Flourless, butter free and naturally fruity sweetened… this is what this incredibly tasty and extra moist chocolate cake is all about.
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I got invited to try this amazing recipe by a friend of mine a week ago on a train trip to Göteborg (West coast of Sweden). For me who strongly believes that true baking has to be done with so-called “true” ingredients like butter, sugar and flour, I would never have given this cake a chance.
More than that: I would never have guessed that it was flourless (it still seems almost impossible according to its perfect texture) and naturally gluten free. Entirely sweetened by fruits – with dates actually – you would not think there is no refined sugar in the recipe. The cake is perfectly sweetened and does not taste fruits at all. Then coconut oil is used instead of butter – a much healthier alternative and guaranteed with no cholesterol!
But I am telling you, what surprises me the most in this chocolate cake is its amazing extra moist texture that makes you think that there is no way it is a healthy recipe! It took me a while to understand it could be so moist without any flour!
For fun, I did the test separately with several of my friends this weekend and asked them to guess which ingredients this cake was made of. Each single time, they answered flour in the first place, then sugar and butter. I think it says a lot about this non-looking-but-still-very-healthy chocolate cake!
To finish with, you will be amazed by the simplicity of the recipe. With only 6 main ingredients + baking soda, all you have to do is basically to mix everything in a food processor and then pour the batter into a form. Easy, right?
Whether you care about healthy food a lot (and try to avoid refined sugar or butter as much as possible) or not, I really encourage you to taste this recipe at least once. A serving size is indeed the perfect healthy snack to enjoy in the afternoon and will satisfy your chocolate cravings!
And for other healthy recipes with chocolate, you can also try one of these :
- 5 ingredients snickers bliss balls
- Healthy Double Chocolate Avocado Cookies (sugar and dairy free + a vegan version)
- Healthy Oat-Peanut Butter Cups (Vegan)
- Healthy Vegan Chocolate Chip Blondies (refined sugar free)
- Easy Chocolate Chip Granola Bars (vegan, gluten free, no added sugar)
- Sugar-Free Almond Butter Banana Muffins
Healthy Extra Moist Chocolate Cake
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 25 mins
- Total Time: 35 mins
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: Healthy
Flourless, butter free and naturally fruity sweetened… this is what this incredibly tasty and extra moist chocolate cake is all about.
Email me this recipe
We’ll send it straight to your inbox, along with weekly food inspiration!
Ingredients
- 7.5 oz (200g) unsweetened baking chocolate or at 70% cocoa
- 1 Tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/4 cup (200g) pitted dates, or about 10 dates
- 3 large eggs
- 1/4 cup (60ml) coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
- In a food processor, pulse chocolate, cocoa powder and baking soda until texture of coarse sand.
- Pulse pitted dates, then eggs, coconut oil and vanilla.
- Transfer the batter into a 8×8 inch (20 x 20 cm) baking dish.
- Bake for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Allow to cool before serving.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 8 servings
- Calories: 166 kcal
- Sugar: 3.7g
- Sodium: 103mg
- Fat: 15g
- Saturated Fat: 10.7g
- Unsaturated Fat: 9.3g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 17.1g
- Fiber: 4.7g
- Protein: 6.5g
- Cholesterol: 61mg
Did you make this recipe?
Lastly, if you make this Healthy Extra Moist Chocolate Cake, be sure to leave a comment and give this recipe a rating, letting me know how you liked it. And of course, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Thank you and enjoy!
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Erin
These are amazing. Better than actual traditional brownies. So moist. My 4 year old loved them and my husband who never eats sweets even thought they were great. So easy to make too.
Delphine Fortin
Hi Erin, and thank you so much for your awesome feedback. It makes me truly happy that you all loved the recipe, including your 4 year old and your husband! Del
Jodi Kellogg
Pleasantly surprised! Tastes good. This is the first flourless no sugar added recipe I have ever tried. Definitely will make again. Thank you!
Delphine Fortin
I’m happy you liked it. Thanks for your feedback, Jodi, I really appreciate!
Natalia
Hi! If I don’t have a food processor, could I use a blender? Thanks!
Delphine Fortin
Hi Natalia! I do not recommend using a blender for this recipe – it won’t be strong enough to pulse the chocolate bars and the dates.
Emma B
LOVED these! Like the other reviewers, my wife was shocked that there was no flour in this. The only problem I had while making these was, when I was processing the chocolate bars in my food processor, I guess I processed too long and the chocolate turned into a ball that was rolling around the food processor. This didn’t affect the final quality/taste of the brownies, though!
Delphine Fortin
Hi Emma! So glad you loved this recipe too. I still remember the very first time I tried it, over 10 years ago. Like you I was amazed by the result: it really tastes like traditional chocolate cake. And it never disappointed me since, not even once, in the many times I’ve baked it. Thanks for your feedback! Del
Ann
Can you add peanut butter to it maybe?
Delphine Fortin
Hi Ann! That could be an idea, but I haven’t tried it yet and cannot report on how it would work in the recipe.
July
Il sort à peine du four ! Je n ai pas pu attendre que cela refroidisse pour le goûter! Un vrai délice !!
Je souhaite le préparer pour une amie qui n aime pas les dattes. Quelle quantité de sucre dois je mettre à la place?? 100 g ??
Puis remplacer l huile de coco par du beurre ou huile de tournesol ? Et en quelle quantité ??
Merci encore pour cette merveille de brownie!
Delphine Fortin
Bonjour! Super contente que ce gâteau vous ait plu – c’est un grand classique dans ma maison ! Je n’ai jamais testé sans les dattes, donc il est difficile de répondre à cette question. En revanche, aucun souci pour remplacer l’huile. Bien à vous. Del
Kay
Made them, surprisingly delicious and will definitely be making them again.
My only complaint is that the calories/macros don’t align when I added them to my app. I made them into 11 muffins and only addition was a bit of instant espresso powder and salt, yet my calories went up to 231kcal for 55gr. Considering you have 8 portions, I wonder why mine is so much higher.
Delphine Fortin
Hi Kay! It probably comes from the dates. Measuring the calorie counts is like a guessing game, because it all depends on if you use small or larger dates and how many of them you use. The calculator gives an average estimation but it’s not 100% accurate. I hope this helps. Del
Eliza
Hey! I intend on making this but can only find 100% cacao chocolate. Is that fine or would I need to change something in the recipe then?
Delphine Fortin
Hi Eliza! Yes it’s fine. I personally like to use 70% chocolate so it’s a little sweetened, but if you only have unsweetened 100% chocolate, you can add a few more dates to ensure it is sweetened to your liking. I hope this helps! Del
Michele
I was surprised at how good it is for being naturally sweetened. I added a teaspoon of espresso powder to reinforce the chocolate flavor. It turned out excellent.
I didn’t wait for it to cool to test it and was surprised that it was very coconut forward when it was still warm… but once it cooled, the coconut flavor disappeared to revel the chocolate taste. I will definitely make it again – and not only for my diabetic guests!
Look out on this recipe: I double it and noticed that the “ml” weight did not change when I was doubling the recipe even though the “cup” amount was changing. Since I always use the weight measurement, it could have be an issue.
Alyssa
Absolutely wonderful recipe, tastes like a slightly less sweet brownie. It is so fluffy and delicious! I am convinced this recipe is witchcraft as it has the texture of cake and similar taste of a brownie. First time I am leaving a review of a recipe just because of how much I have loved it!
Del’s Cooking Twist
thank you so much for your review, and yes: totally witchcraft ;).
stephanie attar
Résultat vraiment incroyable! Tout le monde a adoré et il est effectivement difficile de croire qu’il ne contient ni beurre, ni farine, ni sucre ajouté! Bravo, Del, et merci <3
Beth
This is a miracle cake – it’s everything you want in a delicious chocolate cake with unbelievably healthy ingredients. I used 72% chocolate chips for the chocolate, fresh dates and soaked them in very hot water for a few minutes, drained and added them to the processor. I added some whole chocolate chips to the batter. I made a vegan ganache frosting with semi-sweet chocolate chips and coconut cream. Amazingly delicious cake!
Hannah Larson
I had a SERIOUS pregnancy craving for chocolate cake but didn’t want all the sugar… when I say this hit the spot I MEAN it!! More of a brownie texture but absolutely delicious and so satisfying!
Lynda
Lovely cakey-brownie. Comes clean out of the lightly sprayed pan. Light coconut flavor. A great recipe. Low glycemic and gluten free!
Kathleen Sellers
Thank you so much for this recipe! My husband cannot have “added sugar” only the sugar naturally occurring in fruit. This cake was incredibly moist. I did use butter not coconut oil, as dairy is not a problem for him. It is the first chocolate cake that tasted like real chocolate cake. I have tried and failed at many iterations. I served it with whipped cream flavored with espresso baking powder, cocoa and cinnamon. Perfectly delicious!
Del’s cooking Twist
So happy to hear this! thank you for the review
RC
AMAZING recipe! I love it! Is it possible to freeze the cake?
Many thanks.
Del’s Cooking Twist
I am so glad you liked my recipe, thank you for your enthusiastic message! Yes, you can freeze it.
RC
Hiya Del, I was just wondering if this recipe can be made vegan at all?
Many thanks!
Del’s Cooking Twist
I have not tried it so I can’t guarantee the result, but maybe you can try a flaxseed egg to make it Vegan.
RC
Hiya. Is it possible to make this cake vegan at all?
Thank you
Del’s Cooking Twist
It should be possible with a flaxseed egg but I have not tried it. You might need to make some adjustments though. Please let me know how it has worked for you if you choose to try it 🙂
KT
This. Was. Amazing!! I am limiting both sugar and dairy. This was a fantastic treat option for me. Even my teen sons thought this was wonderful for a healthy treat. I appreciate that you included weight measurements for the dates. I used a bag of Costco dates and they must have been a smaller variety. There was no way 10 of those was enough, but by measuring the grams I was able to get the right quantity for the kind of dates I had. Recipe yield says serves 6- nutrition facts say 8, but I found it made many more servings, as a tiny square was enough to enjoy a treat for me. It really does come out thick and moist like the photo! I opted not to do the chocolate dusting like the photo and we were all plenty happy. I stored leftovers in an air tight glass container in the refrigerator and they lasted several days. So thankful for a healthy indulgence option!
Del’s Cooking Twist
Thank you so much for sharing your experience, it makes me so happy that you liked my recipe!
Tanya von Hunnius
Hello!
I am thinking of making this cake for a friend of mine who has taken sugar out of her diet. I wanted to ask whether the dates are dried or fresh. If the former, do you soak them in warm water or the coconut oil from this recipe?
Del’s Cooking Twist
Hello, I use dried dates and you actually do not need to soak them. Try to use rather soft ones though.