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
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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Although the flavor is delicious, the cake is very dry. Is there something I can pour over the layers when they come out of the oven to moisten the cake?
If it’s dry, then you over-baked it.
I made this cake to eat for my birthday. This is the best cake I would even eat it if it wasn’t low carb. It doesn’t taste low carb at all. So rich and delicious. Thank you so much!!!
So glad to hear it!
How can I calculate the sugar in this recipe?
1.8g per serving.
The cake looks amazing and looking forward to tasting it. However, did I miss something in the recipe??? (I have gone back and re-read twice more)
Where does it say to use 2 cake pans? Must have missed that part.
You are correct, it was missing the word “two”, although it does say “pans” and I do talk about it in the write up. But I have fixed it now.
I used three 6 inch pans and it turned out beautifully!
Sounds lovely and tall!
Had excellent results replacing the vanilla with maple flavoring! Maple gives the flavor of brown sugar.
I just got a message from Pinterest stating they had to remove my pin and it was this Italian cream cake. The Pinterest option is on your site to save so why are we not allowed to save using Pinterest?
Hi Tammy. Sorry, it’s not you. It’s actually that someone stole my photos and recipe and posted it on another site so I had Pinterest remove them at my request. It’s not supposed to remove the one that links to my actual blog, although they may have done so. Do feel free to pin from here. But if you ever see one of my recipes with a link to another site, I’d love for you to let me know.
HOLY CANOLY THIS IS AN AMAZING CAKE!!!! HANDS DOWN THE BEST KETO DESSERT I’VE EVER MADE.
I MADE IT EXACTLY AS WRITTEN (EXCEPT ADDED ALOT MORE TOASTED COCONUT AND PECANS FOR GARNISHING) AND COULD NOT BELIEVE HOW GOOD IT WAS. MOIST & PERFECTLY SWEET. I HAD TO IMMEDIATLY CALL MY MOM & TELL HER HOW GOOD IT WAS AND RAN HER A SLICE OVER. YUM!!!! WILL DEF MAKE THIS AGAIN AND AGAIN…..AND AGAIN 🙂
So glad you liked it!!!
I have been Keto for just about 2 weeks and this will be my first time making a low carb cake. Cant’t wait! (My family will be the guinea pigs at my mom’s birthday party tomorrow!) I am not a fan of coconut and plan on omitting the flakes in the cake. Will the coconut flour give the cake a noticeable coconut flavor? Can I add more almond flour in it’s place? Thank you!
The coconut flour gives it substance but you can’t taste it. But for the shredded coconut, you will need to replace that with almond flour.
Hi. I’ve been following your recipes and have a few. I now live abroad and can’t get all the right flours andsweeteners all of the time. Could I substitute the flours for all-purpose and sweetener for sugar?
In the. meantime I’ll start sourcing my cake items!
My recipes are formulated for almond and coconut flours. Unfortunately, all purpose wheat flour won’t work. Substituting sugar would be fine in most cases.
Made this this evening, I was so impressed with the way it looked coming out of the oven……………….thinking it will sink or deflate as it cools like the Keto bread I made once. But it DIDN’T!!!. I made it in a 7×11 inch pan is the only thing I did different from the recipe. I had to take a little corner piece to taste, I’m taking it to lunch tomorrow. It is so good!!! This is a keeper!!!!
Thank you Carolyn for sharing.
So happy to hear it!
Excellent instructions, followed as directed and the cake turned out beautifully. It’s moist and delicious! I will be making this again. Thank you so much! I love your recipes!
Carrie
I made the Italian Cream Cake for Valentine’s Day and it was amazing!! The only thing I found, is that my hubby and I both experienced a peppery aftertaste. I am thinking it is the Swerve ( first time I ever tried Swerve). It was not too strong, but both our tongues tasted pepper! Any one else have this reaction? Otherwise cake was yummy! ( I did substitute Walnuts for the pecans). We both loved it!!
Such a huge hit. So delish!
This cake looks incredible! And I love that it’s low carb!
This cake is so good. We love Italian Cream cake and I love that this is low carb!
This is totally my kind of cake!! It looks and sounds SO delicious!! Aaand its Keto…wow!! A MUST try!