This week’s Wine and Unwind at The Collaboration featured a decadent Chocolate Mochi Cake. Dense, moist and warmly spicy, this is a gluten-free wonder. (Don’t be confused by the “glutinous sweet rice flour” ingredient below. Rice flour, glutinous or not, is gluten-free!)
Note that you can make this with the coconut oil and coconut milk, or you can throw caution to the winds and use butter and half & half. Either way, it’ll be great!
Ingredients:
6 Tbsp. virgin coconut oil, melted, plus more for pan (or can also use butter)
1½ cups (300 g) sugar, plus more for pan
1 (13.5-oz.) can unsweetened coconut milk (or can also use half & half)
2 large eggs
2 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. kosher salt
2 cups (254 g) glutinous sweet rice flour*
3 Tbsp. powdered unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/3 tsp. ground cardamom
1 tsp. baking powder
¼–⅓ cup unsweetened shredded coconut
*can be hard to find in a regular supermarket, but Bob’s Red Mill makes one and can usually be found in any health food store.
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Generously grease a 9″-diameter cake pan. Coat pan with sugar, tapping out excess (about ¼ cup should do it).
2. Place 1½ cups (300 g) sugar and 6 Tbsp. coconut oil in a large bowl.Heat coconut milk in a small saucepan over medium, whisking constantly, until no clumps remain, then whisk into sugar mixture. Add eggs, vanilla, and salt and whisk to combine.
3. Whisk rice flour, cocoa powder, spices and baking powder in a medium bowl to combine, then fold into egg mixture. Scrape batter into prepared pan and sprinkle with coconut.
4. Bake until top begins to crack and cake springs back when gently pressed, 55–65 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack and let cake cool in pan 10 minutes. Run a knife around perimeter of cake, place a plate over pan, and invert cake onto plate. Hold wire rack over cake and invert cake onto rack Let cool completely. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.
5. Do ahead: Cake can be baked 5 days ahead. Store tightly wrapped at room temperature.
Krysta Rodriguez (Maya) enjoying a post-show slice


Crew members Dan Conner and Jeff Dodson unwinding