This super chocolatey cake tastes like a decadent fudge brownie and is the perfect size for a small family gathering. It tastes especially good the next day, after the flavors have had a chance to meld. In fact, it’s so rich, it’s best served with a simple dollop of Homemade Whipped Cream or scoop of vanilla ice cream.
However, for those frosting-lovers out there, simply forego sprinkling the top of the batter with additional chocolate chips, and instead top the cooled cake with my delicious Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting.
Or, if you’re into some serious “death by chocolate,” then you’ll definitely want to top this decadent chocolate cake with my Ultra-Chocolatey Ganache Icing.
The perfect party cake! Simply serve on a fun platter with a dollop of homemade whipped cream or scoop of vanilla ice cream! YUM!
Ingredients
- 1 cup organic coconut flour (spooned and leveled)
- 1 tbsp aluminum-free baking powder
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter
- 1/3 cup coconut oil
- 1/2 cup unsweetened fair trade cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup fair trade chocolate chips (65% cacao or higher)
- 3 large eggs
- 3/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 1 cup warm filtered water
- 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
- Optional: Additional dark chocolate chips to sprinkle on top
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9x9-inch baking dish with coconut oil. In a small bowl, combine the coconut flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside. Cut the butter into chunks. Then, place the butter chunks and coconut oil into a small saucepan and melt over medium heat. Add the cocoa powder and chocolate chips; stir until the chocolate chips begin to soften. Remove from heat and continue stirring until chocolate is melted and the mixture is well combined. Set aside to cool.
- In a large bowl, add the eggs, maple syrup, warm water and vanilla. Whisk together until well combined. Then, whisk in the cooled chocolate-butter mixture, using a rubber spatula to get all of the mixture out of the saucepan.
- Next, slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet while whisking vigorously. Continue whisking until no lumps remain. Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish and sprinkle top with an additional 1/4 cup of chocolate chips, if desired.
- Bake for approximately 30-35 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely in the baking dish.
- When ready to serve, slice and top with a dollop of homemade whipped cream or a scoop of homemade vanilla ice cream. (Recipe inspired by Always Order Dessert.)
Notes
For information about why I only purchase fair trade chocolate and other products, click here.
Hello again from your brownie-obsessed, honey user friend…
I just made this cake because I ran out of almond flour (used honey instead of maple syrup), but served it like a hot pudding! It has been so cold here the past few days (we’re in Melbourne, Australia), so I told the girls that we would have a warm afternoon snack. I made some vanilla icecream this morning, so we just finished our bowlfuls of steaming cake, icecream and cinnamon sprinkled in top. Very yummy! Thank you! 
LOL! My older chocolate-obsessed son would love your version! So glad you’re enjoying these healthier chocolate options! Blessings to you in Australia!
I just made this for the first time tonight, and the 1 tbsp measurement of vanilla struck me as a high amount for the size of the cake. I have lots of baking experience, and I’m used to seeing 1 teaspoon in this amount of batter. I’m just wondering if it’s a typo or if their really should be 1 tablespoon of vanilla.
Hi, Jaime! Thanks for your question. Yes, the correct measurement is 1 tablespoon. I know this may seem like a lot of vanilla extract, but it really works to enhance the flavor of the cake. I’m sure it will still taste great with a tsp, so feel free to use less vanilla, if you prefer. Blessings, Kelly
Thanks, Kelly! I really am excited to see your blog finally up and running! The cake was yummy and was devoured by my 3 boys, husband, and myself.
Woo Hoo! So glad to be online too and happy to hear you’re family enjoyed the cake. Blessings, Kelly
This looks so yummy! Gonna try it for Father’s Day as Jeff is a HUGE chocolate lover! Joshua has already requested it for his bday cake….which is in Jan. LOL!
This is really moist and yummy! Hope Jeff enjoys it! Blessings, Kelly
Hi Kelly, I’m really enjoying your website and recipes! One question tho, any suggestions for a honey/agave/maple syrup substitute with no glycemic load? I like to sweeten with erythritol and stevia but am having trouble with the recipes that call for 1/4c + of these sweeteners knowing that the honey or maple syrup whatever is also used for moisture. Any suggestions would be appreciated!
Hi, Anne. So glad you’re enjoying my site and recipes. I appreciate you taking time to leave a note. And great question! Just to clarify, I’m not a fan of agave, since it’s highly processed. A much better low glycemic alternative to agave is coconut sugar. I don’t bake with it much, but it is a good all-natural choice. In fact, there’s a great article about this that you may find helpful below. As far as substituting with coconut sugar in recipes calling for a “moist” natural sweetener, you are correct that for some recipes this will cause an issue with the moisture balance, particularly when it comes to coconut flour based recipes (since coconut flour is like a sponge and requires much more liquid and eggs than other flours). So it may take a little experimenting to convert some recipes, but I think for this particular one, you could substitute the maple syrup with 1/2 cup coconut sugar and then increase the water to 1 1/4 cups instead of just 1 cup. Another option that might work is to use a mixture of stevia and coconut sugar. But again, it may take a little experimenting to strike the right balance. Blessings, Kelly
(Coconut sugar article: http://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/a-healthy-alternative-to-agave/)
Wanted to share that I was able to successfully make a 9in layer cake with this recipe for my little girls 4th b-day. She was very specify about wanting chocolate and pink with a cherry on top. And I love the richness of this brownie cake recipe so I tried it. Doubling the recipe made my 2 9 in rounds and 12 cupcakes. I used a simple honey/creamcheese icing and added purred cherries to make it pink with no nasty food coloring. I also purred some extra cherries and added some pastured gelatin, warmed on stove to dissolve, refrigerated till cool, and then put in a ziplock style bag with a tiny corner cut off to write her name and draw some pretty flowers. I was so please that my attempt at making pink and drawing pretty things for her all naturally turned out well. Plus everyone asked for the cake recipe! The sad part is there wasn’t any leftover!
What a brilliant idea, Hope! I love how you created such a special birthday cake for your little girl! Such a great idea to use ripe cherries as food coloring and I bet the taste combo was delicious – chocolate and cherries – YUM! Great job on being so creative and serving up a delicious whole food cake! Appreciate you sharing your success and great ideas! Lots of blessings, Kelly
P.S. Happy birthday to your precious daughter!
P.S.S. Would love to see a pix of the cake. Please email it to me, if you’d like to share: the nourishing home at gmail dot com
I made this cake for my sons birthday, along with your vanilla cream cheese frosting and it was great! Everybody said it tasted like oreos, and I agree! Love it!
Thanks so much for your kind note, Anna! So glad you all enjoyed it! Lots of blessings, Kelly
Hi! I love your recipes and especially your blog. I check your site every day and have made many of your almond flour recipes. My mom has candida and while healing, she obviously cannot have gluten, so your recipes (esp the pumpkin spice cake and bars over the holidays!) have been such a treat for her. They make a big difference in the quality of her life and I’ve enjoyed watching her learn that you can have sweets…you just have to make them!
Anyway, my question about this recipe is whether the crumb is on the dry side or moist? I have had difficulty with coconut flour (and I use Tropical Traditions) because they tend to be dry, but almond flour always comes out like a real dessert. I just wanted to check with you before I try it tomorrow. My 8 yr old loves brownies, but always turns her nose up whenever she tries my coconut flour recipes.
Thank you!
Mindy
Hi, Mindy! Thanks so much for your kind words. It brings me so much joy to know that the Lord can use this site to help and bless precious families like yours! What an honor! So thank you for taking the time to always share words of encouragement – you are a blessing! To answer your question, I totally know what you mean about coconut flour, it does tend to be drier in texture than almond flour recipes. This recipe is much moister than most coconut flour recipes. However, if your daughter takes issue with coconut flour (as does my younger son), she may still (most likely) not find it as enjoyable as an almond flour based one. So … if you really want a “death by chocolate” experience, you could use this ganache to top my awesomely moist blanched almond flour brownies (link provided in the post above). Or use the ganache to top another favorite cake recipe. Lots of blessings and appreciation, Kelly
Thank you so much! Yes, I do think you have added so much to her enjoyment of food, which makes her life better as a result. Funny what a good meal that you’ve made yourself can do! We have an App named My Recipe Book for the iPad and download your recipes regularly. I think it’s the bulk of them! LOL
Made the almond flour brownies with the granache tonight. BIG HIT! Thank you so much!
You are so welcome! I appreciate your kind words and the time you take to share them! Lots of blessings, Kelly
Hi there. I want to try to make your brownies. I had just one question- I wonder if you substitue the butter w/ more oil? Or could you use ghee instead of butter? Thanks.
You can absolutely substitute with coconut oil or ghee. I bet a combo of coconut oil and ghee would be scrumptious! Lots of blessings, Kelly
Hi Kelly..
Just discovered your site & God bless you for all the work you are doing. My question is can you give me some suggestions for healthy flour alternatives in baking for cakes,muffins, & pancakes especially cakes. Thanks a lot.. 
Sherry here !
Hi, Sherry! Welcome! So glad you discovered The Nourishing Home! For gluten-based baking, I recommend Spelt and Kamut (and Einkorn is another good option) over whole wheat. For gluten-free baking, I recommend blanched almond flour and coconut flour over starch-based GF flour blends. I am working on a post that covers this as it’s a very frequent question. The reasoning in a nutshell behind my using Spelt and Kamut exclusively for gluten-based baking is because they are both pure grains, not hybrid like wheat (which is why they’re referred to as “ancient grains”) – they contain more protein and nutrients, and tend to cause less wheat-related sensitivity issues. As far as the GF flours, my preference for blanched almond flour and coconut flour is also due to their superior nutritional value compared to starch-based GF flours. I hope this helps. As I mentioned, once I get my flour-post completed, it will have many more details about why I work with these particular flours. Lots of blessings, Kelly
Hello. Found your site via Organizing Made Fun. I’m looking forward to trying out your recipes! I am a recovering stroke patient and also have a cocoanut allergy. Is there an alternative flour that can be used for your recipes that call for cocoanut flour? Also, what is the most easily digested flour ( + healthy ) to use? This is very important for me as I am immobile on the right side of my body, which has also affected my digestion. Thanks for any tips you may have. I look forward to incorporating your recipes into our healthy eating! Have a great day!
Hi, Karen. Welcome to The Nourishing Home. So glad you’re here! I have many recipes on my site using blanched almond flour which is a wonderful grain-free option. For a similar option to this cake, take a look at my almond flour brownies recipe:
http://thenourishinghome.com/2012/03/decadent-fudgy-brownies-gf/
If you’re having digestive issues, I really would recommend you take a look at two diets that are specifically geared toward digestive health – they are GAPS and SCD. GAPS is more restrictive, especially in the beginning, but it is a highly effective method for improve gut health. Another great option that is less restrictive is the Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD). I’ve provided links below so you can explore these options. The bulk of the recipes on my site are GAPS/SCD friendly or can easily be modified to be. I tend to follow SCD for the most part due to my autoimmune disorder. Hope this helps! Many blessings to you!
Kelly
• GAPS diet: http://www.gaps.me/preview/?page_id=20
• Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD): http://www.breakingtheviciouscycle.info/home/