Classic Italian Cream Cake goes low carb and keto! This rich layer cake is a truly special dessert recipe, and it’s worth the time and effort.
Some recipes make me do the happy dance. And this keto Italian Cream Cake is one of those recipes. I really am quite excited to bring this one to you today as it is seriously fantastic. I rank it up there among my best cake recipes, easily.
So here’s the deal. As most of you know, I’ve been hard at work on a keto dessert cookbook. Easy Keto Desserts will be coming out on July 3rd and I am so excited about that one. Because let’s be honest, that’s where my heart lies. Creating healthy low carb desserts just makes me happy. And apparently it makes a lot of you happy too. But the recipes in that book are, obviously, on the “easier” side of things. They are delicious treats you can whip up without a whole lot of effort and without getting out every pan and whisk in your kitchen. They are still creative and innovative, but they aren’t overly complicated.
And while I know many of you will appreciate that, I actually have a bit of a thing for more complicated desserts – the kind that really do have you getting out multiple bowls and beaters and whisks. The sort that has every cupboard open and every spare surface of kitchen counter covered. When I have the time for them, I really love those recipes…just burrowing into my kitchen and losing myself in the creation of something delicious.
I’d never heard of Italian Cream Cake before I moved to the US. It’s just not a Canadian thing…and with good reason. It’s actually not really Italian at all, but instead a kind of vintage southern cake recipe. But regardless of origins, it’s an astonishingly good cake and makes for a perfect low carb makeover. I realized it was perfect as a recipe to showcase Bob’s Red Mill products, because I would not only be using almond flour, but also their unsweetened shredded coconut and a little coconut flour as well. I always rely on their low carb flours and meals, as I know they will produce excellent results. And they came through for me as always!
How to Make Keto Italian Cream Cake
One thing I would do differently for this cake, however, is use smaller 8 inch pans. At the time of creation, I only had 9 inch round pans. They worked just fine but the layers weren’t as high and impressive looking as I would have liked – the cake was rather wide and squat-looking…but the amazing flavour more than made up for it. If you choose to use 8 inch pans, the baking time will be longer, of course. My guess is anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes longer. This is a big, rich cake, so whether you bake it in 9 inch pans or 8 inch pans, it serves about 16 people.
So here’s to easy desserts and here’s to complicated desserts. They both have a place in my heart!
Want more amazing keto cake recipes? Check out my new Keto Desserts page. All recipes under 7g TOTAL carbs!
Love to bake? You need this cookbook!
Low Carb Italian Cream Cake
Ingredients
Cake
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1 cup Swerve Sweetener
- 4 large eggs, room temperature, separated
- 1/2 cup heavy cream, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups almond flour
- 1/2 cup shredded coconut
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
Frosting
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1 cup powdered Swerve Sweetener
- 1 tsp vanilla , extract
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream, room temperature
Garnish
- 2 tbsp shredded coconut, lightly toasted
- 2 tbsp chopped pecans, lightly toasted
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat the oven to 325F and grease two 8 inch or 9 inch round cake pans very well (the 8 inch pans will take a little longer to cook but the layers will be higher and I think they will look better). Line the pans with parchment paper and grease the paper.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter with the sweetener until well combined. Beat in the egg yolks one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Beat in the heavy cream and vanilla extract.
- In another bowl, whisk together the almond flour, shredded coconut, chopped pecans, coconut flour, baking powder, and salt. Beat into the butter mixture until just combined.
- In another large bowl, beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar until they hold stiff peaks. Gently fold into the cake batter.
- Divide the batter evenly among the prepared pans and spread to the edges. Bake 35 to 45 minutes (or longer, depending on your pans), until the cakes are golden on the edges and firm to the touch in the middle.
- Remove and let cool completely in the pans, then flip out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Remove the parchment from the layers if it comes out with them.
Frosting
- In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter together until smooth. Beat in the sweetener and vanilla extract until well combined.
- Slowly add the heavy whipping cream until a spreadable consistency is achieved.
To Assemble
- Place the bottom layer on a serving plate and cover the top with about 1/3 of the frosting. Add the next layer and frost the top and the sides.
- Sprinkle the top with the toasted coconut and pecans. Refrigerate at least half an hour to let set.
Video
Nutrition
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I don’t have cream of tartar any other replacement?
No replacements. You can skip it but it helps egg whites a lot.
This was a huge hit at my nephew’s birthday party! Everyone absolutely loved it, received so many compliments. The only substitution I made was to use Allulose instead of Swerve sweetener. It was so delicious and tasted sweet just like a regular dessert!! Thanks so much for this amazing recipe.
Did you use unsalted or salted butter?
It’s up to you!
This is my hands down, my favorite go-to low carb cake recipe! Thank you so much for your amazing recipes.
I have a question. When you flip the layers onto the cooling rack, do you leave them upside down to cool, or try to right them right away? I have broken cakes before, by turning them when they were still hot. Thank you.
You can totally leave them upside down… once frosted, no one can tell!
Such a delicious cake!! Everyone loved it. Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
Such a delicious cake. Everyone was delighted with this cake.
This was amazing!
I made it for my own birthday cake. My first since being diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes in 2022. I control my blood sugars through diet and exercise only (no meds). So, have to be very careful with carbs. I wondered how this would come out, as almond and coconut flour baking can have a weird texture. This was perfect. My husband loved it also, he said it was the best Italian Cream cake he has ever had. I had planned to freeze the rest, but, we have been savoring a slice each day. I can’t wait to see your cookbook!
Hi Carolyn, l was just wondering if you’ve ever froze the cake without frosting it, for later use?
I haven’t but it should be fine. Just wrap up each layer tightly to avoid freezer burn.
This cake is so good, taste like the real thing.
I made this today and invited a couple friends to join us for a piece tonight. They were initially quite anti “artificial sugar” of any kind so I was afraid they would not like the cake, but happily they both expressed their enjoyment of it. My husband and I are used to eating keto so we thought it tasted great but I was concerned about how it might taste to people who are used to only eating real sugar. I think they were sincere in saying it was delicious. My husband and I certainly thought it was. Thank you for these great recipes!
So glad they liked it!
I’ve made this exactly to your instructions…question…can I do this in a square pan with all of the batter like a sheet cake?…thank you.
Is this a recipe where I can substitute heavy coconut cream for the whipping cream?
In the frosting? No, I don’t think that would work.
How can the carbs be so low if the recipe calls for 2 cups of sweetener? The Swerve sweetener has 8g per tablespoon and with 2 cups, that’s 32 tablespoons or 256g of carbs, plus the carbs from the flours,nuts,.coconut and other ingredients. I am missing something here?
You are missing something, yes. Please read the nutritional disclaimer at the bottom of every post.
So then it isn’t really keto because it still has a ton of carbs. You really should put the Keto tag on it.
I am sorry, you are mistaken. It absolutely is keto, because erythritol has zero impact on blood glucose and thus doesn’t behave like a carb. I suggest you google “keto sweeteners” and do a little research.
looks delicious!! can you substitute some of the almond flour for lipen flour?
I haven’t tried, have fun experimenting!
We have made this cake numerous times and it’s amazing every time. Hooooooow do you do it, creating all these amazing recipes? We’ve also made the lemon poppy one so many times, we’re close to overdose. The coconut cake is currently on the cake dish. I had been getting a lot of keto recipes from a British site, but yours are much tastier, so I think I’ll keep coming back.
I made this cake for Christmas dinner. It was a huge success. So flavourful and beautiful! I enjoyed the process of making this cake. Granted, it was a bit more complicated but so worth it.
I still have some left and am wondering whether the cake can be frozen….
Thank you for this awesome recipe!
Yes, you can freeze it.
Can I use the Swerve confectioners sugar in the cake recipe?
It doesn’t add quite as much volume but you can try it.
Can I make this cake a day in advance? Thank you
Sure!
The sweetener for the cake, should that be powdered or granulated?
Granular
I don’t own a stand mixer. Can I use a hand mixer?
May I ask why you opted not to add protein powder to this cake? (I recently watched your youtube video on the importance of protein powder, so I feel curious.) Is it just that you wanted a denser texture?
This one isn’t more dense because of the whipped egg whites.