀
Hey girls-
Did you use full fat coconut milk or lite? Lovely recipe thanks!
Author
We always use full fat 🙂 Hope you like it Mari! x
Could I use chia seeds as we can’t eat quinoa ?
Author
We haven’t tried this Sonia, so we’re not sure! Can you eat buckwheat? You could try this pudding… https://themerrymakersisters.com/sugar-free-gluten-and-grain-free-self-saucing-chocolate-pudding/ or you could try this delish raw cake https://themerrymakersisters.com/paleo-snicker-cake-easy-raw-cake/ 🙂
Hi ladies, can coconut oil be used in place of the butter/tahini portion of the icing? I know there is already coconut oil in it before that step, so would that be overdoing it?
Author
Hi Carly! We think you can change it up a little bit! Definitely swap the butter to coconut oil. The tahini could you swap to another nut butter? It might be bit of an experimental thing hehe. BUT let us know how you go! xoxox
Thank you girls! I’ll definitely let you know what I do and how it turns out 🙂
I don’t know why my nutella isn’t creamy as yours in the picture. I tryed to put more coconut oil but it didn’t look like it.
Author
Hey Jose! Oh noooo! 🙁 What sort of mixer/blender did you use? xx
Probably that realy was the problem, the mixer!
I started with a 1 and 1/2 cup eletric chopper ( I made 1/2 recipe), then moved the mixture to a NutriBullet.
Next time I’ll try the blender.
But, as you always say, the taste is good 🙂
Thanks!
Hi girls!
Is that 1 1/2 cups cacao powder? That seems like a lot?
Author
Hey Eve, haha we know! But it’s a double decker cake and super rich and chocolatey. You could have and just make one cake and not double decker. Or use less chocolate if you want! So yum!
When roasting the hazelnuts after they are done do you leave the skin on?
Author
Hi Liz! No, rub the skin off 🙂 🙂
Hi ladies, my cake batter was super thick but I have followed the recipe to a tee. How on earth can it be runny with so little liquid in it? Fingers crossed it turns out!!
Author
Hey Chris! Did you add the 8 eggs and 1 1/2 cups butter? That’s what makes it super liquidy! 🙂
Hi Girls,
I was wondering if i could use roasted sunflower seeds instead of roasted hazelnuts?
And hve you used chia seeds instead of eggs? Im trying to do this nut free and egg free.
Orla
Author
Hey Orla! Ooo this might be a bit of a tough one! As the eggs are quite a big part of the recipe! 🙂 🙂 Hmm… you might have to give it a try, if you’re used to doing egg free then you’d know best! 🙂 🙂
Hi Emma and Carla this is Caragh
it was my 9th birthday on the 17th of May and my mom Orla made this cake and it was a bit rich. Is it ment to be rich? It looks lovely in the photo!
where do you get your recipes?
my mom made an other cake it was the cashew cake. It is nice with raspberrys or strewberrys
thanks a lot Caragh
Author
Hey Caragh! It most definitely is a moist, rich cake! So it sounds like she made it right! Our valentines day choccy cake is much lighter! You would like that better we think! 🙂 so happy you like the cashew cake! What others would you like?! 🙂
Hi,
Is this recipe freezeable? The recipes always look so delicious and would be good for a slice every now and then!
Author
Sure is!!!!! Freeze it on up! 😀
Wow this looks perfect for an upcoming birthday cake with kids who are dairy and gluten free. Can I ask, can you make the icing ahead of time and refrigerate till you need to use it? If so how long would it keep?
Author
Hey Yvette! We’d suggest making the icing on the day so it is nice and fresh! BUT if you have to make the cake and then ice, then keep in the fridge that will work too! Perhaps the day before would be best!
Is there a filling in the center of the cake pictured above?
Author
It’s 2 layers of cake and frosting in the middle!
Hi have just made the cake n the frosting did nt turn out it was more like a base of a cake
Author
Hey Paula! That’s strange, it needs to be whizzed fast so it melts from the heat of the blender! 🙂
Is there any way to still have this dairy free but not with coconut? My little girl can’t have either 🙁 looks delicious though!
Author
Hey Rachel, we’re not sure sorry! Have not tried anything else. Booo!
Hi Orla,
I’m curious to know if you ended up making it egg free, and if so, how’d it go?!
This recipe looks amazing but I can’t eat eggs 🙁
Thanks!
Thank you!! This cake was good! The texture was incredible. So moist.
I love the healthy ingredients and my 2 year old thought it was amazing.
I think next time I might add some extra sweetness if I’m making it for a family event. I’ll add half cup brown rice malt syrup AND half a cup of honey ?? (I love the combined flavour of those two).
Thanks again ? You guys are the best
Author
Hey Amy! So glad you loved it! This is seriously one of our faves 🙂 🙂 defs think that combo sounds EPIC! 😀
Hi there, I love that this is a healthy cake option and will def give it a go. However it most definitely is not Paleo. Neither rice malt syrup (a rice derivative) or quinoa are Paleo. Even though it is a seed the Paleo diet treats it as a grain and it is excluded. It is a little misleading to title the post Paleo when it is not. Thx
Author
Hey Rachael! Quinoa is a pseudo-grain 🙂 and some would say it is #paleo. Up to you though! It’s super tasty and delish so we hope you like it <3 Rice isn't #paleo that's why we say natural sweetener of choice afterward <3