A very easy recipe for a tender and fluffy keto chocolate chip cake, made with almond flour and sweetened with stevia.
OMG, this cake is so good. Look at the video - do you see me slicing into the cake, do you see all those warm melty chocolate chips? Yes, it's as good as it looks!
I also love how good leftovers taste. It's one of those cakes that actually improve when it's being stored in the fridge! I just make sure to remove it from the fridge well before I plan on eating it. Or I very briefly warm it in the microwave.
How I came up with this cake
It was actually my daughter who came up with the idea for this cake.
I made my amazing (if I do have to say so myself) almond flour cake. I really like baking with almond flour, by the way. It's such a delicious and makes an excellent alternative to all-purpose flour.
My daughter ate her slice slowly, savoring every bite. Then she said thoughtfully, "What if next time you added chocolate chips? Wouldn't that be awesome?"
Why yes, awesome indeed.
So I basically made the same cake. Except that I added some chocolate chips. I also changed the sweetener to stevia, my favorite sweetener these days.
I decided to add some butter to the mixture, figuring that removing the honey included in the original recipe would take away much needed moisture from the cake.
Not surprisingly, this keto chocolate chip cake was a huge hit. And why wouldn't it be? The cake's crumb is delicious. The addition of warm, melty chocolate chips makes it phenomenal.
The ingredients used in this recipe
These are the ingredients you'll need to make this tasty cake (exact amounts are listed in the recipe card below):
Eggs: I use large eggs in most of my recipes.
Whole milk: Or heavy cream if you prefer.
Unsalted butter: I'm partial to creamy European butter... but any butter is awesome.
Kosher salt: If using fine salt, you should use less of it.
Vanilla extract: Try to use pure vanilla extract, not the artificial stuff.
Sweetener: I like to use stevia. You can probably replace it with a granulated sweetener if you wish.
Almond flour: I use blanched finely ground flour in this recipe. I don't recommend using a coarse almond meal. There's a difference!
Baking soda: If you'd like to try using gluten-free baking powder (though I haven't tested it in this recipe), remember that ¼ teaspoon of baking soda is equivalent to 1 teaspoon of baking powder.
Dark chocolate chips: The darker you can go, the better. As long as you still enjoy them, of course!
How to make keto chocolate chip cake
It's so easy! Scroll down to the recipe card for the detailed instructions. Here are the basic steps:
Whisk together the ingredients (except for the chocolate chips) in one bowl. I just use a hand whisk and mix it by hand. So easy.
Transfer the mixture to a well-greased pie plate. I use a rubber spatula to scrape it all off.
Scatter the chocolate chips on top. Then gently press on them with your hand.
Bake until puffed and set and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. In my oven, this takes about 30 minutes at 325°F.
Can I use another sweetener instead of stevia?
If you're not a fan of stevia, you can try using your favorite granulated (but not liquid) sweetener in this chocolate chip cake. The amount of stevia I used is equivalent to ½ cup granulated sweetener.
What type of chocolate chips do you use?
I use bittersweet chocolate chips in this recipe because I'm not a fan of the Lily brand stevia-sweetened chocolate chips.
Regardless of the brand of chocolate chips you use, please make sure that the chocolate chips are made with cacao that was not treated with alkali (it should state so on the ingredients list if it was). The baking soda in this recipe needs the acidity in the cocoa to get activated.
How do you keep the chocolate chips from sinking?
When making this keto chocolate chip cake, I scatter the chocolate chips on top of the batter rather than mix them into it. The reason? When mixed into the batter, they sometimes sink.
If you really want your chocolate chips mixed in, try mixing in just half of them, and scattering the rest on top. This also makes for a very pretty cake!
What about leftovers?
Once completely cool, keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Gently reheat them in the microwave, on 50% power, just to take the chill off. About 10 seconds per slice should do it. You can also slice the cake and freeze the slices in freezer bags.
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Keto Chocolate Chip Cake
INGREDIENTS
- 0.5 tablespoon soft unsalted butter for pan
- 4 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons whole milk (or cream if you prefer)
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- ½ teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ teaspoons stevia glycerite
- 1½ cups blanched finely ground almond flour (6 oz)
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup dark chocolate chips (3oz; not treated with alkali)*
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Generously grease a 9-inch glass pie plate with butter.
- In a large bowl, lightly whisk the eggs. One by one, gradually whisk in the milk, melted butter, salt, vanilla and stevia. Finally, whisk in the almond flour and the baking soda.
- Use a spatula to transfer the batter into the prepared pie plate. Scatter the chocolate chips evenly on top and press on them gently with your hand - don’t mix them into the batter or they’ll sink into the bottom while baking.
- Bake the cake until puffy, browned and set, and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 25-30 minutes.
- Cool the cake in the pan on a cooling rack to room temperature, about 30 minutes, then slice and serve.
- Keep leftovers covered in the fridge, warming them very briefly in the microwave (10 seconds per slice) before serving.
WATCH THE VIDEO:
NOTES
NUTRITION PER SERVING
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Vered DeLeeuw, LL.M., CNC, has been following a low-carb real-food diet and blogging about it since 2011. She's a Certified Nutrition Coach (NASM-CNC), has taken courses at the Harvard School of Public Health, and has earned a Nutrition and Healthy Living Certificate from Cornell University. Her work has appeared in several major media outlets, including Healthline, HuffPost, Today, Women's Health, Shape, and Country Living. 