Chocolate Yogurt Cake is a tasty light, fluffy cake recipe. Incredibly moist rich chocolate cake with dark cocoa powder, greek yogurt, and chocolate chips!
Who doesn’t love easy, popular desserts like Chocolate Cake for special occasions, birthday parties, and weeknight cravings? This single layer Cake Recipe is ready in about an hour and doesn’t need a mixer!
CHOCOLATE YOGURT CAKE
Rich chocolate flavor and a moist crumb are a must have in the best chocolate cake recipes! Traditionally to get a moist, fluffy cake you need a stand mixer and a lot of butter. This chocolate cake recipe replaces the butter with a thick, creamy whole milk greek yogurt for a lighter cake that you can make by hand.
While Chocolate Yogurt Cake has slightly less calories than a regular cake, this isn’t a health food! It is rich and decadent, full of indulgent chocolate flavor in every bite. With added chocolate chips, you get sweet bursts of chocolatey goodness any chocolate lover will adore.
This Chocolate Yogurt Cake recipe uses dark cocoa powder that gives it a darker color and balances nicely with the tart Greek yogurt. Dark cocoa powder, also known as Dutch-process cocoa powder, isn’t as bitter as regular (natural) cocoa powder. Don’t swap regular cocoa powder in this recipe or your cake won’t rise.
This sweet Chocolate Yogurt Cake recipe can be served for breakfast or brunch as a rich, decadent coffee cake. For layered birthday cake, double the recipe and bake in two pans. Frost the cake when cooled with Buttercream Frosting or Dark Chocolate Frosting. For a simple weeknight dessert, a warm slice of this rich chocolate cake is delicious with a scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream.
Tips for Making Chocolate Yogurt Cake
- Use a whole milk greek yogurt for Chocolate Yogurt Cake. There is less oil and no butter in this cake so you want the extra fat to make your cake super moist.
- This cake is made without a stand mixer or hand beaters, so be sure to use a whisk so it creates enough air to make your cake fluffy.
- As with all cakes, you don’t want to over mix your Chocolate Yogurt Cake. Whisk until the flour is just combined and fold in your chocolate chips gently.
MORE DELICIOUS CHOCOLATE CAKE RECIPES:
Triple Chocolate Bundt Cake Recipe
Marble Bundt Cake
Chocolate Lava Cake
Flourless Chocolate Cake (4 ingredients!)
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VARIATIONS ON CHOCOLATE YOGURT CAKE
- Yogurt: You can use any whole milk yogurt for this cake if you don’t like greek yogurt. Try flavored yogurt like chocolate, coffee, or vanilla yogurt too!
- Chocolate Chips: Swap out the semi-sweet chocolate chips for dark chocolate chips or white chocolate chips, or use a mixture of what you have on hand. Use ½ cup baking chips like caramel chips or toffee chips for even more sweetness.
- Nuts: Give your Chocolate Yogurt Cake some crunch by folding in ½ cup toasted pecans, almonds, walnuts or peanuts to the cake batter.
- Applesauce: To make this a healthier Chocolate Yogurt Cake, use ½ cup applesauce for the vegetable oil in the wet ingredients.
- Chocolate Yogurt Cupcakes: Prepare a muffin tin with paper liners. Fill muffin cups up ¾ full and bake at 350 degrees for 18 to 22 minutes.
- Chocolate Yogurt Bundt Cake: Grease a bundt pan with cooking spray before adding your cake batter. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes at 350 degrees. Allow cake to cool completely before inverting on a plate and serving.
Chocolate Yogurt Marble Cake
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- Prepare wet ingredients as normal. Sift all the dry ingredients together except cocoa powder.
- Add flour mixture to wet ingredients like normal, then divide cake batter in half.
- Melt 5 tablespoons butter in microwave and whisk cocoa powder into butter.
- Fold chocolate-mixture into half of the cake batter until just combined.
- Add ½ chocolate chips to chocolate batter and pour chocolate cake batter into prepared pan.
- Top with spoonfuls of vanilla cake batter and gently swirl with a knife to make marble pattern.
- Sprinkle remaining chocolate chips on top and bake as usual.
EASY, CLASSIC CAKES FOR ANY OCCASION
Easy Chocolate Cake
Classic Yellow Cake
Classic Carrot Cake
Red Velvet Cake
HOW TO STORE CHOCOLATE YOGURT CAKE
- Serve: You can keep this Chocolate Yogurt Cake at room temperature for up to 2 hours before it needs to be stored.
- Store: Cover your cake tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 1 week. Bring to room temperature, about 30 minutes, before serving.
- Freeze: Cool cake completely, cover tightly with plastic wrap and aluminum foil and freeze for up to 3 months. To thaw, remove plastic wrap and defrost in the refrigerator overnight.
Ingredients
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt , full fat
- 3 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup flour
- 1/2 cup dark cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a springform pan with baking spray.
- In a large bowl whisk together yogurt, eggs, oil and vanilla.
- Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt and sugar then add to the wet ingredients.
- Stir until just combined.
- Fold in half the chocolate chips and pour batter into your springform pan.
- Top with remaining chocolate chips.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Nutrition
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Can you use whole wheat flour instead of regular all purpose flour? And do you have any healthier alternatives to swap the vegetable oil and sugar with?
I haven’t played with this recipe to make it a healthier version. When I use whole wheat flour I often split the amount of flour the recipe calls for with 1/2 whole wheat and 1/2 all purpose flour so the texture and taste isn’t altered too much. For oil, I wouldn’t got with olive oil. Perhaps an avocado oil? Monk fruit sugar could work. Having said all this, this recipe will definitely taste different with the substitutes. I would be curious to know what you went with and how the cake turned out in texture and taste!
I make this cake often and have found it is a versatile recipe. Often I leave out the cocoa powder and just use chocolate chips in the cake.Today I plan on subbing some of the oil with canned pumpkin and using cinnamon chips in the cake. I hope it turns out well.
You enjoy experimenting in the kitchen like I do Barbara. How did your Chocolate Yogurt Cake turn out with your changes? Thanks for the vote of confidence with the 5 star rating 🙂
Absolutely delicious, quick, easy and moreish! Treat yourself – it’ll be worth it!
Love that the carbs are listed, as my husband counts carbs for his insulin ratio. The portion size would also be helpful
Glad it was helpful. Serving sizes become an issue because people will have ingredients of different sizes. Packaged products are weighed and measured at the time of creation which makes their measurements accurate. The only way to accurately know the measurements of meals is to weigh and divide. Hope that helps.
Best fluffy choc cake I’ve ever made that is high protein. I substituted 1/2 the cocoa with choc vegan protein powder and put it in 2 smaller rectangle silicon molds and it baked in 1/2 hr in my toaster oven. Actually I turned it into red velvet cake by adding red coloring as the protein powder made it a much lighter brown color with a more subtle choc flavor that you would normally taste in red velvet.
A+ on this recipe! Easy to make (I used Cabot Greek 2% vanilla yogurt), baked it in a 9 inch cake pan. It is *delicious* and doesn’t need any icing or accompaniment. It’s not a “heavy” or dense cake – light and full of rich cocoa flavor. Thank you!
This cake is perfect. Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe. Moist, not that sweet, perfectly balanced in flavors. My fav recipe now it’s yours 😉
Greeting from Portugal.
I have been looking for a good chocolate cake recipe for most of my life, so I will be trying this, but I almost never have yogurt around and always have sour cream on hand. Do you suppose that would work as a subtitute?
sure!
Would love to know the size cake tin? 8 inches.. Or more?? Thanks
Excellent recipe. Followed instructions except all I had was low-fat vanilla yogurt so I didn’t add any more vanilla extract & only used 3/4 c sugar. Also used a 9” round pan
Thank you, it’s a keeper!
Gorgeous cake! Very moist and delicious!
Can I lower the sugar quantity to lessen the sweetness? Or substitute anything to less then sweetness?
You can try but I have not tried that so I don’t have any proper suggestions.
This is so easy and comes out perfect every time. I’ve never added the chocolate chips, but it is delicious without. Thank you for a keeper!
Can this chocolate cake be made in 6 inch cake pans? If so how much in each pan.
This is my new ‘go to’ chocolate cake..! I’ve made it several times, now..! All in one bowl..! Easy easy..! Wish there was a way to post a photo..! I used a 9 X 13 pan.. baked for about 30 mins.
Do you think this could be used to make cupcakes? I think the recipe looks great and I want to try it as a cake and cupcakes too if you think it would work! Thanks 🙂
I think it would, but I haven’t tested it so I don’t know what the temperature/timing adjustments would be! Good luck!
What size cake tin should be used for this recipe? I made it in an 8 inch round tin and it took 90 mins to cook.
Any suggestions as to why.
90 minutes? I can’t imagine it taking that long. I made mine in a springform pan, so 9″ around. Have you tested the temperature in your oven recently?
This cake was just decadent! Thank you for sharing it. It will now be my go to chocolate cake fix.
Thanks for the 5 stars, Lydia.
Can you make this in a regular cake pan 9×13 if so what is the baking time?
Yes, though you may need to double the recipe as a 9×13 cake requires between 14-16 cups of batter. It may need about 5-10 minutes less to bake though. I’d check it then and keep an eye on it until a toothpick comes out clean. Hope this helps!
I was suddenly craving chocolate cake. This was so easy, quick and simple. Mixed everything everything in the pan and baked in the same. One pan cake literally! This recipe is for sure a keeper. 🙂
When that craving hits, simple and quick is the best way to go! I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Sara.
Excellent cake! I used whole milk regular yogurt for the first cake and whole milk Greek for the second cake. I use dark cocoa powder to enhance the chocolate. I did add nuts on top, and some espresso powder and a dash of cinnamon. For the second I made, I added some grated orange zest. It’s such an easy cake and delicious, and you can make it whatever you want it to be or have on hand.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
This cake is delicious! It’s chocolatey and moist so pass me another slice! Yummm.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Craig.
Can you make this in a loaf pan? If so what should be the baking time? Would it be better to you two loaf pans?
You’ll be better off using 2 loaf pans with the amount of batter this makes or you can cut the recipe in half. Just make sure the loaf pan is only filled to the half way mark. I haven’t tested it so I’m not sure how long the bake time would need to adjust to but start checking it around the 35 min mark and go from there. Good luck!
Thanks Sabrina!
Can this be baked sunday and served Wednesday please ? ?
Have you made it with a different type of flour? Like rice flour? So it can be a gluten free cafe?
I haven’t tested it but usually you can use an all purpose gluten free flour as a substitute. Good luck!
This was really easy and totally delicious. I loved how moist it was and how full of flavour despite using cocoa powder rather than melted chocolate. I didn’t have any chocolate chips so put in some candied orange peel instead and this was tasty too!
Thanks for the suggestion.
Would it be possible to use nonfat or 2% Greek yogurt in this recipe?
Full fat offers the best flavor. Nonfat contains fillers and stabilizers that change the taste and texture when baking. You might be able to get away with 2% but I haven’t tested it so I’m not sure if it would cause an issue like nonfat does. Good luck!
I made it yesterday and it was a success,delicious!
I would like to make it again using coconut sugar for someone who should not eat white sugar ,do you think it could work? Thanks!
I’ve not tested it with this recipe yet but usually it’s an easy swap however adjustments to the baking time and other ingredients may be necessary. Play around with it and I’d love to know what worked. Good luck!
Plain flour or self raising (Australia)?
All Purpose Flour 🙂 Enjoy!
It’s plain flour in Australia
Made the cake last night so good and moist thank you for sharing
You’re welcome.
Very excited to try this recipe! Love all the tips you suggested!
Thanks, Sophie.
Tried and was awesome ??. Thanku for the simple and yummy recipe??
I tried this recipe and I cannot believe how nice it is with greek yogurt. I will definitely make this again.
So glad you enjoyed it so much, Laura.
Tried and was awesome ??. Thanku for the simple and yummy recipe??
This cake looks so light and fluffy. I am adding it to my bake list for the weekend.
Enjoy!
WOW! I love your recipe. It sounds delicious, and easy to make, too! Cannot wait to try…
Super easy to make! I hope you enjoy it.
This cake looks so rich and decadent. Can’t wait to make this for my family.
Do you use a 9″ springform pan? Can you use a regular 9″ round cake pan? Thank you.
A round cake pan would work too. Enjoy!