Almond Flour Chocolate Cake

4.75 from 4 votes

This rich and moist almond flour chocolate cake is made with protein-packed almond flour for a flourless take on a classic.

Prep Time20

Cook Time35

Total Time55

Course: Baking, Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: almond flour chocolate cake

Servings: slices

1½ cups superfine blanched almond flour Do not use a coarse almond meal for this recipe.
⅔ cup unsweetened cocoa powder Use a natural cocoa powder and not a Dutch-processed cocoa powder.
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
3 large eggs room temp
5 tablespoons milk room temp
½ cup pure maple syrup You can also use honey or agave syrup
⅓ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup unsalted butter melted then cooled slightly. For a dairy-free option, use Smart Balance Butter or coconut oil.
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup unsalted butter softened. For a dairy-free option, use Smart Balance Butter or coconut oil.
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 pinch salt
4 cups powdered sugar
3 tablespoons milk For a dairy-free option, use unsweetened almond milk.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two 6-inch round cake pans with parchment paper and set aside.
In a mixing bowl, beat together the eggs, milk, maple syrup, sugar, butter and vanilla until combined.
Beat in the almond flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt until combined and no clumps remain. Be sure to spoon and level the flour and cocoa.
Divide among your pans (about 377g per pan).
Bake for 33-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. All ovens are different, so keep an eye on it.
Once done, let cool in the pans for 20 minutes, then flip onto a wire rack to finish cooling.
While the cake cools, make the frosting: In a large bowl cream butter until smooth with a mixer. Add the pure vanilla and almond extract to the butter. Mix until fully combined. Add the cocoa powder and mix until fully combined.
Add the powdered sugar one cup at a time to the butter mixture and mix until fully combined. Add the milk to the frosting and beat it until smooth and spreadable.
Once completely cool, frost with about 1 cup of frosting between each layer and the remaining on the outside. Top with fresh strawberries if desired and enjoy!

Almond flour cakes take longer to bake than regular flour cakes. Be sure not to underbake, or the cakes will sink.
Take care not to over-mix the batter. Mix the ingredients at each step until just combined to avoid a dense cake.
Line the bottoms of the 6-inch cake pans with parchment paper. Trace the bottoms of the cake pans with a pencil and cut them out with scissors to have them fit perfectly!
Use gluten-free cooking spray to grease your cake pans. I like gluten-free coconut oil cooking spray.
Make sure to take the time to soften the butter.
It’s best to measure the almond flour and cocoa powder with the “spoon & level” method. This keeps you from getting too much flour/cocoa powder in the recipe.
Allow the cakes to cool completely before you frost them.