I've shared this recipe before, in cupcake form…due to the rave reviews from family and friends, it's been my “go to” healthy chocolate cake recipe. I like cupcakes for easy portion control, however, when it comes to presentation, a double layer frosted cake wins, hands down.
Yesterday, for Mother's Day, we gathered as a family for a backyard barbecue at my sister's house. I was in charge of salad and dessert. I made our favorite Salad with SASS and then I made this healthy chocolate cake. I'm calling it Double Mocha Cake — chocolatey goodness with just a hint of coffee added.
There was not a slice left…my sister said it was her favorite healthy chocolate cake ever, my niece and nephews ate it, none the wiser. My older son, who typically doesn't like my “healthy” desserts, ate one piece and asked for a second. I say all this, for one reason only, to show you can feed your family healthy desserts, with no sugar-added and still enjoy and celebrate holidays.
Healthy chocolate cake recipe the whole family will love. Gluten-free, dairy-free, low-carb and no sugar added.
Ingredients
- 1/2 c. Coconut Flour
- 1/2 c. Cocoa Powder
- 2 tsp. Aluminum-Free Baking Powder
- 1/4 tsp. Celtic Sea Salt
- 1 c. Granulated Sweetener -- for sugar-free I recommend Swerve or Birch Xylitol
- 6 Large Organic Eggs
- 4 tsp. Pure Coffee Extract
- 1/2 c. Coconut Milk
- 1/2 c. Water
- 1/2 c. Coconut Oil, Melted
- Coconut Oil for Greasing Cake Pans
- 1 1/2 c. Granulated Sweetener -- for sugar-free I recommend Swerve or Birch Xylitol
- 1/4 c. + 2 Tbsp. Cocoa Powder
- 1/2 c. + 1 Tbsp. Coconut Oil
- 1/4 c. + 2 Tbsp. Coconut Milk
- 1 Tbsp. Pure Coffee Extract
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line the bottom of two 9-inch cake pans with parchment paper then grease bottom and sides with coconut oil.
- In medium mixing bowl, sift together coconut flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt, sweetener.
- In a smaller bowl whisk together eggs, coffee extract, coconut milk and water.
- Whisk wet into dry until smooth, then slowly whisk in melted coconut oil.
- Divide batter evenly between cake pans.
- Bake for 22 minutes, remove from oven and cool completely on rack.
- In a coffee grinder, grind sweetener until powdered fine like powdered sugar.
- In small bowl, sift together powdered sweetener and cocoa powder.
- Add coconut oil, coconut milk and coffee extract.
- With electric beaters on medium, beat together until frosting is light and fluffy.
- Frost cake and enjoy!
Notes
This recipe has been tested with my preferred ingredients. Please consider, if I recommend a substitution, it will be included as a note in the recipe.
Nutrition information per slice: 250 calories, 25 g fat, 8 g carbs, 5 g fiber, 3 g NET CARBS, 5 g protein (calculated using sugar-free option -- Swerve)
Have you tried this healthy chocolate cake recipe? Click below and give it a +1!
What is this erythritol stuff in the recipe? I have tried really hard to stay away from things of which I could not pronounce thinking they were chemically made and not so good for us…..
Erythritol is made by fermenting glucose with Moniliella pollinis (a natural microorganism found in honeycomb) which breaks down the glucose and yields erythritol. Erythritol also naturally occurs in many fruits and vegetables like melons, grapes, asparagus as well as fermented foods. Erythritol is classified by the FDA as a zero calorie and does not affect blood glucose.
SO IS ERYTHRITOL THE SAME AS STEVIA? I WENT TO MY FAVORITE VITACOST WEBSIDE AND PUT IN ERYTHRITOL AND IT CAME UP WITH TRUVIA..
No erythritol is not the same as stevia. Truvia which is a brand made by Coca-Cola (& Cargill) is a combination of erythritol and stevia. I do not recommend this sweetener. I recommend (and use) a few different brands of high quality erythritol Smart Sweet, Wholesome Sweeteners and Swerve. All are verified non-GMO.
okay…I have ordered one of them (I forgot which one…) and will give it a try. This cake sounds so good…I do not drink coffee so I am assuming I can use just water or coconut milk in it’s place…
Instead of the coffee extract you can use vanilla extract.
I pinned this for special occasions. It looks AMAZING!! 🙂 Thanks so much for sharing it!
Hi Vanessa,
Love your healthy recipes.
What is the difference between coconut flour
and coconut powder? Where do I purchase
the powder as I’ve never seen it in my food travels.
Thanks,
barbo
Hi Barbo, I am confused, at first I thought I may have a typo…but I double checked. No coconut powder in my recipe. I use coconut flour and cocoa powder. 😉
Thank you, Vannessa for this recipe. It’s going to be my husband’s birthday cake. He loves chocolate.
Julie
This looks lovely, Vanessa. I can’t wait to try this on my husband. He loves chocolate cake.
Thank Peggy! 🙂
I assume xylitol and erythritol are not interchangeable? Also, are the organic stevia invidual packets the same as stevia extract powder? Thanks!
I give the options in the recipe if you prefer to use xylitol. You are correct though, they cannot be interchanged 1:1. The stevia packets are not the same as stevia extract powder.
Xylitol is deadly to dogs…what about the erythritol?
No, erythrtiol is not.
My five year old and I are about to make this recipe together for my mother-in-law’s birthday. He begged me after seeing the beautiful picture. I can’t wait to try it!
How cute!
can I use pure stevia liquid? its the one you recommend, and would it be the same quantity?
thanks
Granular sweetener is necessary for more than just “sweet” in baking. It lends to the moisture and overall mouth feel of the final product. You can try it with stevia alone but I don’t know what the final result or taste will be.
Do you think brewed espresso would work as well as the coffee extract?
I’ve not tried. The coffee extract is very concentrated though.
Anyway that raw honey could be used instead or applesauce? Has anyone tried this or does it effect the cake consistency?
There’s no applesauce in this recipe. I don’t use honey in my recipes. Sorry.
Hey Vanessa!
Quick question; I see your comment about recommended substitutions will be in the notes but I have to ask…Do you think almond milk could work instead of coconut milk? Or are you using coconut milk (from the can) because it has (i’m assuming) a much thicker consistency? I’m sorry if you get this all the time, I’m very new to the whole low carb baking experience & I’m still trying to figure out all the ins & outs of baking. Thank you for your time & all your hard work!
I would stick with the coconut milk as it has a higher fat content than almond milk and ensures a nice moist cake.
This cake was literally AMAZING. My whole family loved it!!! Here is a photo of mine: https://scontent-b-iad.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn2/1461245_619175828139266_1220720612_n.jpg
thank you so much for the amazing recipes!!!!xox
So glad you enjoyed it! It’s one of our absolute faves! Thanks for sharing the pic.
Hi, this recipe looks delicious! Unfortunately I live int he UK and can’t seem to find any coconut flour (coconut milk is easy though). Do you think I could sub almond flour instead?
In this recipe, no you cannot sub coconut flour with almond flour. They are two very different flours and act differently in recipes. Can you order online? I do a lot of online buying — it is usually cheaper.
Holland and Barrett sell coconut flour in the UK. Hope that helps!
Can’t wait to try this. However, in your frosting dtrectionc you say sift the powered swerve, ‘stevia’ and cocoa powder! I don’t see stevia anywhere in your recipe, am I missing something? Thanks Juanita
My mistake — I updated the recipe. Thank you.
Can you exchange coconut sugar for the granular sweetener?
I don’t use coconut sugar — go ahead and try it — it might change the flavor though.
Hi Vanessa,
love your recipes – and new to this way of eating – wonder if I can just bake this cake in a bundt pan – don’t see why not…??
Sure — give it a try.
Just found out I’m allergic to eggs :(, can you recommend any good substitutes? I’ve heard chia seeds + water? But not sure it will work with a cake that requires 6 eggs?
Because this recipe uses coconut flour it really needs eggs in my opinion.
I have calculated the carbs 3 times. I am using all the same ingredients, same brand and everything and I am showing 58 carbs per slice and 53 net. I am not sure what I am missing. Swerve adds 5 carbs per tsp, so just in the cake alone you add 48 tsp. I am guessing that is it. Do you not count swerve? Just want to make sure I understand.
Thanks
Swerve is not counted as carbs it is a sugar alcohol which does not impact blood sugar. It has 0.24 calories per gram. Read more here.
Hi. I can’t find those sweeteners easily. We usually use honey or maple syrup for sweet recipes but could I use coconut sugar in the same quantities? Thanks
“This recipe has been tested with my preferred ingredients. Please consider, if I recommend a substitution, it will be included as a note in the recipe.”
This is my standard disclosure on my recipes. I added it recently as the requests for substitutions can sometimes be overwhelming. It’s impossible for me to adapt and test every recipe for every dietary requirement. Sorry. Feel free to adapt for you needs.
This recipe looks awesome. I am hoping I can get swerve in Canada (I have contacted the site). I know erythritol is an approved sweetener in Canada and oligosaccharides are considered OK as well. Sugar alcohols are generally better tasting sweeteners than the Stevia or the artificial sweeteners and I like that it does not have the laxative effect of some other sugar alcohols.
I will be making this cake even if I have to use sugar (although I would prefer not to). it looks awesome!
Can i use Real salt or Himalayas salt instead of Celtic Salt
Sure.
Hi Vanessa, was just wondering if you have tryed a sweetener called Sweet Luv. If you have, wanted to know your opinion & how it tastes as far as after tastec& cooling effects. I currently use Swerve but sometimes find cooling effect to be a bit much. Thanks for your input.
http://luvicecream.net/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=235i
I have not. Try using a bit less Swerve in your recipes. I only notice the cooling effect I use use too much.
This looks amazing! It looks like it is gluten and dairy free, right?
Yes it is!
I made this yesterday for my wife’s birthday. It was absolutely delicious. She was so happy with it. This is definitely going in the recipe binder. Thank you.
Awwww, you made it for your wife! Happy Birthday to her!
Just made this cake. The flavor was great, but had a hard time with the frosting. It was never light and fluffy. Stayed dense and heavy, more like fudge. Kept mixing and nothing ever helped. Anyone ever have problems. Not sure what happened. Flavor was there, but the frosting way too thick to enjoy. bought extra coffee extract so I can have another go at it!
I had the same problem with the frosting! Tasted good, but definitely not “light and fluffy.” Would love to know if you figured out where we might have gone wrong…
No, haven’t figured out what went wrong, just keep coming back and reading comments to see if anyone else had the problem or has a solution! I will definitely make again, but would love a fluffier frosting!
Oh my word! This was delicious! Everyone in our family loved it. I will have to try it with your frosting next time, I had some coconut cream frosting already in the fridge (random, right?) so I used that. Thank you so much for sharing!
So glad you enjoyed the recipe! 🙂
I made this cake yesterday, and it’s soooo good! My 9 year old said he wants it for his birthday cake. Hubby loved it too. Yum!! Thanks for all the great recipes and information!
That makes me smile! 🙂 So glad you enjoyed the recipe.
Hello,
Would you happen to know the measurement of the granular sweetener for the frosting after it comes out of the coffee grinder? I always have both powdered swerve and regular swerve on hand.
Thanks!
Hi Theresa. I do not. Sorry.
Hi do I have to use canned coconut milk? We are can free due to BPA.
I use a brand in a BPA free can…but you can also use this which is pure coconut milk (not to be confused with the coconut “beverage” found in the refrigerated section of grocery stores.
Natural Value canned coconut milk is BPA free…
Can you taste the coconut in this recipe? My fiance and I don’t like coconut in general.
Yes.
I don’t find it so noticable but my brother says yes…but I like coconut and he does not!
Would you have any suggestions for baking at high altitude? I live at 9000 ft. Thanks!
I do not sorry.
I am going to try this for my daughter’s birthday! I am substituting less vanilla extract for the coffee, and using dark 54% and 60% cacao chocolate to attempt to mask the coconut a bit =) It will be my first time using coconut flour; I will try to remember to let you know how the substitutions worked! Thank you!
This is a great recipe, works perfectly every time, nice and moist with a rich chocolate flavour, however when I made the icing according to the directions we could not eat it as it was far too sweet, next time and since I have halved the sweetener and it is very good. Nice made with coconut sugar too.
Can this be made into cupcakes? My granddaughter (who is 5) is a diabetic and has celiac and we make her cupcakes so they can keep them at school for her when there is a party. So this would be easier than the cake. Also can these be frozen?
One more thing, do you have a good yellow mix I could use for cupcakes?
Thank you so much.
Yes they can be made as cupcakes and yes they can be frozen.