You won’t believe how easy this Slow Cooker Chocolate Cake is to make. And it’s so rich and moist, it doesn’t need any frosting. It’s one of my favorite low carb desserts.
I consider myself something of a keto chocolate cake fanatic. As evidenced by my vast recipe archives with multiple cake recipes, each with their own unique twist. And each special in their own unique way.
I’ve got Keto Flourless Chocolate Cake and Keto Chocolate Zucchini Cake. I’ve got dairy free Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake and Coconut Flour Chocolate Cupcakes. I’ve got simple Keto Texas Sheet Cake and elegant Chocolate Kahlua Cake.
See, that’s the beauty of chocolate cake; that it’s not just one thing. It’s many beautiful things. And this keto slow cooker cake is one of those beautiful, delectable, luscious, low carb things.
Why you will love this recipe
I first created this recipe back in August 2014, when it was too hot to turn on the oven. I found the idea of baking my slow cooker very intriguing, but I wasn’t sure it would work with my low carb ingredients. Still, I figured it was worth a shot.
I never expected the results to be so fabulous, so astonishingly tender and moist. It quickly became one of my most popular keto cake recipes.
Over the years, I tweaked the recipe to make it even lower in carbs but just as delicious. It’s such an easy cake to make, and it doesn’t heat up your kitchen in high summer. It’s also so moist and tender, it needs no frosting.
But a scoop of keto ice cream on top would certainly not go amiss!
Reader Reviews
“Thank you!! I have been searching for years for a keto cake recipe that is edible and I’ve finally found it! It’s very close to the “real” thing. I live at high altitude and baking is difficult. Cakes and bread are usually dense and half the size they’re supposed to be. Not this one!” — Pam
“This cake was absolutely wonderful! My guests loved it and couldn’t believe it was low carb and gluten free. The fact that it didn’t heat up the kitchen was a plus. I used a crock pot liner which i buttered, then used it to pull out the cake from the slow cooker. Easy, peasy and no pot to clean up!” — Yolanda
“This is the best low carb chocolate cake I’ve made. Turns out perfect every time. Love that I can put it in the slow cooker and not worry about checking to make sure it’s done without overbaking it. So moist and chocolaty.” — Maureen
Ingredients you need
- Almond flour: Using good quality almond flour is extremely important for any almond flour cake.
- Cocoa powder: Use Dutch process cocoa powder for a deeper chocolate flavor.
- Sweetener: You can use any sweetener you like best here. Allulose and erythritol both work, as does a combination of the two.
- Protein powder: You can use whey protein powder, egg white protein powder, or a plant-based powder.
- Cold coffee: Coffee helps deepen the chocolate flavor. It does not taste like coffee.
- Sugar free chocolate chips: You can use Lily’s or ChocZero. You can also use homemade sugar free chocolate chips.
- Kitchen staples: Butter, eggs, vanilla extract, baking powder and salt.
Step by Step Directions
1. Combine the dry ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond flour, sweetener, cocoa powder, whey protein powder, baking powder, and salt.
2. Add the wet ingredients: Stir in the butter, eggs, vanilla extract, and ⅓ of the liquid until well combined. If the batter is very thick, add more liquid 1 tablespoon at a time until a thick but pourable consistency is achieved.
3. Spread the batter: Spread the batter our in the to greased ceramic insert of a 6 quart slow cooker. Sprinkle the top with the chocolate chips.
4. Bake: Cook for 2 ½ hours. It will be gooey and like a pudding cake at 2 hours, and more firm and cake-like at 2 ½ hours.
5. Cool: Turn the slow cooker off and let cool 20 to 30 minutes, then cut into pieces and serve warm. Serve with lightly sweetened whipped cream or keto ice cream.
Tips for Success
This cake isn’t meant to be flipped out of the crockpot, but rather served in sliced like a snack cake. If you are really dying to lift it all out in one piece, you will need to line your crockpot with parchment. It does leave wrinkled edges in the cake, however.
Do not use collagen or beef-based protein here, it will make the cake very gummy and hard to cook through.
I made this recipe with mostly allulose as the sweetener (I used Swerve allulose). The great part about this cake is that it turns out well with almost any granular sweetener you like best.
The chocolate chips are optional, but you can have some fun here. Try different flavors of chips or chopped nuts instead.
Frequently Asked Questions
A slow cooker keeps it more moist and tender as it traps the moisture during cooking. It also helps keep your kitchen cool if you crave keto cake in the middle of summer!
This keto slow cooker chocolate cake recipe has 7.3g of carbs and 4.2g of fiber per serving. That comes to 3.1g net carbs per slice.
Store the cake in a covered container on the counter for up to 3 days or in the fridge for up to a week. You can also freeze the cake for several months.
More great slow cooker recipes
Keto Slow Cooker Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup almond flour
- ½ cup sweetener allulose or erythritol
- ⅓ cup cocoa powder
- ¼ cup unflavored whey protein powder can sub egg white protein powder
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 6 tablespoon butter melted
- 3 large eggs
- ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅓ to ½ cup water or cold coffee
- ⅓ cup mini sugar-free chocolate chips optional
Instructions
- Grease the ceramic insert of a 6 quart slow cooker well.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond flour, sweetener, cocoa powder, whey protein powder, baking powder and salt.
- Stir in the butter, eggs, vanilla extract, and ⅓ of the liquid until well combined. If the batter is very thick, add more liquid 1 tablespoon at a time until a thick but pourable consistency is achieved.
- Pour the batter into prepared insert and sprinkle the top with the chocolate chips.
- Cook on low for 2 to 2 ½ hours. It will be gooey and like a pudding cake at 2 hours, and more cakey at 2 ½ hours.
- Turn the slow cooker off and let cool 20 to 30 minutes, then cut into pieces and serve warm. Serve with lightly sweetened whipped cream or keto ice cream.
Kara says
This looks so rich and tasty it’s hard to believe it’s healthy. Can’t wait to try it!
Julie Blanner says
Yum, this is making my mouth water! Can’t wait to make this!
Suzanne says
This was great! A new favorite chocolate cake. I did substitute Lakanto monk fruit sweetener.
Daphne says
This came out really good but Holy Cow was it chocolaty!! I’ll cut back on the cocoa next time. Thanks so much for the recipe!
Andie Thueson says
I love making slow cooker desserts and this one looks freaking amazing! Must make!
Jessica Burgess says
Wait… low carb chocolate cake AND I can make it in a slow cooker?! SIGN ME UP! Lol! This looks and sounds amazing!
Jamielyn says
Love this idea! Sounds so healthy and delicious!
Beth K. says
The cake looks so nice and moist. Thanks for all the great tips too.
jkim says
Oh oh, I’m having trouble posting an edited question–I meant to ask if I should COOL the cake with the lid on or off. I can’t remember what i did when I made it before.
Thanks!
Carolyn says
You can cool it with it off.
Jkim says
Thank you. That made sense to me, but I wasn’t sure.
skim says
Oops, typo! I plan to make this tonight or tomorrow. Should I COOL the cake with the lid on or off? Sorry for the error.
jkim says
Should I cook the cake with the lid on or off? I made this some time ago and can’t remember which I did. What I do remember is how moist and rich the cake tasted. Baking a cake in my crockpot was a revelation–I’d no idea it would be so delicious!.
Chelsea says
I made this recipe out of your cookbook & it never listed whey powder. Is my cake going to be way off?
Carolyn says
No it will be fine. Sometimes I change things and try new things out for the cookbooks.
Tanya says
Hi Carolyn,
For the amounts of butter, eggs, almond milk, etc do I just look at the original cake recipe and use those amounts?
Carolyn says
So it looks like my recipe got totally messed up when I was transferring to a new recipe plug in. But it should all be fixed now!
Raquel says
Will this recipe work without the protein powder and egg powder?
Carolyn says
Yes but it may not rise as well.
Mary says
How do you get it out of the cooker, or do you serve right from it? Have made twice, second time I put parchment inside and lifted out, but just wondered.
Carolyn says
I serve right from it, like a snack cake!
Donna Lewis says
I would like to make a smaller version of this cake in a round four quart slow cooker because my six quart cooker will be simultaneously cooking a Mississippi pot roast. Do you think that using about 2/3 or 3/4 of the recipe would accomplish that? Thanks so much for your help.
Carolyn says
Sure.
Meseidy Rivera says
This looks perfectly fudgy! And in a slow cooker? Genius!
Erin @ Dinners, Dishes, and Desserts says
I love my crock pot, and making this cake it is genius!
Jennifer Blake says
I love my slow cooker but I have yet to make a dessert in it… I think it is high time I try it!
Jennifer Farley says
Chocolate cake sounds perfect right about now! I’m going to try this out!
Anita says
Hi Carol, I have a oval shape 5.5 Quart Reval slow cooker and just made this in it. I followed the recipe and cooked it for 2 hours at high. It is a little burnt around the edge and I couldn’t take it out from the pot despite having greased the pan with avacado oil. However, it was delish!! We had to use a spoon to scoop it out, which my husband didn’t mind at all. And idea how I can improve it and also what should I do differently to grease the pan?
Thanks for a great recipe again. Love your blog!
Carolyn says
It’s not meant to be taken out of the pan, but really served like a snack cake from the pan. However, you can line your slow cooker with parchment if you want to be able to lift it out. It will have some funny edges from where the parchment folds over but it works. Also, obviously your slow cooker is a hot one so bake it a little less and then just let it sit in the warm slow cooker when it’s off to keep cooking through.