This Flourless Chocolate Cake is rich, moist, and decadent! It's a five-ingredient flourless chocolate cake made healthier!
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There are lots of recipes for flourless chocolate cake on the internet. It's a great gluten-free dessert option often offered on restaurant menus. As I like to do, I've taken it a step further and made it healthier by using raw cane sugar or coconut sugar and including an easily digestible coconut oil option.
Flourless Chocolate Cake - Five Ingredients!
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Chocolate
This recipe is free from dairy if you use dairy-free chocolate. Although I had been using semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate to bake this cake, I tried it with unsweetened dark chocolate and liked it just as well. Chop solid chocolate for better melting.
Cocoa
Choose a good, pure cocoa powder for this recipe. For even better health benefits, use raw cacao powder.
Sugar
You can choose whether you want to sweeten it with coconut palm sugar or organic raw sugar.
Olive Oil
Olive oil is easy to work with and makes a nice, moist cake. If you prefer to use coconut oil, note the tips in the variation below.
Eggs
For best results, bring your eggs to room temperature before you begin. Cold egg yolks might cause your chocolate and oil to solidify too quickly.
How to Make Dairy-Free Flourless Chocolate Cake
Melt chocolate and oil together over low heat.
Beat egg whites until they form stiff peaks.
Combine prepared ingredients and pour into a springform pan.
Serve cooled cake, optionally dusted in coconut milk powder.
Coconut Oil Variation
If you opt to use coconut oil in your flourless chocolate cake, you might prefer refined coconut oil if you don't want to taste it.
Melting Tips
As always, melt your chocolate over a low heat. In this recipe, it melts nicely with your coconut oil. You can do this by setting the dish containing your chocolate and coconut oil in a pan of simmering water.
If you have a warm setting on your stove top, you can set a Pyrex measuring cup right on it.
Another option would be to briefly set the Pyrex cup into the preheating oven with only the coconut oil in it. When the coconut oil has melted, you can stir in your broken or chopped chocolate pieces. The heat from the oil and the Pyrex will probably melt your chocolate with a couple of stirs.
Whichever method you choose to melt your chocolate and coconut oil mixture, you need to be aware of its temperature before incorporating it with the egg yolks. You don't want it to be so hot that it cooks the yolks. However, you don't want it to be so cool that the chocolate and coconut oil are beginning to solidify, either.
Dairy Free Desserts
Here are some more gluten-free, dairy-free desserts you might like!
Recipe
Flourless Chocolate Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
- 8 ounces semisweet or unsweetened chocolate dairy free, if necessary
- ½ cup olive oil OR coconut oil
- 6 eggs separated, at room temperature
- ½ cup cocoa powder
- ½ cup raw cane sugar OR coconut sugar
- 1 teaspoon coconut milk powder optional, for garnish
Instructions
- Line the bottom and sides of an 8-inch springform pan with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350℉ (177℃).
- Melt ½ cup of oil and semisweet chocolate pieces over low heat. Remove from heat when they are just soft enough to be whisked smooth. Allow to cool a little.
- Meanwhile, separate eggs by putting whites into a large mixing bowl and the yolks into a medium one. *see note below
- Whisk egg yolks together with sugar until smooth. Stir in the cocoa powder. Slowly add the melted oil and chocolate mixture. Beat until well combined.
- Beat the egg whites until stiff.
- Stir ¼ of beaten egg whites into the chocolate-egg yolk mixture. Then gently fold in remaining whites, being careful not to mix more than necessary. Carefully pour into prepared pan.
- Bake for 40 minutes or until the center is set. The internal temperature should be 200 ℉ (93℃). Allow to cool in the pan before removing the sides of the pan and serving.
- Sprinkle cooled cake with a little coconut milk powder, if desired.
Karen says
I made this for a sick friend which was her Xmas cake, this was a first ever for me to make this type of cake and every one loved it! thank you so much this cake made my friends Christmas, I made a couple of fondant figures to put on top and sifted icing sugar just to dress it up and it looked very cute! Love this recipe highly recommend to all! Wish I could post a pic of it!
Cathy says
I am so happy to hear that this brightened your friend's day! I'm sure you made it look very good! Thank you for telling me about it.
Tatiana says
Oh I love your tips on melting the coconut oil, just so funny that I almost never seen it solid in my house . California Valley heat:)
Cathy says
Ha, ha! Yeah, we Canadians get pretty excited if our coconut oil melts on its own!
Easy Prep Ahead Meal Plans @ 20 Dishes says
This looks divine!
Cathy says
Thanks so much!
Mira says
This is absolutely perfect! I'm doing dairy-free right now so this treat will definitely help me with the transition!
Cathy says
I'm very happy to help!
Leslie-Anne says
I adore flourless chocolate cake! It's so satisfying, I'm not sure why cake needs flour at all! This looks fantastic!
Cathy says
Thank you, Leslie-Anne! I agree about cake not needing flour.
Carrie | Clean Eating Kitchen says
Oh my gosh, give me a fork!! This looks so decadent and full of flavour!
Cathy says
You're so kind! Thank you!
Emily @ Recipes to Nourish says
Oh yum! I love all things chocolate and this flourless chocolate cake sounds perfect! So perfect anytime, but also special for February since it's national chocolate lovers month. 🙂
Cathy says
Chocolate Lovers' Month is a great month!
Megan Stevens says
Aw, I love that you start with unsweetened chocolate. It's so empowering to not start with an ingredient that already contains sugar. YAY! beautiful!
Cathy says
To be honest, after testing the recipe with semisweet chocolate, unsweetened was all I had left in the house to make the cake for the photos. I was so pleased with the taste that I went with it!
Christina Shoemaker says
YESSSSSSSS!! I'd eat the whole cake. Not joking. This looks and sounds amazing.
Cathy says
I know! I had to freeze some pieces, or I would have eaten it all, too!
Joni Gomes says
That looks so decadent! Love the video too!
Cathy says
Thank you, Joni! Video is a lot of work, so it's always encouraging to hear someone watched it!
Tessa Simpson says
so simple, I love how these flourless cakes turn out...so rich and decadent!!
Cathy says
It is that!
Jean says
LOVE flourless cakes and this one just looks so pretty and perfect!
Cathy says
Thank you, Jean!
Meredith says
Ooh this flourless chocolate cake looks so decadent! What a perfect dessert for Valentine's day and Passover! Definitely pinning to try soon.
Cathy says
Thanks, Meredith! I hope you like it!
Yvonne says
Looks beautiful and I like that it is dairy free too.
Cathy says
Thank you, Yvonne!
Renee says
Wow! What a simple but elegant treat! Thank you for sharing - I'll be trying this for sure!
Cathy says
I hope you enjoy it!
Raia Todd says
It sounds and looks delicious! Nice that it can easily be made dairy-free, too.
Cathy says
Thanks, Raia! Flourless chocolate cake is a gluten free given, so I think it's nice to take it a step further.
linda spiker says
The cake is stunning, and those cherries...drool.
Cathy says
Thank you, Linda!
Lindsey Dietz says
Wow! I never thought of using coconut milk powder instead of powdered sugar! What a great idea!
Cathy says
Thanks, Lindsey! I don't keep powdered sugar in the house, so I had to be resourceful!
Lillian Tse says
I love flourless cakes! Even better when this one incorporates chocolate!!
Cathy says
It's rather amazing that cake can be made without flour, isn't it!
Elaine says
Chocolate! We won't miss that flour one bit, will we! Looks awesome, Cathy!
Cathy says
Thanks, Elaine! That's right; the chocolate is rich and lovely!
Nicole | What She Ate says
I love flourless cakes and I happen to have all these ingredients on hand. Might have to make some for dessert tonight. Another lovely recipe, Cathy!
Cathy says
Perfect! Thank you, Nicole!
Nicoletta @sugarlovespices says
I like flourless cakes a lot! And here you're using some of my favorites: coconut oil, coconut sugar, semisweet chocolate... so delectable! Such pretty videos you make, we still have to take the leap... 🙂
Cathy says
Wonderful! Videos certainly are a lot of work. I hope they're helpful!