This gluten free chocolate lava cake is a decadent dessert that has moist chocolate cake and a warm, gooey center. It is one of those incredible, chocolaty cakes that is a chocolate lover’s dream! This recipe slowly cooks over 2-2 1/2 hours and is the best crock pot lava cake!
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Are you looking for the ultimate chocolate cake? One you can make without a lot of work and fuss? You need this gluten free crock pot lava cake in your life. It is so easy to make, and everyone is going to devour it!
Serve this incredible crock pot lava cake warm with a scoop of ice cream or a drizzle of chocolate sauce. Even after cooking it in a slow cooker, the exterior is crisp and tender, with a rich chocolate flavor that complements the warm, melted center.
If you love chocolate, check out all of my scrumptious gluten-free chocolate recipes!
Why I love this slow cooker gluten free lava cake:
- You make this incredible gluten free chocolate cake in your slow cooker.
- The chocolate flavors are over-the-top delicious!
- It is a great recipe to feed a crowd of chocoholics!
- You can use a mix or homemade cake batter. You can choose a mix that is dairy-free if you need a dairy-free dessert.
I made the lava cake. I used cooked butterscotch pudding instead of instant chocolate because it’s what I had. The cake was amazing and a huge hit with my family.”
Cristen P.
Allergen Information:
This lava cake recipe is gluten-free, soy-free, and oat-free.
Ingredient Notes:
For the full list of ingredients and amounts, please go to the recipe card below.
- Chocolate Cake Batter – You can use a boxed cake mix, as I did. I used Betty Crocker’s Gluten Free Devil’s Food Cake Mix. You can also use my gluten free cake mix, or make my Gluten Free Devil’s Food Cake recipe for the batter.
- Chocolate Pudding Mix – I used Jello Brand Instant Chocolate Pudding, the 3.9 oz box.
- Eggs – Use the amount required in the cake mix recipe.
- Oil or Butter – Again, follow the box directions.
- Chocolate Chips – Use dark chocolate, bittersweet, or milk chocolate chips.
Tips For Success
1. Cook this on low heat; the flavors mesh well, and the cake won’t overcook.
2. Always put a towel under the lid to absorb the condensation. Otherwise, it will drop onto the cake from the lid and make your cake soggy.
3. Serve this cake warm; otherwise, you won’t have the gooey chocolate for which lava cake is famous.
4. Top this gluten free crock pot lava cake with whipped cream or vanilla and fresh strawberries!
Step-By-Step Photos and Directions:
Step 1: Prepare the cake batter in a large
Step 2: Spray the inside of your Crock Pot or slow cooker with non-stick oil, then add the cake batter to the bowl.
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Step 3: Add the pudding mix and milk in a medium-sized bowl. Whisk it into a batter and drop it by the spoonful over the batter in the slow cooker.
Step 4: Pour the bag of chocolate chips over the top of the batter.
Step 4: Place a kitchen towel over your slow cooker and put the lid over the towel. This is important because moisture builds up on the lid when you slow-cook something.
The towel will catch this liquid so it doesn’t all fall on your cake. This is the best way to prevent a soggy cake when making it in the crock pot!
Step 5: Turn the slow cooker on low and cook the cake for 2 to 2 1/2 hours. My slow cooker is a big oval, so the cake is more shallow than it would be if you are using a circular, deeper model slow cooker. This means your cooking time will vary depending on the shape of your slow cooker and how thick your cake is.
Step 6: Carefully remove the lid and towel. This is what your lava cake will look like when it is cooked.
Step 7: Serve this slow cooker gluten free lava cake warm while the chocolate is melted and gooey. It is best with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream!
When the cake cools, the chocolate hardens.
If you love to use your slow cooker, I have some great gluten free slow cooker recipes for you to try!
Storage:
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. To warm it back up, microwave it for 35 seconds. You can also freeze the leftovers in a freezer-safe container.
Frequently Asked Questions:
The molten middle of a lava cake is created by pouring a mixture of melted chocolate and butter into the center of the cake batter before baking. As the cake bakes, the chocolate mixture remains liquid, creating a molten center that flows out when the cake is cut open.
In my slow cooker version, the chocolate chips and pudding mix create that gooey chocolate middle.
Yes, you can make this cake dairy-free by using a cake mix with no dairy ingredients and using oil instead of butter. When making the pudding batter, use plant-based milk. Lastly, use Enjoy Life or another dairy-free chocolate chip brand.
More Gluten Free Cake Recipes:
- The Best Gluten Free Chocolate Cake
- Gluten Free Coffee Cake
- Gluten Free Vanilla Layer Cake
- Easy Gluten Free Hummingbird Cake
Love This Recipe?
If you made and enjoyed this recipe, I would be incredibly grateful if you could leave a comment below. Please include which mix you used. This will help others know this recipe is delicious. Thank you!
Slow-Cooked Gluten Free Chocolate Lava Cake
Ingredients
Pudding Layer
- 3.9 ounce chocolate pudding mix Instant
- 2 cups milk
Cake Batter Layer
- 1 gluten free cake mix Use ingredients listed on the back of the box!
- 2 large eggs
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter melted
- 1 cup water
- 12 ounces chocolate chips bittersweet, dark, or milk chocolate
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Instructions
- Spray a Crock Pot with non-stick oil. I like to use coconut oil.
- Add the 1 gluten free cake mix to a large mixing bowl. Add the ingredients listed on the back of your box to make the cake batter. Note: I used Betty Crocker Gluten Free Devil's Food Cake mix and the package instructed me to use 2 large eggs, ⅓ cup unsalted butter, and 1 cup water.
- Mix the cake batter and pour it into the slow cooker. Turn the slow cooker on Low Heat.
- In another mixing bowl, add the 3.9 ounce chocolate pudding mix and 2 cups milk. Whisk to blend. Let it thicken for 5 minutes.
- Dump the pudding into the slow cooker by the spoonful. Be sure to drop it all over the top of the cake batter.
- Sprinkle the bag of 12 ounces chocolate chips over the top of the batters.
- Place a clean kitchen towel over the slow cooker and then put the lid on top. This towel will absorb the condensation so that it doesn't all fall into your cake.
- Cook on low heat for 2 to 2 1/2 hours. The cooking time will vary by the size and depth of your Crock Pot.
- Serve warm with ice cream or whipped cream.
Notes
- There are many brands of gluten free cake mix. Use one of these and use the ingredients listed on the back of the mix, or use my Gluten Free Devil’s Food Cake Batter recipe.
- If the cake is cooled, the molten chocolate will harden.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Warm it back up in the microwave oven for 35-40 seconds.
SPECIAL NOTE
Please know that every gluten free flour blend has a different starch to grain ratio. If you use a blend I didn’t test, my rule of thumb is to add more flour if your dough or batter is wet and add more liquid if the dough or batter is too dry!
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
This recipe looks amazing. I’d like to make it for Super Bowl. If I prepped it at home and transported it in the crockpot before ever plugging it in, will it keep for an hour in transport and be ok to plug in once I get there? I don’t want to be in my friends way when I get to her house. Thank you in advance!
Hi Bridget, I think you are asking if you can add all of the ingredients, then transport it to your friend’s house to cook? I would assume it would be fine. I haven’t tested that. Don’t forget to add a towel for when it cooks (you will see that in the directions.)
Clarification please. Do you add the ingredients from the box in addition to ingredients listed after cake mix?
Hi Lou, Use the ingredients I list, but keep an eye on the liquids. If your box mix is bigger than the one I used, you may need a bit more milk.
This is delicious! I’m the only GF person in the family but all agreed it was decadent and delicious. I used the Blue Diamond almond flour yellow cake mix. I made the mistake of using my Instant Pot slow cooker feature and it wasn’t done in the time specified because the IP just isn’t made for slow cooking. The good thing is this recipe allows for being able to open the lid and check for doneness around the edges which a cake in the oven doesn’t. I’ll do it again using a true slow cooker. This would be an impressive recipe for company as well.
Thank you so much for your comment I didn’t realize the IP had a slow cooker feature. I am hopeful your comment will help others, and I am really glad you enjoyed the cake.
I read it a five for the first one that I made. I use the same cake mix and everything. Second one I made I messed up and used to cook and serve pudding so that was a disaster. Third one I use the correct pudding, but used a gluten-free cake mix by King Arthur. Other than that I did exactly as specified. It still is way too runny. The cake mix just doesn’t seem to bake into a cake. How in the world could the first be so great and number two and three be a disaster? I’m not giving up.
Hi Joni, my guess is the amount of cake mix in the box is the culprit. I wonder how many ounces of dry ingredients the KA cake mix is compared to the Betty Crocker from the first try. If they are not the same, you will want to use less dry ingredients.
Water is listed under the cake batter ingredients, yet you say to add to the pudding. Milk is listed with the pudding layer ingredients. Is that in addition to the milk listed on the pudding package?
Hi Pam, some cake batter calls for water, and others milk…I was struggling to explain this easily. The Betty Crocker mix I used called for water. Just use whatever the box of cake mix you use says to use.
I used butterscotch pudding (it’s what I had in my cupboard). This recipe was such a huge hit with my family, the kids can’t wait for me to pick up another cake mix.
Thank you so much for coming back and letting us all know! I am a huge butterscotch fan, so you made my day letting me know it is yummy.
Made this for the Super Bowl and it turned out amazing! Thank you for all your wonderful recipes, Sandi!
You are very welcome. I am so glad everyone loved this new cake recipe!
This is copied from step 4 in your recipe — 4. In another mixing bowl, add the chocolate pudding and water. Whisk to blend. Let it thicken for 5 minutes.
It should say chocolate pudding and milk not chocolate pudding and water. This is what Pam Phelps was trying to tell you in her comment on 2/14.
Oh, I see. I edited that to say milk. Thank you so much!
Hi – I really want to make this this morning, but have realized the directions are too confusing.
I have store bought cake mix that I mixed according to directions on back of box. Your directions here state to add to that 1 cup water, 2 more eggs and 1/3 cup butter?
Or, did you mean to say just put the boxed cake mix batter in the crockpot and dump the pudding and chips on top as directed?
I mix per box directions…some mixes use eggs, others don’t so just add what the mix says on the back.