There is nothing more adorable, playful, and delicious than this gluten-free unicorn cake. It is perfect for birthday celebrations, parties, or when you just want a scrumptious dessert. Impress your friends and family with this DIY unicorn cake, and they will rave about it.
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our Disclosure Policy.
It is impossible to look at this gluten-free unicorn cake and not fall in love with it! My daughter did a beautiful job decorating, and with all of my easy to follow step-by-step photos, I know you will do a great job too! No matter what, just have fun with it! Add your own colors, flair, and style.
Imagine the look on your kid’s face when you serve unicorn birthday cake this year! You could also serve it for a baby shower, Mother’s Day celebration, or just because you want to make a unicorn cake!
I used my gluten-free strawberry cake recipe with fresh strawberry puree for the cake, but any flavor of cake can be used. If you love chocolate, you can make the inside cake with this Gluten-Free Chocolate Layer Cake recipe. You can also use this Gluten-Free Vanilla Cake base under the unicorn decor!
Ingredient Notes:
For the full list of ingredients and amounts, please go to the recipe card below.
- Gluten-Free Flour Blend – I tested this recipe with my usual two preferred cake flour blends, King Arthur Measure for Measure and Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Blend. Other blends should be okay, but you may need to tweak the moisture level of the cake batter.
- Xanthan Gum – If your blend doesn’t contain a binder, add 3/4 teaspoon of xanthan gum.
- Sugar – Use cane sugar for the cake and powdered sugar for the frosting.
- Baking Powder – Use aluminum-free baking powder.
- Fresh Strawberries – Fresh is best for this puree. If you use frozen, thaw and drain the excess liquid.
- Butter – Use unsalted butter. I tested this recipe with Earth Balance dairy-free butter and it also worked well.
- Eggs – Use large eggs for this cake.
- Milk – You can use regular or dairy-free milk. (I tested this cake with almond milk.)
How to Make a Gluten-Free Unicorn Cake (Step-by-Step)
Step 1: Combine the dry ingredients into a large
Step 2: Place fresh strawberries in this amazing mini food processor and liquefy your fruit!
Step 3: Partially melt the butter in a microwave-safe dish for 25 seconds. Put all of the wet ingredients into a bowl and whisk to blend.
Step 4: Use these fabulously inexpensive mini cake pans so you have lots of cake layers. Spray them with gluten-free baking spray and add cake batter to each pan. (Note: PAM Baking Spray is not gluten-free!)
Bake at 350º F for 18-20 minutes. To test for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of the cake. If the toothpick comes out clean, it is done baking. If you see batter or crumbs, the cake needs to bake longer.
Step 5: Remove the cakes from the oven. Let them sit in the pan for 5 minutes, then gently tilt the cakes out to a cooling rack. While the cakes cool, make your frosting (the recipe is in the recipe card below). Place 1/4 of the frosting in a small bowl and set it aside.
Frosting the Unicorn Cake:
Step 6: Place a dab of frosting on a cake spinner when the cake is fully cooled. Add one layer of cake and frost the top; add the next layer and continue until all of the layers are frosted.
Email This Recipe To Me!
I will email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later!
Next, frost the sides and top and smooth the frosting out. For more details on frosting a layered cake, read my Gluten-Free Wedding Cake recipe. It has tons of tips.
How to make colorful frosting swirls:
Now, you will want to color the frosting you set aside. Divide the frosting into small bowls (depending on how many colors you want) and add different food coloring drops to each bowl. Mix until the frosting is the color you would like it to be.
Step 7: Put a couple of spoonfuls of each color frosting into the frosting bag. They do sell special frosting bags that will allow you to pipe several colors at once, but I didn’t use it. It is hard to see in this shot, but there are 3 different colors in the bag. When you make the swirls, it comes out rainbow swirl.
Make lots of swirls to represent the mane and forelock. These swirls should also go down the back of the cake, like a unicorn’s mane. You can check out all of my frosting tips on my Gluten-Free Frosting Guide!
Step 8: Take a marshmallow Peep, that fun marshmallow Easter candy that is hard to resist. Cut the peep in half and use the bottom half for the ear. Feel free to use white crystal sugar to coat the inside of the ear as we did. It will prevent the inner ear from being too sticky.
How to Make a Fondant Unicorn Horn (the Ultimate Hack!):
Here is how my daughter created that cool pink unicorn horn for her gluten free unicorn cake. We didn’t have fondant, but we read you can make it with marshmallows or peeps.
I kid you not…my daughter is a genius with all baking hacks. She melted an entire package of Peeps (pink) and added powdered sugar until it was thick enough to mold.
Step 9: Use your hands to mold a horn shape. You can use any color peeps to make the horn. I have seen peeps in green, yellow, blue, purple, pink, and red at our local grocery store. They even make Halloween colors if you are making something that needs orange or black.
Frequently Asked Questions:
If you have questions, I have answers!! If you have a question that you do not see here or not answered in the post, please drop me a comment, and I will respond to your question quickly!
Yes, you can easily make little unicorn cupcakes. You will want to scale down the size of the tip you use to decorate with the icing, cut smaller ears, and make a smaller unicorn horn.
This cake will keep for up to 4 days in an airtight container or up to 4 months in the freezer.
slices and wrap them individually with plastic wrap. Then, place all of the pieces of cake in a freezer bag or airtight container. The cake will taste best if it is consumed within 3-6 months of freezing.
For more tips, read my Gluten-Free Cake Troubleshooting Guide and this easy Guide to Cake Tools.
More Gluten-Free Cake Recipes:
- One of my most popular cakes, this easy Gluten-Free Vanilla Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting also makes a great wedding cake.
- Rich chocolate flavors in this Gluten-Free Chocolate Brownie Cake are so good.
- My husband loves carrot cake for his birthday, so we always make this amazing Gluten Free Carrot Layer Cake.
- You can also try this Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake as the base.
- This cute Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Mint Cake is decorated like a monster.
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 flour blend you used. This will help others know this recipe is delicious. Thank you!
Gluten Free Unicorn Cake
Ingredients
Cake:
- 2 ½ cups gluten free flour blend * see note
- ¾ cup cane sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder aluminum-free
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 1 ⅓ cups strawberry puree
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup non-dairy milk
Frosting:
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 4-6 tablespoons water add 4 and then add the other two as needed
For the Ears
- 2 Peeps for ears – do not melt
For the Horn
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 6 Peeps for horn – melted
Email This Recipe To Me!
I will email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later!
Instructions
For the Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350º F.
- Add 2 1/2 cups gluten free flour blend, 3/4 cup cane sugar, 2 teaspoons baking powder, and 1/8 teaspoon salt to a large mixing bowl and whisk to blend.
- Wash the strawberries and remove the stems. In a mini food processor or blender, puree the strawberries.
- In a medium-sized bowl, add 1/2 cup unsalted butter (partially melted), 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 2 large eggs, 1 cup non-dairy milk, and 1 1/3 cups strawberry puree and mix.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until they are just barely mixed. Be careful not to overmix the cake batter, or you will end up with a denser cake.
- Spray the layer pans with gluten free baking spray.
- Pour the cake batter into the layer pans and bake for 20-25 minutes until done. Insert a toothpick into the center of the cakes. If the toothpick comes out clean, they are finished baking; if you see batter or crumbs, the cakes need to bake longer.
- Allow the cake to cool on a wire cooking rack while you make the frosting.
Frosting:
- Add 1 cup unsalted butter, 4 cups powdered sugar, and 4-6 tablespoons water to a standing mixer. Add a whisk attachment.
- Mix the frosting ingredients until the frosting is creamy. (Start the speed low then slowly increase the speed.)
- When the cake is cool, add a layer to a plate and frost the top, add the next layer and frost the top. Once all layers are frosted, frost the top and sides and use a frosting scraper to smooth.
- Divide the remaining frosting into several bowls.
- Add food coloring to each and stir.
- Add frosting from each bowl to the bag, careful not to mix them.
- Use the frosting bag to swirl circles on the top of the cake, going down the back. This is the “mane” section so include a little on the forehead area for the forelock.
- Take two Peeps and cut them in half. These are the Unicorn’s ears.
- Grab the rest of the Peeps and add to a bowl. Melt the Peeps at 20 second intervals in the microwave, stirring between each interval.
- When the Peeps are melted, add the powdered sugar gradually, a little at a time to mix it in. As the mixture thickens, it becomes like fondant. When the mixture is stiffer, shape it into a Unicorn horn.
- Use food coloring or an edible marker to draw the eyes and mouth.
Notes
- I tested this recipe with Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 GF flour blend. That doesn’t mean other brands won’t work; it just means I haven’t tested other gluten free flour blends.
- Xanthan Gum – If your gluten free flour blend doesn’t contain xanthan gum or guar gum, please add 3/4 teaspoon.
- I used almond milk, but other dairy-free kinds of milk will work. I do not recommend canned coconut milk.
- Using peeps and powdered sugar is a great way to make a homemade fondant for shaping the unicorn horn!
- This cake will keep fresh for up to 3 days in an airtight container or up to 4 months in the freezer.
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.
I truly hope you enjoy this recipe. I have been testing and creating gluten-free recipes for over 15 years. Creating gluten-free recipes that do not taste gluten-free is my goal for every recipe. Sometimes I only have to test a new recipe a couple of times, and others it takes multiple times. I do this so you get reliable, delicious results every time!
Hi looks delicious! Could I omit the lemon please? Someone is allergic to citrus. thanks.
Hi Jade, yes, you can easily omit the lemon. Enjoy!
Could I make this with your flour blend rather than the ones mentioned? I have to avoid potato starch, so that eliminates many of the store bought brands. Thanks so much!
Hi Angela, I haven’t tested my blend in this recipe, but I have used it successfully in some of my other cake recipes. It should be fine, but please keep an eye on the cake batter consistency. If it is too thick, add more liquid.
Hi I was wondering if you knew the calorie breakdown with out the frosting? They are super good, I just started Noom and made these for my birthday cupcakes but did a coconut milk frosting instead!!
Hi Betty. I am so glad you enjoyed them. I chose not to do a calorie breakdown because the amount of frosting on the cake will differ so much depending on how they decorate the cake. I would input the amount you used into a calorie counter like My Fitness Pal for the most accurate measure.
Thank you so much Sarah. I hate those fake food dyes 🙂