The Best Ever Healthy Fat-Free Vegan Chocolate Cake

A couple of weeks ago, I shared a post on how to ripen avocados quickly in the oven and mentioned that I needed the avocado to make vegan frosting for the most incredible vegan chocolate cake recipe ever - this is the recipe! Seriously, I'm not vegan or even vegetarian, but this simple little recipe has now become one of my all-time favourite chocolate recipes. It's that good.

The Best Ever Healthy Fat-Free Vegan Chocolate Cake with Strawberries - this really is the ultimate dense and fudgy chocolate cake made with no milk, butter or eggs! | www.happyhealthymotivated.com

How much you like this healthy chocolate cake recipe is really going to depend on how you like your cake. If you like light and fluffy sponge cakes, this recipe probably isn't for you. However, if you love thick, dense, rich and fudge-like cakes, then you're going to fall head over heels for this recipe just like I did.

The Best Ever Healthy Fat-Free Vegan Chocolate Cake with Strawberries - this really is the ultimate dense and fudgy chocolate cake made with no milk, butter or eggs! | www.happyhealthymotivated.com

The best thing about this cake? It's 100% fat-free! If you make it without the frosting, that is. And to be honest, the cake is so deliciously rich and indulgent that it's probably a-okay to eat without the frosting. If you simply can't stomach the thought of eating chocolate cake on its own, try pairing it with a healthy frosting alternative, such as yoghurt, frozen yoghurt or fruit.

The Best Ever Healthy Fat-Free Vegan Chocolate Cake with Strawberries - this really is the ultimate dense and fudgy chocolate cake made with no milk, butter or eggs! | www.happyhealthymotivated.com

But you should totally follow the fat-free chocolate cake recipe as it is below and make the frosting too. Why? Because it's not like ordinary frosting. This frosting is actually good for you! It's made from a ripe avocado, cocoa powder and liquid sweetener of your choice - I used agave nectar. Yes, avocados are loaded with fat, but it's the healthy type of fat that's good for you. In moderation, of course.

 

The Best Ever Healthy Fat-Free Vegan Chocolate Cake with Strawberries - this really is the ultimate dense and fudgy chocolate cake made with no milk, butter or eggs! | www.happyhealthymotivated.com

What type of cakes do you prefer - the light and fluffy sponge-type cakes or the dense and rich fudge-type cakes? Even if you prefer the former, more traditional type, I implore you to give this recipe a go. You're seriously missing out if you don't!

📖 Recipe

The Best Ever Healthy Fat-Free Vegan Chocolate Cake with Strawberries - this really is the ultimate dense and fudgy chocolate cake made with no milk, butter or eggs! | www.happyhealthymotivated.com

The Best Ever Healthy Fat-Free Vegan Chocolate Cake

Print Pin Rate
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 4 hours
Servings: 8 slices

Ingredients

for the cake

  • ¾ cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • ½ cup cocoa powder
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup applesauce
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ cup strong brewed coffee

for the frosting

  • 1 ripe avocado
  • ¼ cup cocoa powder
  • ¼ cup honey/agave nectar/other liquid sweetener
  • optional: 8-6 strawberries

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 355F/180C and grease a small round cake tin.
  • In one large bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
  • Make a well into the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the applesauce, vanilla extract and coffee.
  • Carefully stir the wet ingredients into the dry until they're just combined - don't over-mix! If your cake batter is a bit thick (we're looking for a thick, yet pourable consistency here) feel free to add water in tablespoon measurements until you get the right consistency.
  • Pour the cake batter into the greased tin and bake in the pre-heated oven for 35-40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.
  • When baked, leave the cake in the tin and place it on a wire rack for at least three hours until totally cool.
  • Whilst the cake is cooling, make the frosting. Slice the avocado in half, remove the stone and scoop out the centre.
  • Place the avocado into a food processor and blend for around 3 minutes, until completely smooth.
  • Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the processor bowl and add in the cocoa powder and sweetener of your choice.
  • Process again for another minute, until all the ingredients are totally combined. You might have to scoop down the sides of the processor bowl again to make sure everything is totally mixed in.
  • When the cake is cool, slice it into 2 layers and spread the top of one half with all the chocolate avocado frosting.
  • Slice up all the strawberries and lie them flat on top of the frosting.
  • Top the frosting with the other layer of cake and decorate with one final strawberry chopped into quarters.

Notes

Recipe inspired by Southern in Law.
This cake will keep perfectly well inside a sealed container in the fridge for up to five days or in the freezer for up to six months. Due to the fresh avocado, it's not a good idea to store the cake at room temperature.

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About Nicola

I’m Nicola, the face behind Happy Healthy Motivated – your go-to guide to becoming your best you!
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  1. June Burns

    That looks awesome! Can hardly believe it is fat-free. The avocado frosting sounds amazing too 🙂

    • Nicola Quinn

      Thanks so much, June! When I made it, I wasn't expecting it to be as good as it was, since it's fat-free, but it really was incredible!

  2. Erin @ Miss Scrambled Egg

    What an awesome concept! I love that you used avocado as the creamy component to the frosting. Can we say...piece of cake! Or is that just cheesy. Too many food puns right now. I need to stop. Anyways, I am not a vegan, but I'd totally dive into this cake. 😀

    • Nicola Quinn

      Haha! Love the bad puns, Erin! It was my first ever vegan dessert and it really was delish!

  3. Krissy @ Pretty Wee Things

    Healthy...fat free!! Yum! Love the idea of using avocado!

    • Nicola Quinn

      I know! It sounds too good to be true, right, Krissy? But it's totally not!

  4. Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine

    This looks fantastic! Always a fan of ALL the things chocolate 😉
    #FavoriteThingsHop

    • Nicola Quinn

      You sound like my kind of chocolate-loving foodie, Rebecca! Thanks for stopping by 🙂

  5. Erika

    I've always wanted to try a vegan dessert, I'm really curious about what it tastes like. Thank you for sharing it in the Thursday Favorite Things blog hop!

    Erika
    http://whaterikawears.com/

    • Nicola Quinn

      This was my first vegan dessert and I was totally blown away, Erika! If you're ever going to try one, I'd definitely recommend this one!

  6. Miz Helen

    What a great Chocolate Cake and I love Strawberries with Chocolate! Thanks so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday and have a great week.
    Come Back Soon!
    Miz Helen

    • Nicola Quinn

      Thanks so much, Helen. I love chocolate and strawberries, too!

  7. ski

    Would yogurt work in place of applesauce -I have seen it in a brownies how-to where both applesauce and yogurt have been used to replace oil? Would it work here?

    • Nicola Quinn

      You can definitely use yoghurt in place of applesauce in this recipe, Ski. The texture might be a little different (it might even be better!) but the flavour will be the same. Have fun! 🙂

  8. LJ

    Hi!

    Can anyone tell me what would be the size of the cake tin for this cake?

    Can't wait to bake it but need to get a small tin 🙂

    Thanks!

    • Nicola

      Thanks so much for stopping by, Lj! I baked it in a 20cm / 8inch round cake tin 🙂

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