Amazing Paleo Chocolate Cake (gluten-free, dairy-free)
This paleo chocolate cake recipe is fluffy, light and airy. It’s also unbelievably decadent, rich and moist. It’s the perfect dessert or birthday cake and has quickly become a reader favorite.
I’m not one to use superfluous words in my recipe titles unless something is truly extraordinary. Case in point: this amazing paleo chocolate cake. And yes, it really is amazing.
So much so, that I even debated leaving off the word “paleo.” Because I think you could offer up this chocolate cake recipe to someone who eats gluten and grains and they’d have no idea that it was gluten-free, grain-free and dairy-free. You guys, it’s incredibly delicious!
Unlike most paleo cake recipes, this version is light and airy while still moist and spongy. I mean, just look at those crumbs. There’s the perfect amount of air pockets in the cake yet it holds together like a real deal chocolate cake. But it’s a paleo chocolate cake.
Paleo Chocolate Cake Recipe Video
While this recipe is easy to make, I do recommend you watch my step-by-step tutorial video. Give it a watch below!
The Perfect Birthday Cake
This recipe is the perfect way to kick-off my birthday month – with a deliciously decadent chocolate birthday cake.
Now, it’s a birthday tradition of mine to always have a mint chocolate something on my actual birthday. Previously, I made these Mini Skillet Brownies with Fresh Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream. But it’s quite involved. So I’m thinking something slightly easier this year. My birthday is the last day of the month, so I’ve still got a few weeks.
Until then, you’ve got this paleo chocolate cake to enjoy. And trust me, you will. I even whipped up a video (above), so make sure to watch that.
Ingredients, Questions, and Tips
It’s taken me several years to perfect my paleo baking and I think I’ve finally got it nailed. But I’m sure many of you will have questions regarding the ingredients, so let’s dive into those.
- Are all three flours (almond, tapioca and coconut) necessary? Yes. For some reason, most paleo cake recipes only use almond flour or coconut flour. But I find those results less than stellar (i.e. dense and dry). If you think about it, gluten-free flour blends are always a combination of flours to achieve the right texture. Paleo baking should be no different. And this triumvirate of flours (my signature blend) is what I use on many of my recipes, including my reader favorite paleo pancakes.
- Why is each flour important? Almond flour is the main nut flour providing most of the bulk. Tapioca flour provides the light, airy, fluffiness. And the coconut flour provides structure to the cake.
- Is there an alternative for the almond flour? If you only have a problem with almonds, you could substitute the almond flour with hazelnut flour. But if you need a nut-free cake I’d recommend my flourless chocolate cake instead.
- Can I make this without eggs? I personally haven’t tried it, but many commenters below have said they’ve used chia eggs, flax eggs, and store-bought egg replacers with good results.
- Can I swap honey or maple for the coconut sugar? Unfortunately no. The coconut sugar crystals are what helps to provide all those mini air pockets that make this cake so delicious. Honey or maple syrup would create a much more dense cake.
- Why do you add espresso powder? To make this cake unbelievably rich and decadent. The espresso powder doesn’t make the cake taste like coffee or even mocha. In fact, you don’t taste it at all. But what you do taste is a depth of chocolate flavor that makes you go, “wow!” To give you an analogy, vanilla extract is added to most baked goods to enhance the flavor. Well, that’s what espresso powder does here. It takes this paleo chocolate cake recipe to the next level.
- Can I use almond milk instead of coconut milk? You can, but it likely won’t be as moist. Full-fat coconut milk is thick and adds necessary fat, on par with dairy milk or buttermilk.
- Why do you add vinegar? Well, speaking of buttermilk (which is frequently used in traditional cake recipes), my version of buttermilk is coconut milk plus vinegar. Voila! The vinegar also creates a chemical reaction with the baking soda, a la baking powder-style, to create fluffiness in the cake.
Hopefully that answers some of your questions, but if you have more, please feel free to ask them below in the comments.
The Creamy Buttercream Frosting
Now, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that the chocolate buttercream frosting is equally impressive. Like lick the bowl impressive. It’s also vegan, dairy-free and paleo, depending on how you make it.
I’ve separated that recipe into its own post, so that you can easily search for it and use on other cake or cupcake recipes in the future. But together, I’m not kidding when I say that this is by far the best paleo chocolate cake recipe out there. It may even be the best chocolate cake recipe. Period.
Serving and Storing
Serve it up with a cold glass of my homemade cashew milk, almond milk or oat milk, and you’ll be in heaven. Or serve leftovers up for breakfast (umm, I did) along with a glass of Chemex Coffee or Cold Brew Coffee.
To Store Unfrosted: You can make the unfrosted cake layers several days in advance. Once they’ve completely cooled, tightly wrap them in plastic wrap (I double wrap them) and store on your counter at room temperature (if it’s not hot) or in the fridge for 2-3 days. If you’d like to store them longer than that, you can also freeze them for 3-4 months. Then, when you’re ready to serve the cake, just defrost the layers and add your buttercream frosting.
To Store Frosted: You can also store the entire frosted cake. It will last for 4-5 days at room temperature. I do recommend covering the cake to protect it from dust and any kitchen splashes. Yes, you can freeze it frosted too! If the cake is whole, just place it in the freezer uncovered to allow the frosting to harden. Then, tightly wrap it in plastic wrap as mentioned before. If you’d like to freeze leftovers in individual slices, just place them in glass storage containers – no need to wrap! Again, they’ll last for several months. Then, just bring the cake to room temperature to enjoy!
More Gluten-Free and Paleo Chocolate Recipes
- Chocolate Mug Cake
- Paleo Chocolate Waffles
- Chocolate Truffle Tart
- Chocolate Avocado Pudding
- Paleo Chocolate Zucchini Bread
- Molten Chocolate Cake
- Paleo Brownies
Want this recipe in cupcake form? Check out my Paleo Chocolate Cupcakes.
And if you’re looking for a non-chocolate cake recipe, I highly recommend my Gluten-Free Carrot Cake (that’s also paleo-ish). Enjoy!
Amazing Paleo Chocolate Cake (gluten-free, dairy-free)
Recipe Video
Ingredients
cake dry ingredients
- 3 cups almond flour
- 1 cup tapioca flour
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 2 cups coconut sugar
- 1 1/2 cups raw cacao powder
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp espresso powder
- 1 tsp salt
cake wet ingredients
- 4 large eggs
- 1 1/2 cup full-fat coconut milk
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup coconut oil
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
chocolate frosting
- 1 recipe Vegan Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit.
- Grease three 8-inch cake pans and line the bottom with parchment paper. I prefer to grease my pans with ghee or organic palm shortening as coconut oil can leave a slight coconut taste. Set these aside.
- Add all of the dry ingredients to a very large mixing bowl and whisk together.
- Add all of the wet ingredients to a separate medium mixing bowl and whisk together. Then, pour the wet ingredients into the dry and whisk together for 1-2 minutes to create your cake batter.
- Evenly divide the batter between the three baking pans and cook for 28-30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Once the cake has completely cooled, assemble the cake by adding the chocolate buttercream frosting between each layer and frosting the outside.
Lisa's Tips
- My baking time of 28-30 minutes is based on a standard oven. I'd recommend checking the cakes earlier, at 23-24 minutes if your oven tends to cook fast or if you're using a convection oven.
- You can also use two 9-inch cake pans for a two-layer cake (the layers will be thicker). Bake them for approximately 35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Remember to make sure your cake is 100% cool before frosting. Even the slightest amount of internal heat in the layers will cause the frosting to melt.
- This is the brand of espresso powder that I use.
- For substitutions and storing, make sure to read the tips in the post above.
Nutrition
Recipe originally posted August 2017, but updated to include new information and tips.
I was skeptical, especially when the layers of the 9″ pan came out somewhat flat. I used half cane and half coconut sugar, since I was making this for someone with severe food alergies, not on Paleo. I had to melt the coconut oil in the microwave because it was as hard as a brick. Those were the only things I did not exactly following the recipe. Since cane sugar has the exact same reaction to heat in batter, I knew it would be fine. I used Imperial’s new vegan margarine for the frosting, as well as regular old powdered sugar (not organic). The cake and frosting were amazing. Everyone agreed, you couldn’t even tell they were gluten free. My friend with allergies said it was the first cake she’s had since her allergies atarted that made her crave a glass of cold milk.
Love this cake! But wanted to see if instead of coconut sugar, could I use white sugar or would you recommend light brown sugar? And for the cacao powder, is that the same as Hershey’s unsweetened cocoa powder? Or the dark chocolate cacao powder?
I love this recipe as is, but have the plain sugar and cacao on hand! Thanks so much!
I made this cake a few days ago and it turned out great! I only put 100g of sugar in it, but also used 75g of Lakanto Monkfruit sweetener. I made (low sugar) chocolate ganache frosting, and used whipped cream for the middle layers, as I’m not paleo or dairy-free. Very yummy.
Delicious and moist! Shared our cake with our gluten free friends and they all asked for the recipe because it’s so moist.
Getting ready to make this cake. So excited. What type of coconut oil do you use? Do you melt it first? Thank you!
Yes, the coconut oil is melted!
So I tried making this cake today. Followed the recipe exactly. I used the metric version as I’m in the UK. Put it in the oven (175C) and checked after 25mins….not cooked. Put it back in again, checked after 35 mins not cooked in the middle. Checked again at 45 mins, still not cooked. This went on for 1hr45min……still not cooked in the middle. What am I doing wrong?? :(
I had the same problem (followed the directions for 2 round pans) and was worried the bottom might burn if I baked it longer. What I did end up doing worked perfectly! I baked it for 25 minutes, turned the oven off and let it sit in the oven another 20 minutes.
But, this doesn’t add up to the total time you tried.
**I had a typo, I meant I baked for 35 minutes. (not 25)
Hi Lisa, Can I use cassava flour instead of tapioca flour? Thank you
Cassava flour should be okay :)
Did you try the cassava flour instead of the tapioca flour? If so, how did it turn out?
Thank you for this recipe. Can I make it in one layer and frost the top and sides?
Hi Lisa: This is the 5th time in the last two years I have made this cake. Today it is for my granddaughter’s birthday. I am so disappointed though. It flattened (deflated). What happened? Do you know? I haven’t iced it yet waiting for it to cool. Just hoping it is not a total failure. I had a feeling something was not quite right as the batter looked grainy. Too late for me to make another one.
Awesome cake! I have made it and we all loved it. I was just wondering if it’s possible to omit the cacao powder, and turn this recipe into a white/vanilla cake?! Thanks!
Happy you loved the chocolate cake! Unfortunately, I’ve tried that to make a white/vanilla cake and it hasn’t turned out – it’s a yucky brown color due to the coconut sugar. I’m working on a white/vanilla cake recipe for the future though!
Hi, I’m baking this beautiful cake for my daughters birthday this weekend. I’d love to lower the sugar a bit either in the cake or frosting. Think I could sub any or some of it with medjool dates?
Thanks!
I am new to baking, Lisa. May I know what can best substitute tapioca flour and espresso powder? I am really finding it hard to find these two ingredients here in the Philippines. Also, is cacao powder the same as cocoa powder? Please advise. Thank you. :)
You could use arrowroot powder to replace the tapioca flour. Yes, cacao powder is the same as cocoa powder. And you can leave the espresso powder off if you can’t find it. :)
Do you think this recipe would work as a yule log? Wanting to make something festive for Christmas. Thanks!
Yes, I think it would work for that!
Really? Yule log cakes are generally very eggy, very low in flour to make them flat and spongy and easy to roll without cracking. I wouldn’t think this recipe would work at all for a yule log. Did you try it? I’m interested to know, since the cake seemed to crumbly when I made it.
Hi! I’m going to make this. I have King Arthur GF blend 1:1 measure. Do you think that would produce a moist fluffy cake or should I get the specific flours in your list? Trying to avoid buying extra flours, but I want fluff and moistness over cost. Thank you!
The only thing you can replace that other people have tested is swapping tapioca flour for a gluten-free flour blend.
I made this cake yesterday for a birthday and everyone loved it. I didn’t use the buttercream frosting but used the So Delicious Coco Whip. There was only 1 piece of the cake left for the birthday lady.
Amazing! Glad everyone enjoyed this chocolate cake Nancy.
Made this for my fathers birthday cake and it was a huge hit! I only had a giant casserole dish so I made it in that. It was fluffy and decadent. Absolutely the best cake I’ve ever made and possibly the best cake I’ve ever ate. Thanks for such a great recipe.
Happy to hear your father (and everyone else) enjoyed this cake Veronica!
Love this cake! My entire family love it when I bake this cake!
Thank you for sharing your recipe!
Any tips for baking a vanilla cake?
I’ve been meaning to test a vanilla one, so stay tuned!
Hi, this looks delicious and planning to bake for my daughter’s birthday next week. Can I use almond meal instead of almond flour?
It’s best to use almond flour instead of almond meal.
When you say full-fat coconut milk are you referring at the one in the can or regular coconut milk in the refrigerated department in the store?
The link you provided for the brand of expresso powder is actually instant coffee not powder.
Thank you!
For the coconut milk, it’s the one in the can.
This is literally the best Paleo chocolate cake recipe ever! Even my MIL, who “hates”anything paleo or GF, said “wow, that’s actually good!” Ha! This is our go to cake! Thank you for creating it.
Any chance you have a paleo vanilla cake recipe too?
I don’t have a vanilla version yet, but I’m working on it it :)
Hi, can I omit the baking soda?
Unfortunately you’ll need the baking soda.
Made this chocolate cake and frosting for my boyfriend’s dad’s birthday. His aunt and I avoid dairy and wheat so it was nice to have a cake we can eat but that everyone loved. It was a huge hit and only the two of us knew. Like fighting over second helpings the next day kind of hit. Thank you! There was more of a hint of coconut than I wanted but I know that changes by the brand of coconut milk even and it didn’t bother us.
I did want to ask about freezing just the frosting? I ended up with a lot left over and it seems like a shame to throw it away. Would it freeze okay by itself? Thanks!
I love all your recipes that I have tried. I was hoping you had one for sour cream coffee cake. If not I am trying to figure out what measurements to use for your trifecta of fours, almond flour, tapioca and coconut flour to substitute for regular gluten free flour. Better yet if you had your own recipe for the sour cream coffee cake that would be amazing!
I do not have a recipe for either yet! But, I will be sure to keep those in mind for a future recipe :)
Can I leave out the espresso powder?
Yes, you can!
Looks amazing, but before I try does the 749 cals refer to 100 gr, or the whole thing?
The nutritional information will always be per serving.
Do you use canned coconut milk or the kind found in the refrigerated section (like Silk)?
I’m using the canned coconut milk.
Wonderful cake- i just wish there was a better alternative than coconut sugar- it affects me like cane sugar . Any ideas?
But it was beautiful and delicious.and a hit for my family last year. Trying again for my hubby’s birthday!
Hi Sharon – I’m happy you enjoyed the recipe! You could use any granulated sugar in this recipe.
I’m wondering if regular purchased gluten free all purpose baking flour would work instead of the 3 flours you have listed? I’d love to use what I have on hand instead of purchasing more but don’t want to take a chance on a failure.
Unfortunately, this recipe has only been tested with the 3 types of flour listed, as I have found this to be a winning combo when it comes to the texture of a cake. But, others have said that you can replace tapioca flour with a gluten-free flour blend.
I’ve made this a few times with great success- so delicious! My son has a birthday coming up and his cake topper is 11.5 x11. I have no idea how to bake this rectangular size? Any ideas for how long in this type of cake pan?
oops i meant 8.5 x 11 cake
Hello Lisa, I’m gonna bake this cake for my son’s 3rd birthday and I’m so excited about it. It’s taken me a few trips to different grocery stores to find ingredients and I still haven’t found coconut sugar. If I’m to replace it with granulated sugar, do I still do 2 cups? Many thanks 😊
Yes, you can use the same amount with granulated sugar.
My husband bakes this for me every year on my birthday. I usually have to help but it’s worth it. This is just like the real deal.
Thrilled to hear this cake has become a birthday tradition Jennie!
This looks amazing!!! I want to make this for my 5year olds bday cake – is it possible to use different sized pans? I am wanting to make a rocket cake so will be using a football shaped pan for the cake. probably a similar volume or slightly more than the pans you’ve indicated in the recipe.
Would I need to perhaps divide the batter into 2 and make 2 of the cakes so that it cooks through properly? Would I need to change the cooking time at all if I did that?
Hi, I am planning to try your amazing paleo chocolate cake recipe but wish check if you used tapoica flour or tapoica starch in this recipe . They different as tapoica flour is ground from the cassava root and not the same as tapoica starch. However, many people refer to tapoica starch as tapoica flour so I am unsure which it the correct flour used for the recipe . Thanks in advance for your feedback!
Hi Carrie – this recipe calls for tapioca flour :)
Seriously the best gluten free chocolate cake recipe I have tried and I have tried a ton. It was a hit at my niece’s birthday party, non gluten free people even asked for the recipe!
Thrilled to hear this cake was a hit at your niece’s party Shannon!
Thank you for your reply! Can’t wait to try this recipe ! I think I have just enough tapioca flour in my pantry to bake this recipe ! So glad I clarified with you because I think it might be a gummy disaster if I used the tapioca starch. Have a great weekend !
Lisa, I LOVE your meal prep and awesome recipes! Have you tried to bake this as a 9 x 13 sheet cake. If so, for how long baking? Thank you!
this was the most amazing gluten free cake I have ever made. Its everything u said if would be. Thank you so much for sharing.
Thrilled to hear you loved this chocolate cake Indira!
This cake is amazing. And I bake desserts a lot. This is exceptional. Everyone who had a slice thought so too!
Happy to hear everyone enjoyed this chocolate cake Deborah!
Ok Wow, just wow. I just made this. I’m trying a grain free diet for inflammation. I went grain free for 2 weeks and the swelling in my knees disappeared. I went off the diet and the swelling came back so I’m testing the diet again to be sure my results were in fact from a grain free diet. I’m also doing dairy free.
I followed recipe with these substitutions. I used 1/2 Natural Cocoa & half Dutch Process; 200 grams White sugar & 120 grams coconut sugar. I used blanched almond flour because I wasn’t sure which kind to use but I had regular almond flour on hand. I made two 8” cakes & 12 cupcakes. This cake is divine. It is moist, light and very flavorful. My husband is gluten free due to celiac disease and he said it tasted like a wheat flour cake, which he hasn’t had in 10 years. This is a keeper for me and I’ll be making it often. Thank you for doing all the testing for us bakers on this recipe. You are talented.
Excited to hear both you and your husband enjoyed this chocolate cake! Also, it seems like you might need to stick to a grain free diet if the inflammation keeps arising.
I love this recipe! Is there a way to convert it to a white cake?
I still need to do more testing on a white cake – so stay tuned!
Any tips to making these as cupcakes?
I love your recipes!
You can actually reference my paleo chocolate cupcake recipe :)
I made this cake for my friend’s birthday where her family were on different diets and this was a cake that would work. What I didn’t expect was how amazingly moist and delicious it was!!! Many people said it was the best chocolate cake they’d ever had, including her father who hates health food!!! This is my first recipe of yours that I’ve tried and now I’m a raving fan of yours!!! Thank you SO much!!!
This cake definitely surprises people, especially those who aren’t gluten-free! Happy to hear it was a hit :)
Quick question: Is the nutrition info. for the entire cake? For example, 749.9 calories per serving or 749.9 calories for the entire cake? And is this separate, too, from the frosting, I assume?
Hi Lori – the nutritional information will always be per serving.
Hi Lisa,
Would this work in a Bundt pan, and if so what size? My son has been asking me for chocolate cake and I have so much success with your recipes, I want to try this. Problem is he wants it as a Bundt:-(
Hi Liz – I’m not sure, but you can look up pan conversions online!
I made this for a birthday to accommodate various needs. It was delicious! Everyone loved it! I didn’t have the espresso powder however it was great without it. Even those that don’t like sweets loved it!
I will definitely pass along the recipe and make it again!
Thank you!
Thrilled to hear everyone enjoyed this cake recipe Heather! And yes, the espresso powder can be optional :)
Am I able to substitute almond milk for the coconut milk? I just don’t want it to have a strong coconut flavor (does it taste like coconut?) thanks!
The canned coconut milk is used to make it moist. But don’t worry, you won’t taste the coconut at all!
I am truly blown away that this cake actually is as good as the author says, may be better. I was very doubtful while preparing it for my “allergic to almost everything” daughter’s birthday. The batter seemed gritty but it baked up perfect. It makes a lot of dense but rich cake and the icing, which I used vegan butter for was fabulous.
Thrilled to hear this cake was perfect for your daughter’s birthday!
Can i use decaf instant coffee instead of espresso powder? I can’t have too much caffeine but I want the cake to be chocolatey enough. Also I have dark chocolate cocoa powder so I was planning on using that, if that will work. Thank you!
You can just omit the espresso powder :)
Can I substitute regular sugar for coconut sugar? Thanks!
Yes, you can if you’d like.
I know you said you haven’t tried making this nut-free, but is there any reason you think sunflower seed flour wouldn’t work in place of the almond flour? I’ve used it in other recipes with success, though I can’t tell if it changes the flavor since I can’t have the nut version. I’m also considering tiger nut flour (not a nut), have you used that at all or have an opinion? Thank you!
I have to say This was my first “cheat”
After my whole 30 (actually a whole 128 but who is counting) it was amazing!!!!! Image made it at least 10 times and the last few the cake has been. Super dense and just not the same. Does anyone have any thoughts?
Can I replace almond flour with something nut free?
Unfortunately I haven’t tested this yet without almond flour yet. But I hope to test more nut-free versions in the future :)
This really is the best gf chocolate cake! I made it for my daughter’s birthday yesterday. Since there was only going to be three of us, I cut the recipe in half and baked it in two 6” spring form pans. I used 1/2 coconut sugar and 1/2 brown Swerve, 3/4 coconut cream and 1/4 almond milk, dutch processed cocoa, and Trader Joe’s instant coffee instead of espresso powder. I really don’t care for the taste of coffee so I was very reluctant to add it. You were right though, I could not taste the coffee, only a deepened chocolate flavor. I used whipped ganache as the frosting. Thank you so much!
Happy to hear this chocolate cake was a success for your daughter’s birthday Kay!
Recipe and reviews look awesome! Am I able to sub brown sugar for the coconut sugar? TIA.
Yes, you can use brown sugar instead!