Lamingtons are an iconic Australian treat, and you are going to love my gluten free lamingtons. They are just like the treat you remember: a soft, vanilla sponge with a sweet and simple dark chocolate glaze and a coating of powdery coconut. It’s time to celebrate Australia Day with the sweetest of treats!
Lamingtons are an essential part of any Australia Day celebration. These little squares of vanilla cake coated in chocolate glaze and dunked in coconut might appear strange to visitors to our shores, but since 1896 they have been beloved by Australians, and as iconic on our dessert tables as Pavlova, custard slice and Peach Melba. Now, I present my gluten free lamingtons to you so that all your Australia Day guests can enjoy a true blue Australian treat.
Australia Day is a time for us to celebrate our history as a nation, our heroes, and our villains. As is true of any country, there are parts of our history that we aren’t proud of and events that haunt us still, but to me Australia Day is a time to celebrate how far we have come in building our nation and the hope that lies in our better tomorrows. It’s also a day to gather round the barbecue with our families and friends, to play odd Australian bush games (two-up anyone?), make fun of our accents and strange words, call each other ridiculous Aussie nicknames, and just enjoy a public holiday in the beautiful summer weather.
The barbecue (that’s barbie in Australian) is the most common way to celebrate Australia Day along with sausages (Aussie: snags); steaks; salads (usually based on iceberg lettuce); and backyard cricket. When dessert time comes around the Pavlova (Aussie: Pav) is usually the centrepiece of the table; crowned with a thick draping of whipped cream and slices of kiwi fruit and strawberries it is a looker, but if you look off to the side there is always, always a packet of lamingtons – and they go fast!
My homemade lamingtons take a basic gluten free vanilla cake recipe, dunk it in a thick chocolate glaze, and sprinkle it with desiccated coconut. These are the perfect treat to make with kids. Just prepare yourself for a messy kitchen, messy kids – and a delicious homemade treat! The most important thing about these lamingtons is to keep the cake in the fridge until you are ready to slice, glaze, and dunk them. This gluten free cake recipe is not crumbly, but it helps to make the cake a little hardier before it gets handled in this way (I would do this with non-gluten free lamingtons too).
They look a little strange when you first make them, but once you bite into the soft spongy, vanilla scented cake and get a lick of deep chocolate glaze with the tiniest hint of coconut you will understand the lamington’s allure. They are just the treat for long, hot summer nights; workplace morning teas; or for sneaking out of the fridge for a midnight snack. It is an Aussie truth that only the sneakiest gets the last lamington of the night – so be quick!
Gluten Free Lamingtons
Makes 16 lamingtons | Gluten Free | Leftovers will keep in airtight container in the fridge for up to two days.
Note: if you want to dress these up you can try serving them with whipped cream and berries.
Ingredients
For the lamingtons
- 80 grams butter, softened
- 1 cup caster sugar
- 55 grams white rice flour
- 55 grams brown rice flour
- 55 grams buckwheat flour
- 55 grams almond meal
- 2 teaspoons gluten free baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- 2/3 cup milk
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground chia seeds
For the frosting
- 4 cups gluten free icing sugar
- ½ cup cocoa powder
- ¾ cup boiling water
- 2 cups desiccated coconut
Method
- Preheat oven to 180C (350F) and grease a 9-inch square pan with butter. Line the bottom with baking paper and set aside until needed.
- In a medium bowl whisk together white rice flour, brown rice flour, buckwheat flour, almond meal, baking powder, and salt. In a small jug mix together milk, vanilla extract, and chia seeds.
- In a large bowl using a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment beat butter and sugar on medium-high until pale and fluffy. This will take about 3-4 minutes.
- Add eggs one at a time and beat well to incorporate. Scrape down the sides and bottom between additions.
- Switch mixing speed to low and add flour mixture to the bowl. Beat until just combined.
- Add milk mixture and beat on low until well incorporated.
- Spoon batter into prepared pan and bake for 30-35 minutes or until the top is lightly golden and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Remove from oven, allow to cool for 5 minutes in the pan and then remove cake from the pan and cool completely before decorating with frosting.
- Once lamingtons are cooled trim the sides of the cake so that they are even and then cut the cake into 16 equal squares. Transfer the cake squares to the freezer for two hours.
- Once the lamingtons are chilled you can decorate them. Combine icing sugar, cocoa powder, and water and beat until thoroughly mixed. Measure coconut into a large bowl.
- Using two forks dip one piece of cake into the frosting so all sides are covered. Shake off the excess. Place in coconut and toss until sides are covered completely.
- Place on a lined baking tray. Repeat until all cake squares are covered.
- Stand for an hour or until set. Store in fridge. Stand at room temperature for half an hour before serving.
Happy Australia Day dear readers! What are your plans for the holiday long weekend? We are hosting a board games night and eating lamingtons and ice cream!
