This Keto Cake is an easy, no-fail, 1-bowl low-carb recipe perfect for keto beginners looking for a sweet chocolate cake to fix their sweet tooth with only 2.2 grams of net carbs per serving. Plus, this almond flour chocolate cake is also gluten-free with a dairy-free option.
A keto cake is a low-carb cake recipe made with low-carb flour and sugar-free sweetener to keep the total carbs and sugar to a minimum. It has a very similar taste and texture to regular cakes and most of the time, Keto Cakes are also low-carb gluten-free cakes. This keto chocolate cake recipe is the best treat for a low-carb birthday party!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
I love this cake recipe because it’s the easiest you will find as a newbie to the keto diet and can make perfect birthdays. There are no complicated steps to follow, no kitchen appliances needed, and this keto dessert fits all food allergies. It’s naturally:
- Gluten-Free
- Nut-Free Option
- Dairy-Free Option
- Low-Carb
- Keto
- Paleo
- Grain-Free
Ingredients and Substitutions
All you need to make a moist almond flour cake are:
- Almond Flour – Use ultra-fine almond flour with a pale, golden color. It’s not ground almond or almond meal. These two last options are coarse and make almond flour cakes gritty, so avoid them to avoid disappointment with the recipe. Almond flour is one of the best keto-friendly flours.
- Cocoa Powder – For a keto cake, use unsweetened cocoa powder.
- Baking Powder – For a soft and airy texture.
- Erythritol or any keto sweeteners you love like allulose, Monk fruit sweetener, or xylitol.
- Eggs – You must use regular eggs in this recipe as it doesn’t work well with egg replacers, an egg substitute, or flax eggs. It’s not recommended as a keto vegan cake. Eggs are keto-friendly.
- Unsalted Butter – Butter is a keto-friendly ingredient that needs to be melted in this recipe. You can also use melted coconut oil.
- Water – from the tap – You can also use unsweetened almond milk to add more almond taste.
- Vanilla Extract – For flavor.
How To Make This Keto Cake
There are many ways to make a cake keto-friendly. You can make a keto coconut flour chocolate cake, a keto vanilla cake, or this 1-bowl keto cake. But here I am sharing the easiest keto cake recipe ever, a no-fail almond flour chocolate cake.
- Beat the eggs with water, melted butter, and vanilla extract.
- Then, fold in the dry ingredients: almond flour, granulated sugar-free sweetener, baking powder, unsweetened cocoa powder, and salt.
- Stir to form a thick low carb chocolate cake batter. It can look a bit grainy, and that’s always the case when you make an almond flour chocolate cake so don’t panic.
- Preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C). Line an 8-inch round pan with parchment paper at the bottom and lightly oil the bottom and sides with oil spray.
- Pour the cake batter into the pan and spread evenly.
- Bake the cake in the center rack of the oven until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean or with a little crumb on it. It’s better to get a little crumb, it means the cake is still moist and not dry. The baking time varies with the size of the pan you used. If you use a 9-inch pan, the cake will bake faster as it’s shallower.
- Cool down the cake on a wire rack before frosting. To make a layered cake, repeat the recipe one or two times depending on what you are aiming for, a 2-layer keto cake or a 3-layer sugar-free cake.
Frosting
You can of course serve this cake plain or with some keto chocolate buttercream frosting or keto cream cheese frosting. Before frosting the cake, make sure the layers have completely cooled to room temperature. Other delicious keto toppings for cakes are:
- Whipped Cream
- Sliced Almonds
- Chopped Nuts – peanut, almonds, hazelnuts.
- Sugar-Free Chocolate Chips
- Melted Chocolate- sugar-free or 85% cocoa chocolate is keto-friendly.
Storage Instructions
This cake can be stored in a cake box or any sealed container in the fridge for up to 4 days. You can also freeze keto cake leftovers either whole or in slices and pop them in the fridge the day before to thaw the cake. It’s ok to freeze the cake frosted or plain.
Carine’s Baking Tips
It’s not difficult to bake a delicious low-carb cake recipe. But, if you are new to keto baking, there are 4 things you should know.
- Ingredients at The Same Temperature – One of the common mistakes in keto baking is to use cold eggs straight out of the fridge or hot melted butter. When both liquids come together, it can scramble the eggs and create a strong egg flavor with lumps in the batter. Always take out the eggs from the fridge 30 minutes before baking a keto cake and wait a few minutes before incorporating melted coconut oil or melted butter. The FDA recommends leaving eggs no more than 60 minutes at room temperature, so it’s fine to do so.
- Flour Swaps And Measurements – Almond flour is the key ingredient to making a moist sugar-free birthday cake don’t swap almond flour for coconut flour or any almond ground or almond meal. Coconut flour contains four times more fiber and can dry out cakes if you don’t adjust its ratio or add more eggs or liquid. Use a coconut flour cake recipe if it’s the flour you want to use but don’t swap almond flour for the same amount of coconut flour. Also always measure flour with a US measuring cup, fill, and sweep but don’t overpack the flour in the cup or press it down.
- Baking At Low Temperatures – Bake almond flour cakes at a lower temperature than wheat-based cakes. The best is to cook at 325°F (160°C) and check often by insetting a pick in the center of the cake. It should come out with a little crumb on it meaning the cake is moist and not dry.
- Don’t Thin Out The Batter – Don’t add milk or more water if your batter looks thick, it’s normal. Keto cake batter is always thicker and looks grainy, and that’s normal. Adding liquid like water, milk or heavy cream will dilute the batter, and the cake won’t firm up.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below I listed the most common questions you have about this easy cake keto recipe.
Absolutely yes, the best nut-free low-carb flours for cakes are sesame seed flour and sunflower seed flour. Both can be made at home in a high-speed blender by grinding the seeds on high speed until flour forms. Wait for the homemade flour to cool before using it in the keto cake recipe. Use as a 1:1 ratio swap to almond flour.
Yes, you can make a sugar-free cake by removing all sugar substitutes from the recipe, but the cake will be very bitter and not sweet at all.
No, the nutrition panel is for a one-layer cake with no frosting and a serving of 12 slices out of an 8-inch round cake pan.
Yes, replace melted butter with melted coconut oil or olive oil. You can use dairy-free spread in the frosting instead of butter.
More Low-Carb Cake Recipes
If you are looking for a healthy birthday cake, I listed some of my most popular cake recipes for you to try.
Prevent your screen from going dark
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
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Preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C). Grease one 8-inch cake pan with coconut oil. Cover the bottom and side of the pan with parchment paper and oil them too. Set aside.
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In a large mixing bowl, whisk dry ingredients: almond flour, sweetener, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
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In another bowl, whisk eggs with slightly cooled melted butter, water, and vanilla extract.
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Stir wet to dry ingredients until a smooth, slightly thick batter forms.
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Pour the keto cake batter into the prepared pan and bake for 20-30 minutes in the center rack of the oven or until a pick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean or few a little crumb on it. Don’t over bake or it gets dry.
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Cool down on a wire rack immediately until the cake reaches room temperature.
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Repeat the recipe for a two-layer cake, and frost the cake when both layers are at room temperature.
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Frost using one batch of keto chocolate frosting.
Serving: 1 slice (no frosting/1 layer)Calories: 124.2 kcal (6%)Carbohydrates: 4.8 g (2%)Fiber: 2.6 g (11%)Net Carbs: 2.2 gProtein: 5.3 g (11%)Fat: 10.7 g (16%)Saturated Fat: 1.8 g (11%)Polyunsaturated Fat: 1.1 gMonounsaturated Fat: 2.2 gTrans Fat: 0.01 gCholesterol: 62 mg (21%)Sodium: 190 mg (8%)Potassium: 79.5 mg (2%)Sugar: 0.6 g (1%)Vitamin A: 215.2 IU (4%)Vitamin B12: 0.2 µg (3%)Vitamin C: 0.01 mgVitamin D: 0.3 µg (2%)Calcium: 59.4 mg (6%)Iron: 1.3 mg (7%)Magnesium: 20.2 mg (5%)Zinc: 0.5 mg (3%)
About The Author
Carine Claudepierre
Hi, I’m Carine, the food blogger, author, recipe developer, published author of a cookbook, and founder of Sweet As Honey.
I have an Accredited Certificate in Nutrition and Wellness obtained in 2014 from Well College Global (formerly Cadence Health). I’m passionate about sharing all my easy and tasty recipes that are both delicious and healthy. My expertise in the field comes from my background in chemistry and years of following a keto low-carb diet. But I’m also well versed in vegetarian and vegan cooking since my husband is vegan.
I now eat a more balanced diet where I alternate between keto and a Mediterranean Diet
Cooking and Baking is my true passion. In fact, I only share a small portion of my recipes on Sweet As Honey. Most of them are eaten by my husband and my two kids before I have time to take any pictures!
All my recipes are at least triple tested to make sure they work and I take pride in keeping them as accurate as possible.
Browse all my recipes with my Recipe Index.
I hope that you too find the recipes you love on Sweet As Honey!
