This Slow Cooker Keto Lemon Cake is sugar free, gluten free, grain free, low carb and filled with a lemony custard and fresh blueberries! Just 1 g net carbs and perfect for either a low carb diet or keto diet!
Low Carb Custard Lemon Cake Recipe
If you love creamy custard and you love all things lemon, you will love this easy lemon cake made in the slow cooker or oven directions provided below!
This combo of custard plus cake textures will rock your boat! Lemon lovers should look no further, this is full of lemony, zesty flavor, but even if you're not much into lemon you can easily adjust the amount used in this recipe to your liking!
If you've never made a dessert in a crock pot, welcome to a whole new world you will soon fall in love with! If you can accept a free form style of dessert, using the slow cooker is the way to a stress free dessert experience!
Carbs in Traditional Custard Cake
According to the Cronometer app I use, 100 grams or one serving of custard cake that uses regular sugar has 54.2 grams of carbs and 370 calories. That is a blood sugar spike instantly after eating it.
Our keto version of custard cake has 191 calories and just 3 grams of carbs for one serving plus 2 grams dietary fiber so that is just 1 g net carbs.
Much better for those of us on a keto diet or low carb diet and being careful of raising blood sugar. The full nutritional information is at the bottom of this blog post in the recipe card.
How many carbs should I eat on Keto?
Balanced blood sugar is an important part to pay attention to if you are working on weight loss.
Whether you follow a ketogenic diet or not, if you spike your blood sugar eating high carb and sugar foods, you stop your bodies ability to tap into it's own fat stores to lose weight.
High blood sugar means fat storage.
I recommend to my coaching clients to eat no more than 40-50 total carbs per day if you are on a low carb diet and 20-30 total carbs per day on a keto diet.
How much fat should I be eating to lose weight?
Each person is different and there is no one size fits all that works for everyone. A keto diet also does not mean you need to eat a high fat diet.
If you haven't been successful losing weight on a traditional keto diet eating 70% fat, try reducing it to 60% or 50% daily fat intake a few days a week which may help budge your weight loss.
That's exactly what I needed to do in my own life in order to get the needle to move in the right direction.
I even created a course called Stall Busters which provides you 4 weeks of meal plans plus a weekly quiz that accesses your progress and recommends meal plans that I provide with 50%, 60% and 70% fat intake.
Slow Cooker Keto Custard Cake
Crock Pots or slow cookers, whatever you like to call them, are awesome to use for savory meals any time of the year.
But once you venture to the dessert side, you will be surprised at how quickly you will be hooked to making a slow cooked low carb dessert for friends and family.
As long as you're not looking for a perfect looking cake, neat and tidy kind of cake and you're more interested in delicious recipes with simple ingredients, this tasty treat is perfect for family and/or company. This is a perfect dessert in the crock pot!
Dump the cake batter, make sure it's plugged in, cover and set! Come back in a few hours for some delicious custard cake with the perfect balance of bright lemon flavors!
Coconut is Not a Nut
My youngest child, who is quite the coconut hater, can't tell this slow cooker cake is made with coconut, and that has been what has driven me to continue to persevere with coconut flour.
Youngest has a tree nut allergy so very often I've got to make low carb recipes using coconut flour as opposed to almond flour. Often he can detect it and makes complaints. But not this year folks, not this year. I am winning 5 out of 5 thus far!
I'd like to clear up this constant question get asked almost daily about whether coconut is a nut. While the US Food & drug Administration (FDA) claims that coconut is a tree nut becomes it comes from a tree, it is in fact a FRUIT. People who have tree nut allergies may be allergic to coconut as well, but being allergic to coconut is not the same as having a tree nut allergy.
My own son was diagnosed with a Peanut and Tree Nut allergy at the age of 2. He has safely eaten coconut all these years without issue and he is now 14. Coconut is a fruit, called a drupe. It's like a peach with a pit.
The American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology says it well: "Coconut is not a botanical nut: it is classified as a fruit, even though the FDA recognizes coconut as a tree nut.
While allergic reactions to coconut have been documented, most people who are allergic to tree nuts can safely eat coconut. If you are allergic to tree nuts, talk to your allergist before adding coconut to your diet."
I've made a Chocolate Tiramisu Cake Roll, Low Carb Cheddar Sausage Bagels, Tiramisu Mug Cake Low Carb Banana Cream Pie Cupcakes and now this and he's had no idea!
Easy Slow Cooker Keto Cake
The texture of the cake is amazing!
It tastes like a custard, but it is formed like a cake! Easy to make, no oven required! Set it and forget it!
Top with some sugar free whipped cream and a few berries and call it a day!
Can I swap the sweetener used?
You can substitute the Swerve sweetener with another sugar free sweetener of choice, but often other brands are sweeter so I would either use ¼ cup of something else or eliminate the lemon stevia.
If you don't want to use any sweetener that contains erythritol, you could swap the Swerve sweetener I used with this Monk Fruit Sweetener that also includes Allulose in it's blend and no erythritol.
Here's my Sweetener Guide & Conversion Chart.
Can I swap the heavy cream?
You could even use canned coconut milk in place of the heavy cream and make it dairy free. I don't recommend using unsweetened almond milk and it doesn't have enough fat to make this cake custard like in texture.
Can I swap the lemon?
If you're not a fan of lemon as much, reduce the amount of juice I used here to just ¼ cup or you could even swap it with lime juice if you prefer.
If you're not much of a fan of lemon than perhaps you'd like my Crock Pot Fudge.
Can I swap the coconut flour with almond?
I get asked this question almost daily and the short answer is no they can't be swapped, at least not with the same amount. Coconut flour is dense and needs more liquids and eggs.
About ¼ cup of coconut flour is equal to about 1 cup almond flour.
I would still recommend using coconut flour as you really will not detect a coconut flavor because the lemon is a strong flavor and takes over in this lemon cake.
Can I make this in the oven instead?
Yes if you don't want to use the slow cooker, you could bake this in the oven instead.
I'd recommend preheating your oven to 325 degrees and greasing a 9 by 13 baking dish.
Follow the instructions and pour the batter into the greased baking dish. Baking time will vary depending on whether you have a gas or electric oven.
If you have an electric oven bake for 30 minutes or until the center is puffed and a toothpick in center comes clean. If you have a gas oven you may need to bake 5-10 minutes longer.
More Keto Lemon Desserts
Low Carb Lemon Cheesecake Jars with Lemon Cookie
Keto Sugar Free Lemon Curd Parfaits
Slow Cooker Keto Lemon Custard Cake Recipe
CrockPot Blueberry Lemon Custard Cake
Ingredients
- 6 eggs separated
- ½ cup Coconut Flour
- 2 teaspoon lemon zest
- ⅓ cup lemon juice or see notes above
- 1 teaspoon lemon liquid stevia
- ½ cup Swerve confectioners sweetener or see notes above
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups heavy cream
- ½ cup fresh blueberries optional or any fresh berries you like
- optional toppings; sugar free whipped cream or sour cream, lemon zest
Instructions
- Place the egg whites into a stand mixer and whip until stiff peaks form. Set aside.
- In another bowl, whisk the yolks and remaining ingredients together except blueberries.
- Fold the egg whites a little at a time into the batter until just combined.
- Grease the crock pot and pour the mixture into the pot.
- Sprinkle the blueberries over the batter.
- Cover and cook on low 3 hours or until a toothpick come out clean.
- Allow to cool with cover off for 1 hour then place in the refrigerator to chill for 2 hours or overnight.
- Serve cold with a little sugar free whipped cream if desired.
- Cover with plastic wrap or store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
About Brenda
Brenda Bennett is a certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, certified Sugar Detox Coach, certified Keto Coach and certified Life Coach. She has been Sugar Free & Refined carb free for 17 years and has written 2 cookbooks, Sugar-Free Mom, and Naturally Keto and her 3rd book The 30-Day Sugar Elimination Diet, is a four part program to help you detox from sugar, eliminate cravings, balance blood sugar and lose weight all while eating a delicious, nutrient dense whole foods. Meal plan offers two tracks to follow, low carb or keto. She is the founder of the Sugar Free Fresh Start course and Sugar Free Tribe weight loss membership. Learn more.
Sarah
Can I use xylitol instead of erithytol?
Brenda
Yes but probably use less as swerve is not as sweet as xylitol.
Erica B
Hi Brenda, I notice that you frequently say Swerve is less sweet than xylitol or other sweeteners. It's true that straight erythritol is about 70% as sweet as sugar, whereas xylitol is supposed to be about equal to sugar in sweetness. According to the manufacturer, though, Swerve (which is erythritol + oligosaccharides) is equal in sweetness to sugar and measures 1:1, like most granulated xylitol. Sweeteners taste so different from one person to the next, so I totally get that, per your comments, Swerve is likely less sweet for you. Actually, it is less sweet for me too, so much so that I rarely use it without supplementing a few packets of Truvia or another sweetener! Nevertheless, according to the manufacturer, Swerve is apparently sweeter than you and I perceive it to be. Just wanted to let you know!
Sarah
I don't have swerve sweetener, so could I use xylitol?
Michael Franco
This never formed up for me. Cooked it for about 5 hours and a toothpick never came out clean. Just got a lump of mush. Got any idea what might have happened? The only change I made was to use 1/2 cup of coconut sugar instead of Swerve.
Brenda
Did you use almond milk?
Kristen
Could I make these as cupcakes in the oven? What baking temperate and time do you estimate?
Brenda
You could and do a water bath for them and bake at 325 for maybe just 30 minutes.
Kristina
This looks & sounds amazing! Was wondering if i can use regular sugar(reg. or brown) as artificial sweeteners usually give me bad headaches. Also can you use regular flour? One last question can almond milk be used & if so would it be a diff measurement as the consistency is diff?
Ty so much! Can't wait to try this!
Brenda
You can use regular flour and any sweetener you like. Using almond milk which doesn't have much fat will not produce a nice custard like texture.
Kay
I just made this. Can't wait to try it on later. Can I freeze left over?
Brenda
Custards can be funny when frozen, might loose the nice creamy texture when it thaws out.
Jos
Would this work if I replaced 2 cups heavy cream with 2 cups of almond milk instead? The fat content is way too much for me using 2 cups of heavy cream. Thanks!
Sally McKelvy
I wouldn't. Almond milk is much thinner than cream, and would likely require significant tweaking of the rest of the ingredients.
Maybe try it with canned coconut cream? 16 gm fat per 1/3 cup vs 26 gm fat per 1/3 cup heavy cream.
Julie
Hi from Australia,
I made this desert tonight & it was quite yummy & worked well, although mine was a little darker around the edges & cooked in about 2 hours.
However, I only used a pure form of Stevia powder to sweeten it which unlike the granular stevia based sugar replacements contains no sugar alcohols. I use this product because the erythritols etc make my stomach gurgle like crazy! But the stevia is a fine powder & I only need a teaspoon of it for example. Can you suggest something else I can combine with my stevia powder to provide the bulk of the granular products in your recipes & still be sugar free? Or do you think the bulk of the granular sugar replacers isn't a big factor in a recipes success?
Thanks.
Brenda
I've not used Xylitol but heard it's similar to sweetness of sugar, but not sure if it would bother your stomach like erythritol.Another option might be monk fruit, but again I haven't used it much but I've heard good things about the Lakanto brand.
Carmen
I use Monkfruit and love it. I get it from the bulk food store and does not effect sugar alcohols at all.
Debbie T
You could try 'Just Like Sugar'. It is all natural and made from chicory root, calcium, natural flavors from the peel of the orange and Vitamin C. http://www.justlikesugar.com/
Robin Rodgers
FANTASTIC!!! I used a combo of Swerve and SweetLeaf Stevia and it tastes like it was made with sugar. It has a lemon meringue flavor, which is a fav from my childhood. Hubby loves this dessert as well. Thank you!
Jenniffer
Can you sub almond flour for the coconut flour? If so, same amount as the coconut flour?
Amy Letzkus
interested in the response to this as well .. I have a coconut allergy.
Brenda
Unfortunately swapping almond and coconut is very difficult without having to change other liquid ingredients in a recipe as coconut is so much more absorbent. I am only guessing since I can't use almond since my son has a tree nut allergy. I think you'd need to at least double the amount I used for coconut flour, but again not sure how the custard texture will come out since I've not tested it.
Beryl
I know this is a sugar free website but I don’t believe in stevia or any of the other fake sugars. I cannot stand the taste of stevia. Could I use coconut sugar? I don’t need to be sugar free but am trying to cut down on sugar without having to use the pretend stuff.
Brenda
You can certainly use whatever sweetener you prefer.
Hope Woods
Hi,
Loved the looks of this and was so excited to make it but didn't turn out as I had hoped. I used 2 cups coconut almond milk instead of the cream and used 1/2 cup of powdered stevia instead of swerve (couldn't find it in either of the grocery stores I frequent) and omitted the lemon stevia since I don't care for really sweet taste. Cooked for 3 hrs on low but it definitely wasn't cake like, more like a sopping wet sponge. Maybe if using coconut almond milk you would have to decrease that or increase the flour? Loved the lemon and blueberry together though 🙂
Hope Woods
Addendum to my previous comment, maybe I was a little anxious and did not let it cool enough.... after being in the fridge the consistency is perfect now and it is wonderful 🙂
Roshani Khanna
Oh my gosh this looks so good! I am over here drooling over this dish right now. I am all over this. I can’t even stop starring.
Charmaine McKinney
I can't have dairy so could I use coconut milk?
Suzi
I want to make this tonight but have heavy cream instead of light. Will it work as well?
Brenda
Oh sure, and it will probably be delicious!
Denelle
Ok, I feel dumb.... do I serve this out of the crock pot or remove it to serve? I'm so excited about this, it's cooking now for a pot luck at work tomorrow!
Brenda
I serve out of the crock pot piece by piece.
Denelle
Thank you so much for your quick reply! I thought that this would be the best way, but just wanted to be sure ?
Debbie
I made this last night and it turned out really well! I used 1/4 cup of erythritol and 10 drops of liquid stevia. I also used chopped up strawberries because that's all I had. I actually think I left too much air in the custard, it would be nice if it was denser. Never thought that could happen! Also, watch the cake in your crockpot, cause mine is always quicker than a recipe tells me. Mine was done around the 2 hour mark.
Tammy
Could I double this in a larger crock pot.. Haven't ever made cake in a crock pot... What a terrific idea. I think we'll try them all!!
Brenda
I think it could but you may need to reduce the cooking time.
AZ@...And A Dash of Cinnamon
Custard in a crock pot huh? Now that's a new one! I LOVE my crockpot, but I haven't tried to make dessert in it really before.
Lacie
Do you think this would work in an instant pot?
Brenda
That I have not tried, my instant pot does have a crock pot setting but the shape of it would not work so well as a cake I don't think, that's why I used my oval crock pot.
Diane M. Kowalewski
If I used the oven method what size pan should I use?
Brenda
I would place this into a 9 by 13 pan.
Mern
Have every ingredient except the lemon stevia drops. Is there a substitute I can pickup in the meantime while ordering? Looks amazing. Lover of lemon???
Brenda
It's not completely necessary, so if you don't have it you can eliminate it but you may need to increase whatever sweetener you are using.
Robin K.
I'm thinking that this would be perfect to make in one of those new 9 x 13 shallow crockpots that I have been seeing in the store. I've been trying to talk myself into buying one of those, this recipe may have pushed me over the edge.
Brenda
I've not seen one of those, I will have to check it out, thanks!
Nita
Is this baked in a 6 qt crockpot?
Brenda
Yes sorry should have mentioned it.
Alexandra Travis
love this recipe, but I don't have a crock pot. What else can I use? Low oven temperature?
Brenda
This can go into the oven at 350 degrees F for about 30 minutes.
Orsi
So, would you please clerify it: it should go for low temperature for 3 hours (than what is the temperature?), or 350 F for 30 mins???
And if not in crock pot, how to adjust the temperature, And time?
Brenda
350 degrees F for 30 minutes, but check center with a toothpick, if it comes out clean it's done if not try 10-15 more minutes and check again.
Jan levine
I baked this for church today. Buttered a glass 9x13 inch glass pan and baked it at 325 for 35 mins>depends on your oven. Everyone loved it and requested the recipe.
Tammy
Could I double this do you think? I have one of the bigger crock pots, but not really sure what size it is...We have loads of children.:)
Brenda
Yes if you have a larger crock pot then double the recipe and the cooking time may need to be increased.
Trina
Has anyone doubled this? Just wondering what the cook time was?