The Chocolate Cake I Make When I Want Something Sweet (With No Regret)

This is one of those recipes that quietly earns its place in your regular rotation.

It’s the cake you make when you want chocolate, but not the crash. When you want something moist and satisfying, but still made with ingredients that feel intentional. No refined sugar. No gluten. And no one eating it would ever guess that. Just pure moist, fudgy, decadent chocolate heaven!

Sweetened with coconut sugar, kept tender with applesauce, and made with gluten free flour, this cake is a rare balance between indulgent and sensible. Just before baking, the batter gets a generous sprinkle of dark chocolate chips — or Lily’s if you prefer — which melt into the top and create little pockets of richness without overwhelming the cake.

Recipes like this are the heart of the cookbook I’m slowly building: unfussy, reliable, and made for real life. Consider this one a preview.

Almond flour note: A short word about my switch from Almond Flour, which seems like an obvious choice, and which I have enjoyed often over the last 4 years in my baking.

Almond flour ruined the texture and made the cake heavy and dense.
As my approach to food has evolved, I’ve learned more about oxalates and how they can affect some people. Because almonds and almond flour are high in oxalates, they’re not ingredients I rely on anymore. It may or may not be relevant for you, but it’s worth looking into and deciding for yourself.

This is how I bake most of the time — ingredients that support me about 90% of the way, with room for enjoyment built in. Chocolate included. Welcome to my 90/10 life.

Moist Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake

With Coconut Sugar, Applesauce & Dark Chocolate Chips

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups gluten free all purpose flour
1 cup coconut sugar
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
6 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
1 cup water
½ cup dark chocolate chips or Lily’s chocolate chips, for topping

Instructions:

Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C).
Line a 11 x 7 pan with parchment paper. See Notes. This recipe also works well with cupcakes!
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, coconut sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt until evenly combined.
Add the apple cider vinegar, vanilla extract, and applesauce. Mix until well incorporated.
Slowly pour in the water, mixing until smooth. The batter will be thin — this is what keeps the cake moist.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
Sprinkle the chocolate chips generously over the top.
Bake for 25–30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out just clean. In my oven, its exactly 27 minutes.

Notes & Variations

Pan size: This recipe works especially well in a 11 x 7-inch pan.
Cupcakes: Bake at 350°F for 20–22 minutes.
About cupcakes! Let cupcakes rest a few hours or overnight — the liners release much better if they have had time to rest.
Lightly oil the pan first, then line with parchment paper — the oil helps the parchment stay in place.
Chocolate choice: Dark chocolate chips for richness, Lily’s for a lower-sugar option — both work beautifully.
No frosting needed: The melted chocolate on top adds just enough indulgence.
Use a gluten-free all-purpose flour blend designed for baking. Results may vary slightly depending on the blend used.
Other sugar substitutions work as well, like monk fruit sugar.