You’ll want to make this gluten-free triple chocolate cake for any special occasion! Perfect for holidays, birthdays, or a lazy Sunday afternoon baking adventure. We’re using a combination of cocoa powder, baking chocolate, and dark chocolate to bring delicious deep chocolate flavors all throughout this healthier chocolate cake. A simple frosting made with cream cheese, maple syrup, and cocoa powder gives this cake the extra special touch.

Triple chocolake cake
When I first took a bite of this cake 10 years ago, my mind was blown!
First, I couldn’t believe that I made a cake this good.
Second, I couldn’t believe that it was gluten-free and still fluffy goodness.
Third, I couldn’t wait to share with others!
The chocolate chips that you secretly find sprinkled through the cake batter offer a fun crunch throughout the soft texture of this cake.
The touch of frosting, or glaze, makes it extra sweet and takes the chocolate flavor to another level.
If you are a chocolate fan, this cake is for YOU!

Can you tell that it’s a healthy gluten free cake?
If you didn’t tell anyone this cake was gluten-free, they would never know. I promise you that.
It’s fluffy and flavorful. Sweet and delicious. As chocolaty as it gets!
We’re swapping out white flour for a combination of oat flour, brown rice flour, and coconut flour.
We also swap vegetable oils for avocado oil + applesauce.
And another healthy swap is simply using much less sugar than a traditional cake recipe calls for.
Don’t worry, you sure can’t tell!

What you need for triple chocolate cake
- eggs
- unsweetened applesauce
- almond milk
- avocado oil
- vanilla extract
- oat flour
- brown rice flour
- coconut flour
- cocoa powder
- natural cane sugar
- baking powder
- sea salt
- dark chocolate chips
- unsweetened baking chocolate
Frosting Ingredients
- cream cheese
- maple syrup
- cocoa powder

How to make triple chocolate cake
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line the base of two 6″ round cake pans with parchment paper, and oil the sides.
- In a large bowl whisk together the eggs, applesauce, oil, milk, and vanilla extract.
- Add the oat flour, brown rice flour, coconut flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, and sea salt. Whisk to combine. Do not over stir. It will look slightly lumpy.
- Mix in the chocolate chips and grated chocolate.
- Pour the batter evenly beweetn your prepared pans.
- Bake for 30-34 minutes. Test with a toothpick for doneness. You want a slightly moist toothpick. Not gooey but not bone dry. It will spring back when you press it lightly.
- Let the cake cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then remove and cool on a wire wrack.
- Once the cake is cooling, whisk together the cream cheese, maple syrup, and cocoa powder to make the frosting. When the cake is cooled to the touch, spread the frosting on the top of one cake, top with the other, and then thinly spread the frosting on the top and sides.
- Store your triple chocolate cake covered in the fridge.
Watch how to make this recipe!
Watch the how-to video below, or over on the Fit Mama Real Food YouTube channel.
Substitutions
Below you’ll find a list of substitutions that will work well in this triple chocolate cake recipe.
If you try something different out, please leave a comment below letting us all know how it turned out!
Oat flour – Whole wheat flour works as a substitute for oat flour.
Brown rice flour – Almond flour works as a substitute.
Coconut flour – Don’t have coconut flour? Sub in equal amounts of brown rice flour + 2 additional tablespoons.
Cocoa powder – Cacao powder works just a well!
Natural cane sugar – Coconut sugar is a great alternative to cane sugar in this recipe. Regular white sugar will work too!
Unsweetened applesauce – Try canned pumpkin instead!
Unsweetened almond milk – Use regular milk, or your favorite milk alternative to replace almond milk.
Dark chocolate chips – Semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips work as well.
Maple syrup – Honey works as an alternative. Watch your cake because honey tends to brown a bit quicker in baked goods.
Cream cheese – To get that bit of tang, you can substitute the cream cheese for plain greek yogurt.

Helpful tools when making triple chocolate cake
Here’s what you’ll need to simplify making this cake:
- two 6″ round cake pans (you can also use one 9″ round cake pan)
- parchment paper
- zester
- silicone basting brush

More recipes you’ll love
- Triple chocolate beet muffins
- Gluten free blueberry crumb cake
- Vegan oatmeal chocolate chip cookies
- Healthy no sugar smash cake
Triple Chocolate Cake Gluten Free
Ingredients
- 4 eggs
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
- ¼ cup avocado oil
- 1.25 cups unsweetened almond milk (here’s how to make almond milk at home)
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup oat flour (here’s how to make oat flour at home)
- 1 cup brown rice flour
- ¼ cup coconut flour
- ½ cup cocoa powder
- ½ cup natural cane sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp sea salt
- ½ cup dark chocolate chips
- ½ ounce unsweetened baking chocolate finely grated
Frosting Ingredients
- 2 tbsp cream cheese softened
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 2 tbsp cocoa powder
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line the base of two 6″ round cake pans with parchment paper, and oil the sides.
- In a large bowl whisk together the eggs, applesauce, oil, milk, and vanilla extract.
- Add the oat flour, brown rice flour, coconut flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, and sea salt. Whisk to combine. Do not over stir. It will look slightly lumpy.
- Mix in the chocolate chips and grated chocolate.
- Pour the batter evenly between your prepared pans.
- Bake for 30-34 minutes. Test with a toothpick for doneness. You want a slightly moist toothpick. Not gooey but not bone dry. It will spring back when you press it lightly.
- Let the cake cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then remove and cool on a wire wrack.
- Once the cake is cooling, whisk together the cream cheese, maple syrup, and cocoa powder to make the frosting. When the cake is cooled to the touch, spread the frosting on the top of one cake, top with the other, and then thinly spread the frosting on the top and sides.
- Store your triple chocolate cake covered in the fridge.
Nutrition

If you try this triple chocolate cake recipe, I’d love it if you left a star rating and comment below letting me know how it turned out!
XO
Heather
Originally published March 2012. Updated February 2022.

19 comments
i’m not typically a huge cake fan, but i DO love icing! my favorite is buttercream. ah i could it by the spoonful. haha.
We are so the opposite! I’ll take the cake you can have the frosting 🙂
What a fun special treat! I’m not much of a cake person, but I think I would really enjoy this!!
It’s pretty dang good, I think even non-cake lovers would enjoy it!
Wow, I am going to make this. I can’t eat a lot of sugar while pregnant as it makes me pretty jittry and my heart races. Sugar high!, but this is perfect and I am looking forward to trying the frosting with cream cheese. I like Whipped frosting, using heavy whipping cream and 1/4 cup of cane sugar.
Mmmmm real whipped topping with a touch of sweetness is pretty tasty too 🙂
that looks super good! i would eat the whole thing.
It’s hard not to
Usually I do not like cake or icing but this recipe looks awesome! And I have my brother’s bday coming up, might need to make this, and I even have all the ingredients 🙂
Yay, hope you all love it!!
Yum! I have all the ingredients in my house too!! Looks so good, I could go for a half a cake, I mean a slice right now! 🙂
All ingredients in the house means it’s a sign! Make the cake! Then you can have half of it too 🙂
wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
can we come over and eat some of that dreamy cake with you?
looks perfect!!!
Yes!!!! Better hurry before we polish it off.
That looks sooooooooooooooooooo good! I’m new to coconut flour but really love it. Your photos are wonderful, Heather!
Your cake looks so good! I don’t usually like cake because it’s so sweet, but this one looks perfect! The frosting looks great too – I agree, cream cheese is the best!
[…] triple chocolate cake with tangy cocoa frosting {gluten free} […]
That looks really tasty!
[…] gotta say, I’m surprised there are those of you out there that aren’t big cake fans! I know a couple people that don’t really like cake, and I always think it’s odd. I […]