This 5 ingredient keto chocolate cake is to die for! It is incredibly moist, rich and chocolatey and comes in at only 2.5 net carbs per slice. The recipe is low carb, sugar free and gluten free.
Do you want to see everyone at your table sink into silence, occasionally interrupted by a contented sigh? Serve this cake and watch the magic happen.
I love all the recipes I post on this site, but this sugar free chocolate cake recipe is special. That’s because it’s more than just a chocolate cake. It’s a crazy good, wonderfully rich, death by chocolate Keto chocolate cake.
This Keto cake does nothing by halves. It contains as much chocolate as it can possibly handle, a generous amount of grass-fed butter and it is just on the right side of sweet. Basically, it is a Keto dream dessert.
As grains are a no-no on a Keto diet (as well as on a sugar free / low carb diet), most Keto cake recipes use either almond flour or coconut flour or both. This cake uses only a very small amount of almond flour, which makes it super fudgy, almost like a brownie. Friends, you’ll love it!
Shall we get straight to the recipe?
How to make Keto chocolate cake – step by step:
1.) Whisk the eggs with an electric mixer until they have doubled in size and are frothy.
2.) Add the powdered erythritol and whisk again until well-combined.
Tip: If you only have granulated sweetener, blitz it in a food processor or with the attachment of a stick blender to turn it into a powder. You don’t want any crunchy bits in your gooey, moist chocolate cake! TASTE the cake batter and add more sweetener if necessary. I don’t have much of a sweet tooth, so you may prefer it a little sweeter than I do.
3.) Melt butter and chocolate and stir until combined. You can do this in a microwave or on the stove – but slowly and gently. TAKE YOUR TIME!!! If the chocolate gets too hot too quickly, it can seize or separate.
Then add the mix to the bowl and fold it in with a spatula or spoon.
4.) See how it’s slowly coming together?
5. And this is how it should look like – gooey, creamy goodness!
6.) Lastly, you add the almond flour / ground almonds and stir until they are evenly distributed.
7.) Get yourself a springform (I used a 20 cm / 8 inch) and line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease the sides with butter or oil and pour in the batter. Bake at 170 Celsius / 340 Fahrenheit on the middle shelf for 30 minutes.
Recipe tips and tricks to make the perfect Keto chocolate cake:
One thing I absolutely love about this low carb chocolate cake (apart from the taste!) is the fact that the recipe contains only 5 basic ingredients.
This also means that these ingredients MUST be the best possible quality, especially the chocolate.
Here in the UK there are a range of artisan chocolate makers which produce unsweetened chocolate. The brand I used, Montezuma’s, is available at Sainsbury’s, in organic shops or online. In the US you can go for a brand like Ghirardelli.
I don’t recommend choosing unsweetened Baker’s chocolate for this cake. It has the tendency to seize when you melt it and simply does not taste as creamy and mellow as quality chocolate.
Which brings me to my second recommendation: Take your time melting the chocolate!
When you melt the butter and chocolate in the microwave, do so in 30 second bursts. Mine was mostly melted after 90 seconds in total. I then left the bowl on the kitchen counter and stirred it from time to time. This caused the rest of the chocolate to melt slowly.
If you don’t have a microwave, you can melt chocolate in a water bath. For this, you either place the bowl with your chocolate and butter in a heat proof bowl over a pot with boiling water. Once the chocolate is half-melted, remove the bowl and let it fully melt by stirring occasionally.
If you are baking at high altitude, increase the oven temperature by 10 Celsius / 25 Fahrenheit.
Recipe Variations
I think all chocolate desserts benefit from a pinch of salt, although this is entirely optional. To give your keto cake a festive vibe, you could add 1 tsp vanilla extract, 1 tsp cinnamon plus some cardamom, nutmeg and a pinch of cloves.
For an extra kick, try adding a pinch of chilli!
Add nuts for a bit or crunch – walnuts or pecans would work well.
Serving suggestion
I’m a bit of a purist, so I simply dusted my cake with 100% unsweetened chocolate powder. If you want to go the whole nine yards, you could make a frosting (see recipe suggestion in the recipe notes below) or a quick chocolate ganache by melting 1 bar (100g) of chocolate and stirring in 3 tbsp of double / heavy cream and 4 tbsp powdered sweetener.
You could serve this cake with a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of sugar free vanilla ice cream.
Recipe Notes
I used a 20 cm / 8 inch springform in this recipe. If you only have a standard size 25 cm / 9 inch springform, your cake will be a little flatter, but it still works fine. You may need to reduce the baking time by 5 minutes. Simply check after 25 minutes if the middle of the cake feels firm to the touch.
You can freeze this Keto chocolate cake. Simply defrost on the counter!
More decadent chocolate dessert recipes:
- Fudgy Chocolate Avocado Cake (Sugar Free)
- Keto Chocolate Donuts
- Really Simple Low Carb Chocolate Tart
- Sugar Free Chocolate Cupcakes
Tried this recipe? Give it a star rating below!
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Best Ever Keto Chocolate Cake (Sugar Free)
Ingredients
- 300 g / 10.5 oz unsweetened chocolate ***see notes
- 300 g / 10.5 oz butter unsalted (1 1/3 cup melted)
- 6 eggs
- 1/2 cup / 50g almond flour or ground almonds
- 1 cup / 150g powdered erythritol
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 170 Celsius / 340 Fahrenheit. (If you are baking at high altitude, increase the oven temperature by 10 Celsius / 25 Fahrenheit.)
- Melt the butter and chocolate in the microwave (ca 90 seconds - see notes), then stir and wait until dissolved. Alternatively, gently heat in a water bath (a heat proof bowl placed over a pan of boiling water). Set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat the eggs until foamy, then add the sweetener and mix well.
- Add the melted chocolate and butter along with the almond flour and stir with a spoon or spatula until just combined.
- Line the bottom of a 20 cm / 8 inch springform with parchment paper and grease the sides with butter. Pour in the cake batter and bake for ca 30 minutes on the middle shelf until the top of the cake is firm to the touch, especially in the middle.
- Leave to cool before releasing from the cake tin. Once the the cake is completely cooled, dust with cocoa powder.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Larkin says
Can I use Ghee for the butter? I have a no dairy eater
Katrin says
Yes, I think that should be fine.
bec says
may I ask, ghee is OK for someone who doesn’t eat dairy?? It is made from butter
Katrin Nürnberger says
Hi there, while ghee is derived from butter, it doesn’t actually contain lactose or antigenic proteins like most dairy products. So, it should be ok for someone who is sensitive to dairy, but not for people who prefer to eat plant-based only.
Carol Larson says
Can you use either a 7″.spring form pan or a rectangular baking pan.
Katrin says
Sure, you could use either. It should fit, but if you end up having too much dough, just use an additional couple of ramekins. If you use a rectangular baking tin, be sure to line the sides with baking/parchment paper to avoid sticking.
Martin says
Hi Katrin
Excellently presented website – the best I have encountered reference low carb/ keto .The variety of dishes and clarity of your recipes are in my opinion first class.
I have just made your super indulgent chocolate cake which was simple to make and more importantly resulted in an absolutely , decadently ,serving of yummy deliciousness !
Please keep up the good work
Katrin says
Thank you so much for your thumbs up! I’m so glad you like the cake:)
Helga says
Would this recipe work with coconut sugar blitzed up? And would you add the suggested 1 and a half cups or less coconut sugar? The texture of coconut sugar is quite different from the other sugars mentioned here.
Katrin says
The recipe should work with coconut sugar. I believe it’s a 1:1 replacement to table sugar, right? Then coconut sugar and erythritol should have the same sweetness. If you don’t like your cakes sweet, I suggest you use less initially and give it a taste. Then add more if you think it needs it.
Helga says
Perfect , thank you very much! Will give you feedback once I have made it.
Maya McAuliffe says
HI, I could be wrong but when I calculated macros i got quite a higher number from the chocolate. I think you may have mistook the serving on the package for the entire bar rather than one square.
Katrin says
I think carb count will depend on the chocolate and the other specific ingredients you choose 🙂
reception says
I’m allergic to erythritol and wanted to try this using Monk Fruit powder–how much Monk fruit would you suggest I use for this recipe?
Katrin says
Hi there, I have only ever used monk fruit mixed with erythritol and never pure… I’m sorry but I cannot help! Is there a conversion to table sugar on the pack? Erythritol is a 1:1 ratio to table sugar, so maybe you can figure it out that way.
Sian says
I have had the same issue as someone else above, ending up with a white layer on the bottom… In the previous comment it seemed to be with how the chocolate and butter were melted, but I did mine over a water bath so veeerry slow! I did use 75% choc as my local supermarket was VERY limited with options, that was the darkest they had.
I’ve cut the white layer off, and it has a sort of jelly texture, very odd.
Anyway, I cut it off and the remaining cake is very tasty! Rich and dark, I just had a slice with double cream and a few raspberries!
Katrin says
Hi Sian, this is interesting. If the issue is not the differing temperatures, then it may have been the ingredients in the chocolate? I’d love to know if it contained any fillers that could have caused the separation of the white layer. I only ever use Montezuma’s or Lindt, because I love the taste, so I don’t have experience with other brands. Anyhow, I am glad you manage to cut off the layer and that the rest of the cake did end up tasting great!
Jaime says
If leaving out the almond flour (I’m intolerant) should extra coconut flour be added and if so how much? Looking forward to trying this for my birthday cake.
Katrin says
Hi Jaime, I normally replace almond flour with 1/2 the amount of coconut flour because it’s more absorbent. In this case, it would only be 1/4 cup. Add a little more if you want a less fudgy and more “cakey” consistency.
jastine says
how many days can store this cake?
Katrin says
I store mine for about 3-4 days in the fridge. It freezes well, too
Margaret says
I swear by Lily’s sugar free chocolate for all my keto recipes.
Margaret says
Could this be adapted to cook in an Instant Pot?
Katrin says
I don’t have any experience with making cakes in the Instant Pot. But there are plenty recipes online – so I’d say it would definitely work. Just choose the cake setting and give it a go!
Skye says
Hi Katrin, I’m really keen to give this cake a try. I plan to make it for my sister who loves chocolate but has trouble with dairy, gluten and sugar. I was wondering if you could suggest a couple of substitutes for the butter that you think would still work in the recipe? Thanks
Katrin says
Normally, coconut oil is a good replacement for butter. Maybe you could use a mix of coconut oil and a little coconut cream.
Skye says
Thanks for your quick reply. I’ll let you know how I go. Can’t wait to make it
Daisy says
I just tried to bake this cake. Added a dash of orange extract and used 1 cup of stevia instead (not sure if this is correct or whether it is going to be too sweet, as didn’t taste it!)
I have taken about 40-45mins to bake and mixture was bubbling on the edges. There seems to be oil on the edges durinv bubbling.When I move the pan, the mixture seems wobbly but when i feel the top it is firm, so I have removed it from the oven to cool. Hope it goes well. Smells fantastic though.
Katrin says
As long as your top is baked, the cake should be fine!Just make sure you wait with the cutting until it has cool down
Greta says
I love the recipe, I reproduced it twice, the first time I used erythrithol and it was amazing, however the second time I run out of it and used another anonymous sweetener that gave the cake a terrible chemical taste, as if I put too much, despite the amount was the same I had used previously.
Any suggestions on how to save the cake? Like to reduce the taste of sweetener… I really don’t want to throw it away, but it’s literally hard to swallow.
Katrin says
Hi, maybe the new sweetener has a 2:1 sweetness ratio compared to sugar? I’ve done that before using a granulated stevia sweetener which was twice as sweet as sugar and totally ruined a cake. Then there are brands which have, like you say, a very fake, chemical taste. Not sure if you can save a cake like that… unless you use it as sprinkles over another (better tasting) cake 🙂
Ann says
I can’t find unsweetened chocolate, can I use cocoa powder instead
Katrin says
You could, but not the same amount. You’d have to experiment a bit – it would be definitely less. Chocolate is cacao butter (=fat) and cocoa, so you’d use less fat. You may also want to increase the butter content. I think it’s probably easier to use a 90% dark chocolate with this recipe it you can’t find unsweetened. Otherwise, I have a recipe for chocolate cupcakes on the blog that uses cocoa powder. You can make that as a cake, too.
Ann says
Thanks for the helpful info. I found some in Sainsbury’s their own make which says ‘no added sugar’ contains Naturally occurring sugar. I am on a Keto diet, so I hope it is Keto friendly! It says carbs 34.3, sugars1.2g per 100g
I’m going to give it a go, just hope it doesn’t use up too many of my daily carbs!!
Katrin says
I like to use the Lindt chocolate. It’s available at sainsburys and they have a 85% and a 90% cocoa solids variety. The 90% Lindt is very low in sugars, too. It only has 14 carbs per 100g, of which are 7 grams sugar.
Anne Hughes says
For Ann – Sainsbury’s sell their own 85% taste the difference chocolate and you get 125g with 5 individual bars inside. As do Aldi. Both are quite nice. The Sainsbury’s one values are (per 100g) 16.8g carb/10.4g sugar compared to Lindt 14g carb/7g sugar. I think the Aldi one is pretty similar, certainly not enough difference to matter in a recipe. Whilst I prefer Lindt – who wouldn’t! – I’d rather save a bit of money for recipes and use Lindt to make chocolates. I will say my very sweet toothed diabetic hubby will eat both 85% bars without added sweetener but not the Lindt which means I can chop them up and add to keto pancakes or keto muffins and he’s well happy. A lot of products that claim no added sugar can be much higher in sugars than those with a little added in. Some sugar alcohols that are used in products aimed at diabetics cause similar sugar spikes than actual sugar or glucose, as will natural fruit sugars etc. I also buy Callebaut cocoa mass buttons but it needs added cocoa butter really as it is very thick when melted. I buy those because I like eating them from the bag as they are and they last me a very long time, but I don’t have a sweet tooth! Those are super low in carbs/sugar.
Katrin – your recipes are awesome. I keep meaning to leave reviews on them all. Everything I’ve tried we have loved, my husband thinks you are a genius! My latest was the Naan recipe which I braved finally because I’m coming to like coconut and getting braver with the flour. I added garlic powder, small amount of cumin seeds and more black onion seeds (simply because I love them) because I knew I’d need extra help with the coconut flour! I split it into 8 and used a tortilla press to make mini naans. My oven isn’t brill so took bit longer to cook but well worth it, they were amazing. I froze half and took them out yesterday to roll out for wraps with Moroccan shredded beef. The dough handles amazingly well after freezing and I cooked them in a schoville never stick pan. They make incredible wraps too and I’ll be using this recipe for my wraps in future! I’ve copied this so I can leave a review on the naans whilst I’m here.
Katrin says
Ann, I think it’s safe to say that you’ve just made my day! I”m so happy you like the website and the recipe. And thank you for trying them all out yourself. 🙂
Hannah Buell says
Can I substitute the almond flour for coconut flour?
Katrin says
You could, but make sure to use only half the amount as coconut flour absorbs more liquid
Nathan Kiely says
Mines cooking for 30 minutes so far – still a little wobbly in the middle. I’m Cooking for another 10 minutes to see how we go. The mix was perfect and dusty when I put it in the tin. Everything crossed. The batter tasted phenomenal!
Katrin says
Let me know how it turned out and if you can give it five stars after all 😉
Alison says
Great recipe! I used powdered stevia instead of the powdered erythritol (only needed just under one teaspoon) and it worked fine, no issue with consistency etc.
Delicious, easy to make. Will definitely make again!
Katrin says
Thanks for your comment and letting us know your recipe tweak!
Sofie says
Hi, I followed the recipe to the mark, but after over 30 minutes in the oven at 175°C, it’s not even close to finished. The sides are sort of boiling, I don’t understand what went wrong, please help.
Katrin says
Hi Sofie, this is curious. Did you use all the ingredients mentioned in the recipe? Is it firm to the touch on top? If not, I’d leave it in a bit longer. But don’t turn up the temperature further (unless your oven is known to be temperamental) – almond flour goods burn easily.
Ana says
Hi. I have just finished making the cake. I let it stay in the oven after 30 minutes though I turned off the oven already as the middle didn’t feel quite firm enough. I have left it sitting on the bench for about 30-45 minutes. It’s still warm when I decided to release from the pan and I saw the cake separate!!! I freaked out and immediately put the *lock* of the pan back. I do hope when it cools down completely it comes out as a whole circle cake as I made it for hubby’s 35th tomorrow! I will come back to report later.
Katrin says
Yes, definitely wait until the cake is completely cold. To be sure, put in the fridge. Then you should have no problem with releasing it from the cake tin
Amy says
Currently cutting out all sugars and artificial sweetners and have limited ingrediants in my cupboard. Would stevia be a okay substitute for erytrithol?
Thanks!
Katrin says
Yes, you could definitely give it a go with stevia 🙂 Do check when using granulated stevia that it is a 1:1 replacement for sugar. Some brands are twice as sweet as sugar.
Abbey White says
I am in the process of making this.
My mixture is very airy and not fudgy like the video.
Can I add anything to improve the thickness?
Katrin says
Hi Abbey, sorry I’m seeing this so late. How did the cake turn out for you?
Sarah says
Can I use a dairy free butter?
Katrin says
Yes, of course!
Charne says
Hey I’m confused with the butter, the 1,1/3 melted is that already melted before adding chocolate? Or do I melt chocolate and butter together
Katrin says
You can melt it together in one go. Just make sure you take your time and melt it REALLY slowly so the chocolate does not seize.
anne-marie says
This chocolate cake looks amazing! Very easy to make and was ready in 20 minutes (I used a 23cm tin) waiting impatiently for it to cool. How long does it keep fresh for or is it better to freeze
Katrin says
So glad it was a success! I’m happy to keep cakes out on the counter for a night (in a closed container) and 4-5 days in the fridge. The danger is though that you’ll keep on eating it! If I have lots of leftovers of a rich cake like that, I cut it into small pieces and freeze it. We have done that with this cake before and I can attest that it even tastes good frozen 😉
Patricia says
How should I change the recipe if I don’t want to use any sweetener?
Katrin says
Maybe add a little more almond flour to make up for the missing bulk.
April says
I just made this cake and wow is it chocolate and rich! I’d say it’s like a truffle cake! I cover it in a thin layer of chocolate ganache and pressed in shredded bits of Lily’s chocolate to cover the whole thing and it looks so decadent!
The macros you listed didn’t match up with what I calculated though (without the icing). The size Alize of cake you portray in the videos and pictures would be way more than 2.5 carbs. Are you calculating smaller piece as serving size? Maybe your chocolate bar has less carbs than ghirardelli? (I do not count fiber or sugar alcohols in my count)
Katrin says
Hi April, I think it’s the Ghirardelli chocolate. I always use Montezuma 100% chocolate, which is readily available here in the UK, and used the nutrition from that. I’ve had someone else tell me the nutrition values for Ghirardelli are slightly different.
Adrienne Davies says
I made this cake recently and loved it! Am wondering if anyone has tried this recipe as cupcakes instead?
Katrin says
It should work just as well, why not? You might need to reduce the baking time a bit. I’d check it at 15 minutes and see if the tops are firm. Around 20 minutes should probably be long enough.
Jess says
I did mini cupcakes with the left over batter (made it into a ball cake :P) and they were AMAZING!!!
Shanna Bickford says
Mine is darker and took much more time to cook. It was gooey for a good 40 min. in middle. A bit expensive for high end ingredients, fat content will make this serving bit size. I love the recipe, will try again. Practice is a good thing, and I am type 1 diabetic.
Christine says
Tried it, love it. So does my six year old, and she is ver particular. Wanted to add a photgraph…
Katrin says
When the kids love it, you KNOW it’s a winner! Unfortunately you can’t add a pic in the comments here, but I’d LOVE to see it – you can post it on my facebook page!
Adam says
Hi Katrin – I made this cake tonight and although it tasted great (a little sweet still for me) it took 1.5 hours before it was set properly and not liquid in the centre. It had a very thin crisp top but quite a thick, hard layer around the edges, however it did not stick to the pan. The only sweetener I could find was a blend of granulated erythritol and stevia, which I powdered as per your tip – could this have caused it to take longer to bake?
Katrin says
Hi Adam, maybe you’re baking at high altitude? Then the recommendation is to increase baking time by 10 Celsius / 25 Fahrenheit. I don’t think the issue is the sweetener. Also, some ovens just aren’t the temperature they say they are, if your oven has seen a few years, it might be not 100% accurate. Could either be the case?
Sian says
I’m not sure what happened to mine but I used coconut flour in stead, its only now reading through comments I only needed half the amount. Mine came out with a lot of butter at the top looking watery, it is a little oily…I’m pretty sure I’ve done something wrong but OMY THE CAKE STILL TASTE AMAZING.
Katrin says
Hi Sian, if you use grass fed butter and a good quality chocolate you don’t get a separation like that. I’m glad your cake tasted good though!!
Dani says
I was adding up the ingredients into my meal planning app and I calculated that using 1 1/2 cups of the powdered sweetener would add up to about 216 carbs and divided by 12 comes out to 18 carbs per slice just for the sweetener? I really want to try this but maybe I’m calculating something wrong?
Katrin says
Hi Dani, erythritol does not get absorbed by our bodies, it passes right through. Therefore, I do not count the carbs in erythritol.
Dani says
Oh wow I did not know that thank you. That’s really helpful info!
Kylie Roskell says
Ohhhh no, mine didn’t rise and it’s very oily. I used 300g of butter as per recipe
I’ve put it back in the oven. It’s been about 50 mins of cooking time.
I can’t see where I went wrong? Oven is usually spot on xx
Katrin says
I think you should take it out, so the edges don’t burn. I’m not sure what happened – I once had someone with a similar problem and we established that it must have been the chocolate they used that separated as opposed to the butter.
Alice Avistew Teague says
I chose this recipe because it’s the only keto chocolate cake recipe I found using chocolate rather than cocoa powder. I think I must have done something wrong, though, because when I tasted the batter before I put it in the over, it was the most bitter thing I had ever tasted. I ended up doubling the sugar and flour, and adding some almond milk and some whipping cream, so my version has more carbs.
I think I used the wrong chocolate. I had a Ghirardelli 100% cocoa, no sugar chocolate bar (4 oz). Maybe I needed a smaller percentage of cocoa?
But the recipe was so simple, and I know the mistake was on my end, so I’m giving you 4 stars 🙂
Katrin says
Hi Alice, I haven’t personally tried the Ghirardelli brand – I use a brand called Montezuma here. It’s also unsweetened 100% cocoa, so I assumed it tastes the same. I don’t find it bitter, but it is very strong and you would not want to eat more than one square at a time. That’s why the recipe uses more sweetener than I normally use in my desserts. In fact, I’ve had people commenting that they find the recipe too sweet! The bottom line is that we all have a different perception of what’s just right. Maybe you could use half Ghirardelli and half Lily’s dark chocolate chips next time, which would make it sweeter. Or you try a different brand of unsweetened chocolate, if the Ghirardelli does not agree with you. You could also search for a 90% chocolate – here in the UK we have a brand called Lindt which is excellent and it tastes great on its own. With the 90% chocolate the sugar/carb content is minimal (7g per bar of 100g or 0.7g net carbs per square). I hope this helps 🙂
Kaylene B. says
You can get the Montezuma’s Chocolate Bars in America on Amazon.com, too.
If your chocolate seizes, make sure NO water is getting in your chocolate either. For instance, if you wash your bowl right before using to make sure it’s as clean as possible, it must be completely dry and free of water before you melt chocolate in it, otherwise, your chocolate will seize. Fat and water don’t mix!
MArianne says
My Chocolate seized when I mixed it with the eggs. INot sure why this happened. Ihave just put it in the oven but I am not sure this is going to work as the butter wa already separating when I put the cake in the oven.
Katrin says
What a shame! I think your chocolate must have been too hot, and possibly your eggs were straight from the fridge? I’ve had chocolate seize on me when I heated it up in the microwave for too long. The safest way to heat chocolate is to do it in a double boiler or water bath. It takes a while, but you won’t have that problem. I do hope you’ll try the recipe again, it really is so delicious