This cake is so good! I first made it when I was on my 30-day Real Food diet, which means it’s made with 100% whole wheat and lightly sweetened with maple syrup. Honey is the only other sweetener allowed on the initial diet, and I had limited myself to one treat per week. I scoured the web for sugar-free recipes and when I finally found this one, I ate almost the entire pan in one sitting (and didn’t feel guilty).
One of my tricks for transitioning from white flour to whole wheat was to use whole wheat pastry flour in all my non-yeast recipes. It’s still 100% whole grain, but it’s made from a mildly flavored winter wheat (also known as white wheat, but not to be confused with white flour) and has a finer grind similar to all-purpose flour.
The maple flavor is hardly noticeable after baking, but in addition to sweetening the cake, it helps keep the cake moist with a dense, fudge-like texture. If you want a light, fluffy cake, add ¼ teaspoon baking powder. You’ll end up with a cake like this:
Chocolate Maple Torte

Chocolate Maple Torte (no sugar)
Clean eating chocolate cake that's 100% whole wheat and contains no refined sugar!
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder (optional, see above)
- 1/2 cup butter, melted
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Fruit, for garnish
Lisa T
Monday 16th of January 2023
I made this tonight with gluten free flour 1:1. It was good! Thanks for the recipe!
Rebekah
Tuesday 17th of January 2023
Thanks, good to know!
Patricia Seaton
Sunday 22nd of August 2021
My friend who doesn’t eat wheat or refined sugar asked me to bring a dessert. I made your wonderful recipe using cassava (tapioca) flour instead of wheat and it turned out beautifully. I did use the optional baking powder. Thank you for this!
Laura
Thursday 25th of February 2021
Liked the recipe, easy and just right for chocolate lovers!
Regina A
Wednesday 19th of February 2014
Perfect recipe to have for chocolate lovers!
Haley
Friday 14th of February 2014
I'm looking for some more "real food" dessert recipes, this looks like the one!