Almond Flour Cake (Sugar Free)

Name: Low Carb Almond Flour Cake
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 35 min
Ingredients: 5 eggs (large, room temperature, or 6 medium eggs); 1 1/4 cups natural yogurt (full fat, 300g); 1/4 cup butter (melted and cooled, 57g); 2 tsp vanilla extract; 3 1/2 cups almond flour (350g. Regular almond flour or ground almonds. Reduce by 1/4 cup (25g) for super-fine almond flour); 1/3 cup powdered erythritol (50g, or sweetener of choice. Use more for a sweetener cake.); 2 tsp baking powder; 1 cup mascarpone (240g, or cream cheese); 2 tbsp natural yogurt (as needed, to loosen); 1 tsp vanilla extract; 1 tbsp powdered sweetener (or more, to taste); 1 cup blackberries or raspberries (130g, to decorate)

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My sugar free almond flour cake is easy and delicious! It has a moist, fluffy crumb and requires only 5 minutes of prep. This gluten free, low carb cake is so healthy that you could eat it for breakfast. But, topped with berries and a mascarpone frosting it is perfect for celebrations!

Almond flour cake topped with mascarpone frosting, raspberries and blueberries.

"Made this cake for an 80th birthday party. It was a hit." (Linda)

This almond cake with almond flour is one of the first recipes that I posted on the blog, and I love it to this day. It is superbly simple and I have served it on many occasions, from brunches to birthdays.

Today, I decided to give this post a well-deserved update with new images and more details.

Want more cake recipes using almond flour? Try my almond flour olive oil cake and this sugar free Victoria sponge cake.

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Why You'll Love This Cake
Ingredients
Instructions
Variations
Recipe FAQs
Storage
More Almond Flour Recipes
Recipe

Why You'll Love This Cake

Secretly Healthy. When I first published this recipe, I called it "healthy almond berry cake". Why is this cake healthy in my book? Well, I am using almond flour instead of wheat flour and a sugar free sweetener instead of sugar. This means the cake is low carb, keto friendly and gluten-free. My diabetic mother-in-law can enjoy a slice of this cake without worrying about a blood sugar spike.

Easy and Tasty. This is a one bowl recipe and the almond sponge comes together in 5 minutes with only 7 ingredients. It is suitable even for baking beginners. And oh my, you're gonna love the flavor and texture of this cake. The sponge is fluffy and light and it tastes nutty and gently sweet with notes of vanilla.

Versatile. This basic almond flour cake recipe can be the starting point for plenty of variations. I'm listing flavor tweaks and topping ideas further down in the post.

Ingredients

Here are the ingredients you need for the almond flour sponge:

Wet Ingredients

Eggs - Must be room temperature. Use 5 large or 6 medium eggs.
Yogurt - I used full fat natural yogurt. Greek yogurt works as well. The yogurt helps with the rise and it also makes the cake lovely and moist.
Butter - melted, then cooled
Vanilla Extract

Dry Ingredients

Almond Flour. Almond flour is a wonderful replacement for wheat flour. It gives the cake a moist yet light texture. I am using blanched ground almonds, which is the same as regular almond flour in the US. For super-fine almond flour, reduce the amount by ¼ cup or 25 grams.
Powdered Sweetener - I have made this cake with powdered erythritol, monk fruit sweetener, Bocha Sweet and with allulose. All powdered sweeteners work well, so choose whichever you prefer. For a paleo version, use coconut sugar.
Baking Powder - We need to use a little more than in regular cakes because of the almond flour.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

Instructions

It is so easy to make an almond flour cake. Here are the basic steps.

Scroll down to the recipe card for the detailed method with oven timings, amounts and nutrition information.

We start by preheating the oven. Then, line the bottom of a springform pan with parchment paper and grease the sides with butter or cooking spray.

STEP 1

In a food processor or in a large mixing bowl with an electric blender, beat the eggs until fluffy, pale and double in size.

Eggs and all ther wet ingredients blended in a food processor bowl.

STEP 2

Add the remaining wet ingredients - yogurt, melted and cooled butter and vanilla extract. Blend until well-combined.

Almond flour cake batter in the food processor bowl and a spatula.

STEP 3

Now add the dry ingredients - almond flour, baking powder and sweetener. Blend briefly until a smooth batter forms.

STEP 4

Fill the cake batter into your prepared springform. Smooth the top with a spatula.

The baked cake with a golden top in the springform pan.

STEP 5

Bake in the preheated oven until the top is domed and golden and you can insert and remove a knife into the center of the cake without any crumbs sticking. Let the cake cool completely before adding any toppings.

STEP 6 - Frosting

In a small bowl, stir together the mascarpone, vanilla extract and sweetener with a fork. Whisk in natural yogurt as needed to loosen the mixture a little. Spread the frosting over the cake and decorate with berries.

Katrin's Top Tips

#1 Taste the batter! This cake is not very sweet, which is how I like it. If you prefer a sweeter cake, add up to ¼ cup more sweetener.

#2 Check the size of your baking pan. The larger the pan, the flatter the cake will be - and the quicker it bakes. It is counter-intuitive, but this cake takes 10 minutes longer if you use a smaller 8 inch sprinform pan.

#3 Patience. Let the cake cool before you release it from the springform. To avoid the cake splitting, run a sharp knife along the pan edges to ensure it does not stick.

A slice of sugar free almond flour cake with frosting and berries.

Variations

Over the years, I have made many variations of this cake. Here are a few ideas:

Flavor variation: Add the zest of 1 lemon to the batter for extra zing. Or, increase the almond flavor by adding 1 teaspoon of almond extract.

Loaf cake: I have given the timings for a round cake. But, you can also bake this cake in a full-sized 9x6 inch loaf pan. Increase the oven time to around 55 minutes and put aluminium paper over the top after 30 minutes to avoid over-browning.

Fill it! Instead of frosting the cake, slice it in half. Spread the mascarpone mixture and the berries onto the lower half, then add the top part back. Dust the cake with powdered sweetener. You could also spread the middle with sugar free strawberry jam.

More Toppings

Sliced almonds (sprinkle these over the cake batter before baking, then dust with powdered sweetener after the cake has cooled)
Chocolate ganache (Use the recipe from my diabetic chocolate cake)
Sugar Free Lemon Curd
Sugar free icing - find the recipe in my post on keto blueberry bread

Below you can see an original image of the cake. It is flatter because I used a 9 inch springform. The cake in the new images above was made in an 8 inch springform.

A sugar free almond flour cake decorated with mascarpone frosting and topped with berries

Recipe FAQs

Can I use almond meal instead of almond flour?

Yes, you can replace the almond flour 1:1 and make an almond meal cake with this recipe. Since almond meal is ground almonds with skins, the cake will be higher in fibre. It will also look and taste more rustic.

Can I make this cake with defatted almond flour?

No, I do not recommend it. Super-fine defatted almond flour (very fine and powdery, white like wheat) absorbs more liquid than regular almond flour. It makes the cake too dense.

How do I make it dairy-free?

For a dairy-free almond cake, use coconut oil instead of the butter, coconut yogurt instead of the yogurt and whipped coconut cream in place of the mascarpone.

Can I make muffins with this recipe?

Yes! The batter is perfect for almond flour muffins. Add berries directly into the batter for a flavor pop. Use paper cups to avoid sticking and bake for 25 minutes.

Storage

Store this keto almond flour cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Any cake with almond flour freezes well, and this one is no exception. I like to pre-slice it, so I can defrost a slice at a time. Freeze for up to 3 months.