Updated Published Dec 20, 2018 By Julia 34 CommentsThis post may contain affiliate links.
Summary:
This 9-inch moist chocolate cake is made with coconut flour and a sugar-free sweetener, topped with a dark ganache frosting. It's a delicious gluten free and low carb alternative that tastes amazingly like regular chocolate cake.
Chocolate Cake
4.4 from 11 votesPRINT PIN
Prep: 30 minutes mins
Cook: 55 minutes mins
Cool: 30 minutes mins
Yield: 12 slices
INGREDIENTS
- 1.75 cup (8 oz wt.)
confectioners swerve sweetener (Note 1) - 1 cup warm coffee or water (Note 2)
- 3/4 cup (4 oz wt.) finely chopped
unsweetened baking chocolate (Note 3) - 8 tablespoons salted butter, plus more for greasing pan
- 2/3 cup (2.5 oz wt.)
coconut flour (Note 4) - 2.5 tablespoons (1/2 oz wt.) unsweetened cocoa powder (Note 5)
- 4 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons
baking powder - 1 teaspoon
vanilla extract
Ganache:
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 cup (2.5 oz wt.) finely chopped
unsweetened baking chocolate (Note 3) - 1/4 cup (1 oz wt.)
confectioners swerve sweetener (Note 1)
INSTRUCTIONS
Prepare Pan: Grease sides of 9-inch
springform pan and line bottom withparchment paper . Set aside.Sift Ingredients: Sift together coconut flour, cocoa powder, and baking powder over bowl. Stir until well-mixed. Set aside.
Make Batter: Microwave baking chocolate and butter in large heatproof bowl until just melted, heating in 30-second intervals, stirring in between. Whisk in sweetener, warm coffee, and vanilla until smooth. Whisk in eggs for a few minutes until smooth. Gradually whisk in sifted coconut flour mixture until incorporated; small lumps are fine.
Bake Cake: Pour batter into prepared pan, spreading to sides and smoothing surface. Let stand for about 10 minutes; meanwhile, preheat oven to 300 F. Transfer pan to preheated oven, and bake for 55 minutes or until inserted toothpick in center comes out clean with a few crumbs. Cool cake in pan for 30 minutes; meanwhile, prepare ganache in next step.
Make Ganache: Microwave all ganache ingredients in bowl until chocolate is just melted, heating in 30-second intervals, stirring in between. Texture should be very smooth. Refrigerate for 15 minutes or until mixture has spreadable consistency.
Serve: Slide butter knife all around between cake and pan, and release springform pan. Spread thin layer of ganache over sides and top of cake (Note 6). Cut into 12 slices and serve (Note 7).
NUTRITION
| Makes 12 Servings |
| Amount Per Serving (1 slice): |
| Calories 250 (76% from fat) | |
| Total Fat 21g | 32% |
| Saturated Fat 13g | 64% |
| Cholesterol 93mg | 31% |
| Sodium 90mg | 4% |
| Net Carb 3g | |
| Total Carb 8.5g (Note 8) | 3% |
| Dietary Fiber 5.5g | 21% |
| Sugars 1.5g | |
| Protein 6g |
Vitamin A 10% · Vitamin C 0% · Calcium 2% · Iron 15%
PHOTOS
NOTES & TIPS
(1) Sweetener. If you have a food scale, measure by weight (provided in oz) because it’s more precise than volume. I use confectioners swerve to sweeten the cake, and it measures the same as powdered sugar. Substitute with any other powdered sweetener that also measures like sugar, or calculate a weight-based conversion to ensure that you add the correct amount.
(2) Coffee. Coffee enhances the chocolate taste. I use Starbucks Via Decaf Italian Roast, which is an instant coffee mix that dissolves in hot water. This can be substituted with warm water.
(3) Baking Chocolate. If you have a food scale, measure by weight (provided in oz) because it’s more precise than volume. I use Bakers, which packages unsweetened baking chocolate in bars. Cut them into small pieces so that they melt easily.
(4) Coconut Flour. If you have a food scale, measure by weight (provided in oz) because it’s more precise than volume. I use Bob’s Red Mill because it’s readily available at many U.S. supermarkets, but you can also find other brands on Amazon. This can’t be replaced by almond flour, which is considerably less absorbent and not a 1:1 substitution.
(5) Cocoa Powder. I use Hershey’s Special Dark, which is their dutch-process unsweetened cocoa powder.
(6) Spreading Ganache. I recommend using an icing spatula to apply the ganache.
(7) Serving / Leftovers. This chocolate cake is best when served warm, optionally with some low carb ice cream. This can serve as a birthday cake, although it’s not as light and fluffy as a standard white cake, or any celebratory cake for a special occasion like Valentine’s Day or an anniversary. Leftovers can be covered and stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, then reheated in a 350 F oven until warmed through.
(8) Carbs. The nutrition calculation assumes you are using Swerve or a similar erythritol-based sweetener that uses sugar alcohols, whose carbs are non-impact and therefore not included in the nutrition estimate. Apps that count sugar alcohols will show a higher number of carbs.
About Julia
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Julia is a recipe developer and the founder of Savory Tooth, and lives in Boston, Massachusetts. Since 2015, she has been sharing simple recipes for tasty dishes in a user-friendly format. She typically prefers savory foods over sweet, hence the name of the site. Contact her at julia@savorytooth.null.com.
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Grace
I have been on keto diet for the last 3 months and have been craving for some cakes, but sadly, most cakes out there are high in sugar and carb. Wanted to order some keto-friendly cakes but they are too pricy. So I decided to make my own keto cake and stumbled upon your post. And boy, was I in for a surprise! I never expected the cake to be so moist and delicious! I used a different sweetener and the taste turned out well. Love love love the recipe! I didn’t make the ganache though because before I could make it, my hubs and my boy started digging in. Hubby said he wasn’t quite used to the texture but said the taste was great. My boy, a picky eater and cake lover, gobbled up a few slices. Thank you so much for the recipe, Julia! I really love the cake so much! Gonna be checking out the rest of your recipes soon!
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4 years ago
Siri Hustad
I wish I could show you the picture of this cake that I made today for my daughter’s 26th birthday, it was perfect!!! And she absolutely loved it♥️ followed the recipe to a T everything was simple and delicious. Thank you
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4 years ago
Izzie
I’ve made this cake about 5 times now and it’s amazing! Half my family are keto too and they love it so much I keep getting requests for more!
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4 years ago
Donna
This cake is delicious! I topped mine with caramel salted pecan halves. Very popular even with the nay say ketoers!
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4 years ago
Marsha
Hi Julia. I would like to make this cake for my husband’s birthday. He needs to eat low oxalate. Do you think it would turn out well if I used unsweetened carob in place of the baking chocolate?
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1 year ago
Stacey
Amazing cake! I weighed all the ingredients out and I think that made the difference – it was so perfect. Reheated the next day and still great (maybe even better since it was warmer).
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2 years ago
Hazel Fleck
Made this cake for guests. I made the Ganach twice and neither time did look like the picture. It was grainy looking. The cake did not taste good and was crumbly. There was a bad after taste. I threw out the rest of it.
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2 years ago
Julia
A grainy ganache means the chocolate likely seized, which can occur from overheating. This can be avoided by making sure that the chocolate is finely chopped (so that it melts quickly) and microwaving in shorter time intervals with frequent stirring.
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2 years ago
Vanessa
🙁 Not the recipe’s fault, but for anyone thinking about doing the same thing as I did, be warned: do not try to grind regular swerve to make confectioners swerve. 8 oz will be a bomb of artificial sweetener. I couldn’t even swallow the first bite of it. I am so sad all those ingredients will be wasted. At least I tasted some crumbs before preparing the ganache.
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3 years ago
Crystal
Instead of eggs can I use unsweetened applesauce?
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3 years ago
Paige
No you can’t as the eggs have the protein that you would need for a cake.
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3 years ago
Ruth
Delicious!
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4 years ago
Cass
Hi, I’m just wondering why it says 3 grams per serving but also says in the nutritional facts that it is 8.5 grams? I must be missing something?
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4 years ago
Julia
I believe you’re confusing “Net Carbs” with “Total Carbs” — net carbs is 3 grams and total carbs is 8.5 grams. Net carbs is calculated by taking total carbs and subtracting out fiber since it’s not digested by the body.
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4 years ago
Jeanne
Can this batter be baked as cupcakes with the paper cupcake liners?
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4 years ago
Julia
That sounds like a great idea! I haven’t tried that variation myself, but it should work well. I would bake for about 15 or 20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean or with some fudge-y crumbs. When it comes to baked chocolate desserts, I prefer to err on the side of under-baking than over-baking.
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4 years ago
Susan
Can you use almond flour instead of coconut?
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4 years ago
Julia
Not directly as a 1:1 substitution. Almond flour and coconut flour behave very differently, with the latter being much more absorbent. If you were to use almond flour in this recipe, you’d likely need to tweak and adjust the proportions of the other ingredients.
If you’re looking for a chocolate dessert that uses almond flour, I suggest taking a look at my Keto Brownies.
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4 years ago
Mary
Can monk fruit sweetener be substituted for the swerve sweetener?
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4 years ago
Julia
Yes. If your monk fruit sweetener measures the same as sugar (check labels on your package), then it can be replaced as a 1:1 substitution for Swerve. If not, then you’ll have to calculate the conversion to determine the appropriate amount to use.
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4 years ago
Barbara
I forgot to pick up the unsweetened chocolate:/ Can I double the cocoa?
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4 years ago
Julia
Unfortunately, not in this case.
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4 years ago
Sara
Can I just skip the sweetener? Would that mess up the texture?
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4 years ago
Julia
It would affect the texture, and also it would likely taste way too bitter. Chocolate desserts usually use a fair amount of sweetener to balance the bitterness of unsweetened chocolate.
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4 years ago
Debbie Milne
Can the keto chocolate cake be frozen?
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4 years ago
Julia
I haven’t tried freezing this, Debbie. If you do, wrap it tightly in foil or plastic wrap, and store in a freezer bag.
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4 years ago
Tasi
Made this cake on a rainy Saturday afternoon. It was a hit with me and my kids!
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4 years ago
Debra Christine Davis
Great cake but like other sugar substitutes has an aftertaste.
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4 years ago
Julia
If you detected an aftertaste similar to erythritol’s cooling effect, that usually means you added too much of it related to other ingredients. If you have a food scale, I recommend weighing out the sweetener for best results (recipe provides weight in oz). Depending on how you pack an ingredient, using a measuring cup can vary quite a bit in how much you use.
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4 years ago
Mikey
Looks great! Does it have a strong coconut flavour?
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4 years ago
Julia
Hi Mikey. There isn’t any discernible coconut flavor since the chocolate dominates.
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4 years ago
Nora
This was delicious 😋Best keto cake so far.
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4 years ago
Cody
Would using wheat flower make this cake taste better than using coconut flower? Im just going for sugar free I don’t care so much about gluten free.
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4 years ago
Julia
It’s not a 1:1 substitution so you would also need to make tweaks to the other ingredients.
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4 years ago
