This crazy mixed up low carb cake is truly delicious stuff! Keto chocolate cake swirled together with sugar-free cheesecake, pecans, and coconut for a healthy take on the famous earthquake cake.
Sometimes, messy food is the best food. And this keto Earthquake Cake is the perfect example. It’s messy to make and messy to look at, but it’s crazy delicious.
Just think about it: all those mixed up layers, jumbled and swirled together, studded with pecans, coconut, and low carb chocolate chips. It’s like a keto chocolate cake slammed into a keto cheesecake, turned upside down, did a couple of backflips, and landed in a baking dish.
And with every bite, you get a mouthful of all that goodness mixed together.
That’s my kind of keto dessert!
What is an Earthquake Cake?
I know what’s going to happen here. Call me clairvoyant or something but I know that the minute I publish this recipe, I am going to be inundated with questions. Why is this delicious chocolate and cream cheese concoction called “Earthquake Cake”???
This is Geology 101, friends, so hark back to your freshman year and remind yourself how the top layer of soil always sits neatly on top of clay or sandstone or granite layers.
But then an earthquake comes along and all those neat layers get churned up and messed up. Some bits that used to be on top are now on the bottom. And some of the bottom layers come all the way to the top. So that when you cut down into it, you see a bit of one layer here and a bit of another layer there.
Which is exactly what happens with this crazy mixed up keto earthquake cake…you pour everything into neat little layers and then you churn it all up. Some of the bottom layers of coconut and pecans comes to the top and some of the top layer of cream cheese sinks down to the middle or the bottom.
It’s a cake that looks like an earthquake hit it. Makes perfect sense to me!
How to make Keto Earthquake Cake
The chocolate cake
Conventional earthquake cake is made with chocolate cake mix, and you could certainly go that route for this keto version. My personal favorite is the Swerve Chocolate Cake Mix, but there are other good options out there like Good Dee’s.
But you can also make it from scratch, as I did, and I have provided those directions in the recipe.
The cheesecake filling
This is not a standard cheesecake filling, as you don’t add any eggs. You simply beat softened cream cheese with melted butter, sweetener, and vanilla. The makes the cheesecake extra gooey and delicious.
The add ins
Earthquake cake typically takes shredded coconut, chopped pecans, and plenty of chocolate chips. But if any one of these additions doesn’t appeal to you, feel free to leave them out. They are not critical to the outcome of the cake itself.
The baking pan
A few readers have had trouble with the cake being a bit dry and I believe the baking pan is a likely culprit. I recommend baking a cake like this in a glass or ceramic baking dish. It makes a big difference, as metal pans conduct heat more efficiently and so your cake will bake through more quickly and dry out.
Give it a jiggle
Because of the mixed up layers, it’s hard to be sure when this cake is cooked through. You want the edges to be set, but the center should jiggle somewhat when you shake the pan. If you are baking in glass or ceramic, it holds onto its heat for a while after the cake is out of the oven so it will continue to cook.
Let it cool properly
As with any keto cake, it’s important to let it cool completely before cutting into it. Otherwise it may fall apart too easily.
Can you make Keto Earthquake Cake ahead?
This is a big cake that feeds 20 so it’s great for parties and get togethers. You can make it a day or so in advance and refrigerate it.
Wrap it up tightly so that it doesn’t dry out, and let it come to room temperature before serving.
More Delicious Keto Cake Recipes
- Keto Almond Ricotta Cake
- Keto Gooey Butter Cake
- Keto Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake
- Keto Lemon Poppyseed Cake
- Keto Red Velvet Cake
- Keto Hummingbird Cake
Earthquake Cake
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
- ½ cup chopped pecans
- 2 cups almond flour
- ½ cup Swerve Sweetener
- ⅓ cup cocoa powder
- ¼ cup unflavoured whey protein powder
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 large eggs
- 14 tablespoon butter melted, divided
- ½ cup cold coffee or water coffee helps boost chocolate flavor
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 cup powdered Swerve Sweetener
- ½ cup sugar-free chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325F and grease a 9x13 baking pan. Sprinkle the bottom with the shredded coconut and the pecans.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, sweetener, cocoa powder, protein powder, baking powder, and salt. Stir in the eggs, 6 tablespoon melted butter, coffee or water, and vanilla extract until well combined. Pour over the coconut and pecans.
- In another large bowl, beat the cream cheese with the remaining 8 tablespoon melted butter until smooth. Beat in the powdered sweetener. Dollop this mixture over the cake mixture by the spoonful. Use a knife to swirl into the cake mixture, scraping all the way to the bottom in some places to mix up the coconut and pecans.
- Sprinkle with the chocolate chips. Bake for about 45 minutes, until cake is mostly set through (will still be slightly soft and liquidy in the middle). Remove and let cool at least 20 minutes before serving.
Video
Fonda Carver says
What do you use to grease your pan?
Carolyn says
Usually butter. If I think it’s going to stick and it’s a cake I want to flip out (this one gets cut out of the pan), I usually grease with butter and then spray with avocado oil.
Susan says
Would it be possible to sub the coconut for something else or leave it out? I’ve LOVED every one of your recipes I’ve baked! And so has my family! 🤍
Carolyn says
You can leave it out.
Jen says
I’d love to make this but I don’t have whey protein powder or egg white protein powder on hand. However I do have a pea/chia seed protein powder. Would that work? I realize that peas aren’t keto but would it affect the texture?
Carolyn says
That should work… the pea protein should be low carb still. It’s not the carb part of the peas they extract!
Betty Adams says
Can I use Splenda instead of Swerve and what happens ifidonthave protein powder?
Carolyn says
I don’t use Splenda so I really can’t say. Protein powder helps the cake rise properly.
Casey Smith says
I’m anxious to try this! earthquake cake was my favorite as a kid! I was wondering if it would work to use collagen peptides in place of the whey protein?
Carolyn says
In most recipes, I would say no. It makes things gummy and hard to cook through. But it might work in this weird cake.
Kristina Olson says
Any substitutions for the whey protein powder?
Carolyn says
Egg white protein powder.
Ann says
I tried this recipe and mine turned out more of a brownie than a cake. It was delicious.
Joanne Johnson says
OMG!!! These are so rich and decadent! By far the best bar out there! Thank you!
Elizabeth says
is there a reason you use baking powder and not xanthan gum?
Carolyn says
Baking powder helps cokes rise. No xanthan gum is necessary so why add an unnecessary ingredient?
Lisa kavanaugh says
Can I use egg white powder in place of whey protein?
linda says
can this earthquake cake by frozen? it makes so much we wouldn’t eat it all before it went bad. Or, what quantities of ingredients for smaller pan?
Carolyn says
Absolutely!
Lisa L says
Hi Carolyn! I’ve made this recipe twice now and I love it so much! My son who has celiac disease was just visiting with me and my husband so I made it for him to try and he loves it too. I followed the recipe to the tea and it was easy to make and I also made sure to clean the bowls and the beaters of course! Yum yum! I’m loving your Ultimate Guide to Keto Baking cookbook that I recently bought as well and it is so helpful for understanding which ingredients to use for different recipes and why they work. I’m really enjoying baking again and feel I have the ability to make what ever I want now! Thank you so much for your help through your videos too!
Jade says
Is there a good substitute for the whey protein powder?!
Carolyn says
Egg white protein powder.
Laura says
Would collagen powder work?
Bob says
My wife made this but for some reason it was really dry and crumbly. Any ideas what happened?
Carolyn says
Simply put… it got over-baked. Do you know what kind of pan she used?
MGD says
Hi can I use either baking powder or baking soda in lieu of the whey powder? If so how much would I use?
Thank you 🙂
Carolyn says
No sorry, that is not a proper replacement for protein. Gluten is a protein and in its absence, another dry protein helps baked goods rise and hold their shape. Baking powder and soda are leavening agents, creating gas that causes a rise, but they don’t create structure.
MGD says
Ok thank you for responding. I’m so happy I found you and look forward to trying your recipes ❤️
Robert Troyer says
This is the best chocolate cake recipe I’ve made. Sweet but doesn’t have the sugar substitute after taste. Anything sweet I make my wife doesn’t like because of the aftertaste, her statement was “this is holiday worthy”.
Carolyn says
That’s so great to hear!