Grandma Evelyn's Eggless Chocolate Cake- MODIFIED! Vegan, gluten-free, deliciousness

I knew my very first recipe had to be an extra special one, which is why I chose a classic family recipe.  This is a modification on my Grandma Evelyn's eggless chocolate cake.  Grandma created this cake recipe during the depression when things like butter and eggs were expensive.  This has been a standard favorite in our family for generations, and is typically served with fresh whipped cream, simple and delicious!  I modified the recipe slightly from Grandma's original version, to make it wheat-free after I was diagnosed with food allergies.  My good friend Sanoe has told me that she can't stand when recipe blogs ramble on for ages before getting to the actual recipe, so, without further ado, I present to you:

Grandma Evelyn's Eggless Chocolate Cake~ Modified

-1 1/2 cups all-purpose gluten-free flour blend (I make my own blend of 1 cup OAT flour and 1/2 cup Tapioca flour, but feel free to use your favorite blend)
-3/4 tsp Xanthan or Guar Gum (omit if your flour blend contains already, OR if you are using wheat flour)
-1 cup sugar
-1 tsp baking soda
-1/3 cup cocoa powder
-1/2 tsp salt
-1/3 cup oil (I use olive oil, but any mild vegetable oil works, coconut oil also works well)
-1 cup liquid (water works just fine, but coffee or red wine add a nice richness!)
-1 tbsp white or apple cider vinegar
-1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 400.  Grease a ring mold (if you double the recipe use a 9x13 cake pan).

Sift dry ingredients together in 3 times into a large bowl.  Make 3 wells in the flour mixture for your wet ingredients.  Pour oil into one well, vanilla and vinegar into another well, and your liquid into the final well.  Mix well, but do not beat (this recipe is best mixed by hand with a wooden spoon).  Pour batter into greased ring mold.  Bake for 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Toppings:
This cake is delicious as is, but can be spiffed up with various toppings!  I like a chocolate ganache drizzle, fresh fruit, fresh whipped cream, or a light sprinkling of powdered sugar.

Make 3 wells in the flour mixture to add your wet ingredients (I used coffee- sooo good!)

Pour your batter into a ring mold, I recommend lightly dropping cake pan onto the counter a few times to get rid of bubbles and flatten out the batter

This was made for a birthday celebration, so I drizzled chocolate ganache across the cake, and topped it off with fresh raspberries.