The Chocolate Cake I’ll Be Making again and again!
Also known in our house as “John’s Chocolate Cake” — made with fresh milled wheat and so much love.
I made this chocolate cake for John’s birthday this year, and y’all… it turned out so good. Moist, fluffy, rich — everything you want in a chocolate cake. And the best part? It was my first time ever baking a cake with fresh milled hard red wheat. I’ve used it in other things before, but never for a cake — and I was honestly shocked at how soft and flavorful it turned out. I’m used to baking gluten-free most of the time, and I kind of expected it to be denser or drier, but nope — it was amazing.
John kept raving about it and talking about how delicious it was. He absolutely loved it — especially the little chocolate chips throughout — and said he definitely wants me to make this every year for his birthday. That’s about the best compliment I could ask for. He couldn’t even tell it was made with coconut sugar and fresh milled wheat.
So now I’m officially calling it John’s Chocolate Cake, and yes… it’s definitely going to be made again. Probably often. 😋
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John’s Chocolate Cake
Bake at 350°F for 20–25 minutes
This recipe was made with fresh milled hard red wheat berries, but I think it would still work well with whole wheat flour if that’s what you have. The flavor and texture from the fresh flour was just so good.
Dry Ingredients:
• 2.5 cups hard red wheat berries, freshly milled
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp coffee grounds (optional – deepens the chocolate flavor)
Wet Ingredients:
• 1.5 cups coconut sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup applesauce
• 1 cup of the thick cream part from a can of coconut cream
• 1 cup coconut cream milk (the liquid part from the same can)
• 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (optional, but highly recommended!)
Mix your dry ingredients in one bowl and wet in another. Then combine everything together until smooth.
I used two round pans because I wanted to make a layered birthday cake — but if you’d rather keep it simple, you could totally bake this in a 9x13” pan instead. Just keep in mind that the baking time might need to be adjusted a bit depending on your pan size and thickness.
Bake for 20–25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the cake cool completely before adding frosting!
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Simple Frosting (Naturally Sweetened!)
Okay, confession: I always find that making frosting without processed sugar is the hardest part of cake baking. But this one? Total win.
It’s lightly sweet, super smooth, and works really well with the richness of the cake. If you prefer, you can sub the sweeteners and just use maple syrup instead — I’ve tried it both ways and it’s still delicious.
And if you’re like John and me, we’re just not big frosting people to begin with. We always prefer a cake that could stand on its own — and this one absolutely does. To me, that’s a good cake: one that’s made even better with frosting, but doesn’t need it to be amazing.
Frosting Ingredients:
• 1 cup palm shortening
• 1/2 cup agave
• 1/4 cup maple sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
I used my little hand mixer to whip it up until it got light and fluffy — it only takes a couple of minutes, and it makes such a difference in texture!
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A Few Notes:
• The coffee grounds are optional, but I really think they add a beautiful depth to the chocolate.
• Let your cake cool completely before frosting or it’ll melt right off.
• Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 5 days… if they last that long. 😉
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This cake just felt like such a sweet win. Made with ingredients I feel good about, naturally sweetened, and full of flavor — but still soft, rich, and completely satisfying. It’s the kind of cake that makes you want to bake birthdays from scratch every year.
Let me know if you try it — I’d seriously love to hear how it turns out for you! 💛