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Healthier Chocolate Cake tastes like a double chocolate chip banana muffin! No sugar, butter or oil but uses bananas, greek yogurt and honey instead!
This Healthier Chocolate Cake recipe contains ZERO sugar, butter, or oil. And this is just the first recipe out of several that we’re going to share that is healthier.
Is It Even Possible To Make a Healthier Chocolate Cake?
WHAT?! I know.. I was wondering if I was going crazy because butter & sugar are like my BFFs.
I never really saw this day coming.. it wasn’t really intentional. Well, kind of. Obviously with it being January and everyone is jumping on the gym and healthy eating train.. what’s a dessert blogger to do?
I wallowed with a big bowl of ice cream for a while, but than I thought “Is it possible to make a baked recipe with NO sugar?”
All of my friends who are healthy and paleo bloggers are probably laughing right now since that’s their jam, but I set out to discover if this whole no sugar thing could work.
After I baked up this awesome chocolate cake, I was bragging to Ryan that it didn’t have any sugar, but that it’s sweetened by bananas and honey, but being the chemist he is, he totally called me out and said that honey is sugar.
Well yeah.. but it’s more natural sugar I replied, and then he ate like 4 pieces of this cake. Booyah, honey for the win!
Protein balls are another great sweet but healthier treat option to try!
Healthy chocolate cake ingredients
- bananas: sweetness and fat
- greek yogurt: healthier fat compared to oil or butter
- honey: natural sweetener compared to sugar
- vanilla: flavor!
- creamy peanut butter: healthy fat and flavor
- egg: leavener and binder
- all purpose flour: gives structure
- cocoa powder: deep rich chocolate flavor
- baking soda: leavener
- chocolate chips: hello, necessary!!
How to make healthier chocolate cake with bananas from scratch
- Blend the bananas, greek yogurt, honey, vanilla, and peanut butter.
- Pour the blended mixture into a mixing bowl. Add the egg and mix in.
- Add the flour, cocoa powder, and baking soda, mix until incorporated.
- Add the 1/2 cup of chocolate chips, mix.
- Pour the cake into the prepared pan. Sprinkle addition chocolate chips on top of the cake if desired. Bake for 27-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
What does healthier chocolate cake taste like?
The best way to describe this skinny chocolate cake is that it tastes like a GIANT banana chocolate chocolate chip muffin! It’s so good by itself and it’s also really good with ice cream (espresso chip, just in case you were curious!)
Whenever I get a hankering for brownies, I’m going to bust out this recipe. I love that it’s better for me but taste just as good!
More healthier desserts
Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies
Healthier Fudgy Brownies
Healthier Banana Bread
Healthy Dark Chocolate Cookies
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Healthier Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
- 3 bananas, ripe
- ½ cup greek yogurt, vanilla or plain
- ⅓ cup honey
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp creamy peanut butter
- 1 large egg
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour **can be made GF, see note
- ⅓ cup cocoa powder
- 1 ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- mini chocolate chips for sprinkling on top
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350º F.
- Spray an 8 inch square pan with cooking spray.
- In a blender, combine the bananas, greek yogurt, honey, vanilla, and peanut butter. Blend until smooth, 1-2 minutes.
- Pour the blended mixture into a mixing bowl. Add the egg and mix in.
- Add the flour, cocoa powder, and baking soda, mix until incorporated.
- Add the 1/2 cup of chocolate chips, mix.
- Pour the cake into the prepared pan. Sprinkle addition chocolate chips on top of the cake if desired.
- Bake for 27-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclosure
All nutritional values are approximate and provided to the reader as a courtesy. Changing ingredients and/or quantities will alter the estimated nutritional calculations.
Is there any way to get a nutrition breakdown? How many grams of protein, fiber, sugar per serving? I’m trying this recipe regardless, but was curious if anyone knew.
Hi this looks great. Any idea for something I could use other than banana as my other half is allergic?
I was just wondering if zucchini could be used for the bananas.
Hi Roxie! I’ve only tried this recipe using bananas so at this moment I cannot recommend a proper substitute.
This cake is in my oven as I type this and my house smells like literal heaven. This is now my new go-to chocolate cake recipe!! Thank you SO much for sharing! <3
Made this tonight and it was amazing!
Thank you so much for this recipe!!!! I made it sans chocolate chips and added avocado dark chocolate frosting from Veggie Primer, plus a pile of sliced strawberries…. YUM. It made a delicious birthday cake, with much less sugar!
That sounds AMAZING!!
What can you use in place of bananas?
My daughter made this cake last night. Oh my!!! This was absolutely delicious. The texture was indeed moist, light, and fluffy. My husband took one bite and said, “I taste banana.” He really liked it as he is not much on sweets….but had a second piece of this! We did not have chocolate chips on hand so my daughter decorated with fresh strawberry slices instead. We also only had pina colada flavored yogurt so that was a bonus flavor!! Thank you for sharing!
Ronee, sounds like you really made it your own, way to go!!!!
I was looking for something healthy to make for my husband’s birthday cake – luckily my son’s girlfriend found this recipe on Pinterest! I used coconut peanut butter but besides that I followed the recipe exactly. I probably undercooked it a bit as the center collapsed as it cooled – BUT it was so delicious!! I did not have the mini chocolate chips on top, but rather surrounded the piece of cake with fresh blueberries, raspberries, blackberries and nectarine chunks – LOVE summer time!
Wow! I love how you added the fresh fruit, that sounds lovely!
OK I’ll agree with everyone, it LOOKS wonderful, however, it is really quite nasty! We followed this completely, no sustitutions. It has no flavor and when cooled is rubbery in consistency. As an attempt to salvage this even made a chocolate sauce with almonds on top. No help. This is simply NOT a good recipe. Next.
Hi Victoria, I’m sorry the recipe didn’t turn out. Did you over bake it? Did you overmix the batter? If we were neighbors I’d be happy to make it for you!
Incredible cake ! One of the best I ate in my life. Super healthy. Makes a good thing for sugar cravings. Thanks !
I am so glad you loved it! We love it too!