This no bake chocolate cake tastes like a flourless chocolate cake, but you don’t need to do any baking. It is easy to make and doesn’t require flour, eggs, or oil. The cake comes out rich and chocolatey.
I am really excited to share this no bake cake. It really does taste a lot like a classic flourless chocolate cake except that it’s not served warm. It’s such an easy dessert and it’s hard to believe that no baking is required.
Ingredients
- Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
- Pumpkin Or Banana Puree
Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips: You can also use bittersweet chocolate chips if you don’t mind that your cake will be less sweet. Most of the sweetness is coming from the chocolate chips, so I prefer to use semi-sweet chocolate chips.
Pumpkin or Banana Puree: This recipe works with both pumpkin puree (a great way to use up some leftover puree) or banana puree (so you can make this cake all year long). If you use pumpkin, the cake will not be quite as sweet. You don’t really taste the pumpkin because the chocolate overpowers the pumpkin flavor. The cake has a bittersweet, rich chocolate flavor. You can use either canned or homemade pumpkin puree.
If you use banana puree, your cake will be sweeter. However, you will also taste the banana flavor. It will taste like banana and chocolate. If you are using banana puree, make sure you actually puree your bananas in a food processor or blender to remove all lumps. Just mashing is not enough. Also, make sure to use fresh bananas. Frozen bananas have too much water. Applesauce is not a good substitute for bananas in this recipe.
Cake Texture
This cake has a similar texture to a flourless chocolate cake. Of course it won’t taste exactly the same, but it is close. A flourless chocolate cake is made up mostly of chocolate and is rich and dense. This is like a chilled version of a flourless chocolate cake. If you decorate it with toppings like a chocolate ganache, it will taste even more like a baked dessert.
Cake Toppings
You can leave the cake plain though it will look a bit rustic. I don’t recommend sprinkling with powdered sugar because the powdered sugar gets absorbed by the cake. For this cake, I added a chocolate ganache. The ganache adds an even richer chocolate flavor.
More Easy Cake Recipes
- 3 Ingredient Cake
- 3 Ingredient Pound Cake
- 2 Ingredient Chocolate Cake
- No Bake Oatmeal Chocolate Cake
Recipe video below. You can also view all my recipe videos on my youtube channel.
2 Ingredient No Bake Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
- 2 cups (365 g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 1/2 cups (334 g) pumpkin puree or banana puree
Instructions
- Grease the interior of a 7 inch springform baking pan. Line the bottom and inner sides with parchment paper.
- In a large microwave-safe bowl, add chocolate chips. Microwave at 1 minute intervals, stirring in between with a spatula, until chocolate is fully melted and smooth. (I needed 2 minutes total cooking time). Alternatively, you can melt the chocolate on the stove using the double boiler method.
- Stir in the pumpkin puree until fully combined. Use your spatula to scrape chocolate from the sides and bottom of the bowl to make sure it is fully incorporated with the pumpkin. You don't want any batter that is just chocolate or just pumpkin.
- Pour batter into prepared pan. Use your spatula to smooth the surface. If you have an icing smoother, you can use that on the surface of the cake to make it even more smooth. Bang the bottom of the pan a few times against your counter to level the cake and remove any air bubbles.
- Place into fridge until cake is set. This can take 30-60 minutes. Once cake is set, you can decorate if desired. Slice cake with a sharp knife. Store uneaten cake in the fridge.
Video
Notes
- To make the optional chocolate ganache frosting you will need 2 oz heavy cream and 1/2 cup (91 g) semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips. Place chocolate chips in a mixing bowl. Heat heavy cream until it reaches a simmer. Pour the heavy cream over chocolate. Immediately start stirring until chocolate is completely melted and smooth. Pour ganache over cake and spread it out across the surface. Place the cake in the fridge until ganache is set. This recipe will give you a thin layer of ganache frosting. If you want a thicker layer, double the recipe. The cake in the photos has a double layer but the cake is so rich that I found a thin single layer was enough.
- If using banana puree, make sure to actually puree it in a food processor or blender. See post for more details about the difference between using pumpkin vs banana.
- Make sure to use fresh bananas. Frozen bananas retain too much water.
- This recipe does not work well with applesauce as a substitute.
- This cake is best made in a springform pan as it will be easier to remove. I made mine in this 7 inch pan.* You can make it in a smaller pan, your cake will just be thicker. I don't recommend making it in anything bigger than 7 inches because your cake will be quite thin.
- The estimated nutrition is for the cake only, not including frosting.
- *This product link is an affiliate link. This means I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases.
Nutrition
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
I want to make this for Thanksgiving and was wondering if I could make it with white chocolate chips instead of semisweet and add some pumpkin spice, so the pumpkin flavor will shine through more? Would using white chocolate chips affect the texture?
The recipe won’t work with white chocolate because it doesn’t have any cocoa powder. The cocoa powder helps the cake set.
Would adding cocoa powder solve the issue of setting?
The cocoa powder helps the cake set.
It says put into prepared pan. Should I grease it or line it with parchment paper?
Thanks!
Yes you need to do both. The steps for preparing the pan are #1 in the instructions.
Can you add anything else to this like vanilla or cinnamon.
You could definitely give it a try and let us know how it worked for you! We have not tested this recipe with those additions.
The 2 ingredient no bake chocolate cake was great…got 5 stars from my family! Couldn’t be easier to make and look oka like a dessert you would get in a fancy restaurant. A nice offset to the chocolate is a raspberry schmeer on the plate under the slice of cake and a couple fresh raspberries
The raspberry is a great idea! So glad you loved the recipe.
Hey,
Your cake looks soo good ? I love cooking ? I’m on a ketosis/omad diet so this is perfect! But I was wondering can I use butternut squash instead of pumpkin if I steam it and then puree it?
That should work!
Melted chocolate in a glass bowl in the microwave, added pureed pumpkin from the blender… It set while I was scraping out the blender jug maybe because I didn’t let the chocolate get too hot?
Wasn’t sure how wise it’d be to zap the whole lot in the microwave so pressed it into silicone cupcake moulds (for better portion control ?)
Very rich and chocolaty, I’ll definitely make again!
Can only get pumpkin here in October, so thinking of trying next time with carrot puree instead….?
The chocolate will start to set as it cools – how long was it sitting before you were able to add all of the pumpkin? We’re glad you enjoyed it, though!
Very yummy and delicious
So glad you enjoyed it!
This was delicious, very tasty and very rich! I don’t know what I did wrong though because it never firmed up. I even tried putting it in the freezer for an hour! It remained gooey even then.
My guests loved it even so…I put fresh raspberries on top of the ganache…who doesn’t like chocolate and raspberries??
No one believed it was only 2 ingredients and that pumpkin was one of them.
Thank you for this recipe!!!
It’s hard to say what happened – it should set up just fine unless something wasn’t measured right. We’re glad you enjoyed it, though!
Hi! Could I sub the chips for just cocoa powder and pumpkin?
You need to use chocolate chips otherwise the cake won’t set up right.
I haven’t tried it yet but I was wondering if I could use sweet potato instead of the pumpkin. Thanks in advance for your reply!
Sweet potato puree should work fine as long as it’s the same consistency as the pumpkin.
Five Stars for the banana version……….Except, it sets more like a dense pie than a cake. So, I set it in a pie plate so I didn’t have to worry about removing it to a cake plate or the degree of a firm set. I made a whipped cream cocoa topping and added marshmallows, small pieces of graham crackers and chocolate pieces on top. It was a huge hit for kids and adults at our July 4th party. I will make this again, my way.
Elyse
Love the toppings you added!
Love this recipe.
It is very rich, almost a fudge consistent.
I did not put the ganache on because I’d want to add heavy cream.
I do melt frozen raspberries in the microwave, add some maple syrup and mash them together.
It’s a thick sauce that we love with it.
I accidently use 72% cacao chips, since I’m vegan, so no dairy, regualar chocolate chips have dairy.
I used it once, wish semi-sweet, it worked out great, but I’ve gone from allow some dairy products and the occasional eggs to totally Whole Food Plant Based. The sweetened raspberries help. If I others find it needs more sweetness, I’ll add some maple syrup to the cake puree.
Only using 1 bag of chips and 2 bananas, you will not product anything like the picture. I used a small Corning Ware casserole dish…about 5.5″ wide. I got a “layer” of chocolate and banana. It’s still yummy because I love dark chocolate, but it’s NOT a “cake” or anything resembling a cake.
Sounds like something went wrong – it definitely should not be layered. The chocolate and banana should be fully mixed. Also, did the amount of banana you used equal the cups measurement in the recipe? Depending on the size of the bananas you use it may not equal 1 1/2 cups. More or less could alter the result.
Instead of using pumplin puree, can i change it into dehydrated pumpkin powder?
Sorry, but we haven’t tried that.
So sorry to say I did not like the taste- but I love chocolate and pumpkin 🙁
We’re sorry to hear that.
I have made this dessert many times now and it is always delicious. It disappears so fast.
It was probably one of the best things I’ve ever eaten! I love that the ingredients are so simple.
We’re glad you liked it!
This was such a tasty cake! I’m not even a huge fan of pumpkin but you can’t even taste it over the chocolate.
If making for a party, can you let it stir l sit out or does it need ro be refrigerated?
You should keep it refrigerated until you’re ready to serve it. It should be okay sitting out at room temperature for a little while.
Very easy to make. Just finished making it and my two children, Isithunzi and Amber can’t stop licking the bowl and my fingers! Oh, and I used Banana and Apple Purity, crushed smarties, a Tex chocolate bar, cake mixed fruit and thinking of trying the Ganache but am worried this will make it too sweet!
We’re so glad you all enjoyed it!
Fast and Good! Great for Children 🙂
So glad you love it!
How would Dark chocolate work in this recipe?
You can use dark chocolate chips, but the cake won’t be as sweet.
i CANT HARDLEY BELIEVE THIS RECIPE BUT I AM SURE GOING TO GIVE IT A TRY. THANK YOU AND GOD BLESS YA ALL. BJ
We hope you enjoy it!
Excellent ? I used semisweet chips added a pinch of salt, because the pumpkin puree tasted a little bit “green”. I am sending one of these wonderful gluten free cakes to my dad. He will be amazed.
We hope your dad loves it, too!
HI
Re the other comment about the can of pumkin… your recipe says ” 1 1/2 cups (334 g) pumpkin puree” … not 2 cups of pumpkin. 1 1/2 C is a 15 oz can. I am making it now, using 1 1/2 C of pumpkin per the instructions, so hopefully that’s correct! 🙂
You should use 1 1/2 cups of pumpkin puree.
This looks brilliant! Is two cups equivalent to one can or more of pumpkin puree?
This recipe uses 1 1/2 cups of puree, not 2 cups.
Great recipe. I can’t wait to try it
We hope you love it!
I made this for Thanksgiving (minus the extra topping) and my family loved it. Thanks for the recipe!
I’m so glad it worked out for you!
Great thanks
You’re welcome!
This sounds so delicious and easy to prepare, I could surprise my wife with a treat.
We hope she loves it!
Very informative, an easy way to satisfy cravings for cake especially for those who can’t bake like me.
Enjoy!
I love it thanks Esasy Recipe to make with out oven
We’re glad you loved it!
Delicious
I’m so glad you liked it
Nice, send me more recipes
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Thank you! What a delightful recipe!
We’re glad you enjoyed it!
Cannot find post for pumpkin vs banana purée…. please direct
It’s explained in the post under the Ingredients section
Two questions:
1. Would it work to add a cookie crumb crust underneath?
2. Would it work in a 10″ spring form pan if I double the recipe?
A crust might work, but the only thing is that it might get absorbed by the cake before it sets so you won’t have a distinctive crust layer. We’ve only tested it in a 7″ pan – you can try doubling the recipe, but there might be too much filling for a 10″ pan if you do that.
I used a regular pie crust. Baked the crust first. Cooled. Then poured in the chocolate/ pumpkin filling. Kept the left over slices in the freezer and thawed as needed. Awesome!
Thanks for letting us know!
Great recipe ideas! I like using milk chocolate and adding a little low fat cream cheese and blending that in. Then a mix of milk chocolate w semi sweet and a touch of vanilla in both.?
We haven’t tried that – let us know how it worked!
So you are eating raw pumpkin puree?
pumpkin puree is already cooked. it’s steamed until soft and then pureed.
Haven’t made it yet, but will be doing ao soon
We hope you like it!
Can’t wait to try this recipe.
Let us know what you think!
Can you do with pumpkin AND banana purée (50/50) together?
We haven’t tried that – let us know how it works for you!
How much puree?
This info is in the recipe card – you will need 1 1/2 cups (334 g) of puree.
Have not had a chance to try it yet but will be using it for Thanksgiving
We hope you enjoyed it!
For the 2 ingredient chocolate cake how many bananas would you mash?
Thank you so much.
Jill
Three to four medium-sized bananas should be enough.
Looking fwd to trying your recipes. Trying to and stay flourless, cutting down carbs.Haven’t tried this recipe yet, but will soon. Thanks !,
Let us know how it worked for you!