Don's Low-Carb Frosted Chocolate Cake

1½ cups finely ground almond flour

2/3 cup unsweetened natural cocoa powder

¾ cup coconut flour

¼ cup flaxseed meal

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

½ teaspoon espresso powder

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened (plus additional for greasing the cake pans)

1 scant cup keto-friendly granulated sugar substitute (such as Swerve)

4 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1½ cups low-fat buttermilk

Frosting

2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla

¼ teaspoon almond extract

1 scant cup keto-friendly powdered sugar (such as Swerve)

½ cup unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa powder

¼ teaspoon espresso powder

¾ cup heavy whipping cream

Place an oven rack in the center position and begin heating the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter the bottom and sides of two 8-inch cake pans; place parchment paper rounds in the pan's bottoms and grease with butter. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together almond flour, cocoa powder, coconut flour, flaxseed meal, baking powder, baking soda and espresso powder. Set aside.

Using a stand mixer beat the butter and Swerve until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time; mixing briefly after each addition. Add and mix in vanilla. Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined; then blend in buttermilk. Divide batter evenly between prepared pans and bake until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out with a few crumbs; start testing at 24 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes, turn out of pans and cool completely.

Make the frosting: In a large bowl, with a hand or stand mixer, beat cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and almond extract together until smooth. Add Swerve, cocoa powder, and espresso powder and beat until no lumps remain. Add whipping cream and beat until combined. If too thick, add additional cream.

Place one cake layer on serving platter and spread a thick layer of frosting on top to the edge. Place the second layer on top, transfer the remaining frosting and spread to the cake's edge.

Keep refrigerated until ready to serve. Serves 16.

Nutrition values per serving: 378 calories (81.2 percent from fat), 34.1 g fat (17.6 g saturated fat), 12.5 g carbohydrates (7.6 net carbs), 4.9 g sugars, 4.9 g fiber, 9.2 g protein, 131 mg cholesterol, 268 mg sodium.

Note: Swerve is made from erythritol, a sugar alcohol. Although a per serving of 24 carb grams would be listed for Swerve, since erythritol calories cannot be absorbed, the calories and carbs are subtracted making net carbs 7.6 and even though erythritol is a sugar alcohol, the amount of actual nutritional sugars from erythritol is zero.

Don Mauer