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Happy Birthday Hayley – Dark Chocolate Coconut Cake

Today is Hayley’s birthday! For her birthday, we stayed up late last night making a cake with all natural ingredients. It is gluten-free, wheat-free, dairy-free and soy-free (essentially allergen-free)… OH, and its delicious too. The recipe below is an adaptation from one posted at Elana’s Pantry – a gluten-free food blog site which we both enjoy.

We hope you will enjoy this recipe when your big day comes up in the next year. We’ll certainly be making this cake again in three months for my birthday, too!

Icing Ingredients:

Icing Process:

  1. On very low heat melt chocolate chips and mix with macadamia oil.
  2. Cool in freezer about 15 min.
  3. Blend with a hand mixer until fluffy.

Cake Ingredients:

  • 10 eggs
  • 1 cup organic raw honey
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup coconut oil
  • 3/4 cup coconut flour, sifted
  • 1 tsp baking soda

Cake Process:

  1. Preheat oven to 325.
  2. In small bowl combine coconut flour, cocoa powder, salt, and baking soda.
  3. In a large bowl blend with a hand mixer combine eggs, coconut oil, melted honey, and vanilla.
  4. Add dry ingredients to wet and continue to blend.
  5. Grease two 9″ round baking pans (we used coconut oil cooking spray).
  6. Pour batter into (2) 9″ round baking pans. Divide evenly.
  7. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.


Cake Assembly:

  1. Let cakes cool and remove from baking pans.
  2. Spread frosting on top of first layer.
  3. Lay second cake on top (frosted area).
  4. Frost top of entire cake, working from top down to the sides.
  5. Sprinkle cake with shredded unsweetened coconut.
  6. Sprinkle sides with left over chocolate chips.
Enjoy, and Happy Birthday Hayley!!



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    COMMENTS

    1. September 1, 2010

      Happy Birthday!!!!
      BTW: Wish I was invited to your party,that cake looks amazing!!!

    2. September 5, 2010

      Hi Trixie!

      Yes, we had a wonderful time eating every last morsel of the cake over the few days since Hayley's birthday (I admit, I had most of it). I'm already looking forward to the next time we make it!

      -TFL

    3. September 7, 2010

      I'm pretty new to the whole primal thing, and I'm wondering if this recipe is truly primal? I'm on the hunt for a dessert recipe as I'm to bring one to a dinner party this weekend. It looks fabulous!

    4. September 7, 2010

      Hi Cheryl –

      Good eye for being a self-proclaimed newbie to primal – this cake is not strict primal/paleo. The thing that makes it outside the lines for the diet is the semi-sweet chips. To make it a little more in-line with primal/paleo, you would want to use a cocoa with a darker percentage. This cake is allergen free, perfect for anyone with celiac disease or CMA (cows milk allergy). It is also free of nuts and soy. It is a delicious healthier alternative for a celebration cake, but like any other dessert, primal friendly or not, best to be a rare indulgence, not frequent.

      We wanted to make this cake as a slight indulgence for Hayley's birthday, and it was great! I saw over on Twitter that you liked our apple crisp recipe – if you are looking for something closer to strict paleo then go with the apple crisp. Please let us know how it turns out for you…
      Thanks for following,
      TFL

    5. November 9, 2010

      Just curious to know if you've ever made this in cupcake format. (If so, time spent in the oven?) I have a "baby's first birthday" party coming up and was thinking that cupcakes would be best because of the age of the guests present. πŸ™‚

      Would love it if using this recipe would work out in that case!

    6. November 10, 2010

      Hi AO

      Yes, you can use this recipe in cupcake form. Bake them for about 20 minutes, then start checking them with the toothpick test. To be safe, keep an eye on them after the 15 minute mark. We haven't tried this in cupcake form yet, but we think they'd make great cupcakes. Let us know how they turn out!

      -Hayley and Bill

    7. December 11, 2010

      Trying this today for my husband's birthday. He's celiac and we eat pretty paleo with the exception of raw dairy. I substituted like 1/4-1/3 of the coconut flour with hazelnut meal…. We will see in 35 or so minutes!
      I'm very excited. I'm thinking of a thin layer of whipped coconut milk with some shredded coconut on top as an icing… he's not as into chocolate as I am… πŸ™‚

    8. February 15, 2011

      I'm going to try this recipe in cupcake form this weekend for my youngest son's 1st birthday! Thanks for the recipe – it looks and sounds delicious. I'll let you know how it turns out. πŸ™‚

    9. March 7, 2011

      This looks delicious.. if I were trying to avoid any type of extra carbs (no honey, agave) do you think the recipe would still work and taste well? Any suggestions? It's my birthday tomorrow and I am having a hard time finding a good cake.. this looks like a winner but I am trying to avoid those "sugars".. thanks!!!

    10. March 7, 2011

      Hi Nadine-

      You could sub stevia extract, or xylitol for the sweetener, or you could make a date paste by pitting about 6-8 medjool dates adding a tablespoon of water, heat in the microwave for 30 seconds,and then mashing them to sweeten it. Those are a few other options if you are avoiding using honey, maple syrup, or agave.

      Good luck!

    11. March 10, 2011

      Hayley and Bill:

      I believe I had also seen a post for a birthday cake made for Bill (with a side of sunbutter cups.) I can't seem to find the link now…
      My b-day is next week and I'll be having a paleo/primal feast for my friends – the cake included! Which of your two birthday cakes did you both favor? Just trying to find the most awesome recipe out there, thanks for sharing!

    12. March 31, 2011

      Is the macadamia-oil essential? I mean for the construction of the icing, not flavour-wise. It's very expensive and hard to come by here in Belgium.

      The only coconutflour I can find has the consistency of sand particles, I can not find it finer (nor grind it myself). Is this suitable for baking?

    13. April 25, 2011

      I love this cake. I have made it a few times now. I was wondering if you had any recipes for a white cake? My son is having a train birthday party and the chocolate does not show the details of the cake train mold. I would much prefer a Paleo cake but think that his train would come out better in a white cake.

    14. April 25, 2011

      Thanks Shan! Actually you can make the exact same cake batter recipe and omit the cocoa powder, and you will have a delicious white cake!

    15. April 25, 2011

      Awesome! Thanks guys. I'll let you know how it comes out.

    16. May 18, 2011

      Was wondering if this would work in a bundt pan instead of 2 round pans?

    17. July 6, 2011

      This is so good! I served it at my sons first birthday party and there was nothing left of it! Even those who love gluten and dairy said they loved it!

    18. December 25, 2011

      This has been my family's favorite cake for the last year. We've made it for everyone's birthday – paleo and non-paleo eaters alike love it. Thank you!

    19. December 28, 2011

      I made this over the holiday and it was a huge hit!! Thank you for the delicious recipe!!

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