This Oreo protein cake layers a lightened up chocolate cake with sugar free cream cheese frosting and is coated in crushed Oreo Thins. Each slice has 15 grams of protein, 26 grams of carbs, and just 230 calories!
I know I’ve said it before, but this is definitely one of my best protein powder recipes yet. I mean, it’s hard to go wrong with chocolate cake, right? I can’t wait for you to try it so let’s dig in.
How to Make This Oreo Protein Cake
If you’re a visual learner, I’ll quickly run you through the recipe and touch on ingredient modifications. You can find the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step 1: Mixing the Dry Ingredients
- all purpose flour
- protein powder
- black cocoa powder
- granulated sugar substitute
- baking powder
Add everything to a bowl and mix well. Easy enough, right?
Can I use a different protein powder?
The recipe calls for PEScience Select which is a blend of whey and casein protein. If you’re using a whey-only protein powder, you may need to add an extra half or full scoop to account for consistency differences. If your protein cake batter seems very runny, add some more protein powder.
Oh, and if you have chocolate protein powder, that’s fine. Add the cocoa powder all the same, though.
Note: You can use the discount code mason for 15% off on PEScience products. This also helps support future recipes!
Is black cocoa the same as dark cocoa?
There’s a definite color difference and a slightly richer flavor compared to something like dark cocoa powder. I used a Dutch-process black cocoa from King Arthur flour, which means it’s been treated to reduce the natural acidity. They suggest using it sparingly and pairing with another cocoa powder, but I didn’t find it necessary.
If you have unsweetened dark cocoa powder on hand, that should work fine. Your protein cake will just be a bit lighter in color.
You can find the black cocoa I use, along with all my other recommended ingredients and kitchen equipment on my Amazon storefront.
What is Swerve or erythritol?
Erythritol is a sugar alcohol that has virtually zero calories and tastes almost exactly like sugar. Swerve is an erythritol-based sweetener that substitutes 1:1 for sugar.
You can use other granulated sugar substitutes. Just make sure they substitute 1:1 for sugar and aren’t super concentrated or you’ll end up with a super sweet cake.
Flour and Baking Powder Notes
I haven’t tested this protein cake with any other type of flour, but almond flour is typically a fairly close substitute for protein cakes in my experience. That could be a gluten free or lower carb option. Coconut flour is tough to substitute with in cake since it’s so absorbent and you need a bit more structure.
As for the baking powder, make sure yours is fresh! If there’s anything we’ve learned from my Greek yogurt biscuits recipe, it’s that fresh baking powder makes a world of difference. If your baking powder has been open for more than a few months, there’s a good chance your protein cake won’t rise as much as it should.
Step 2: Incorporating the Wet Ingredients and Fat
- eggs
- unsweetened apple sauce
- your choice of milk
- vanilla extract
- melted chocolate chips
- light butter
You can see in the photos above you’ll need to melt the chocolate chips in the microwave and stir in the butter to form a buttery chocolate liquid in one bowl. In another bowl, whisk the eggs together before adding in the apple sauce, vanilla extract, and milk.
Then incorporate the egg mixture into the dry ingredients, followed by the buttery chocolate.
And voilà, ultra rich chocolate protein cake batter.
I’ve included the amount of protein cake batter each 8″ cake pan should have in grams. If you don’t have a food scale, you can eyeball it. The latter method may produce slightly different bake times for each cake.
Cake pan note: If you don’t have two cake pans on hand, you can bake all the batter in one cake pan. I tested my protein carrot cake recipe both ways and found the single pan batch required nearly double the time to bake.
Can I use real butter?
I’ve only tested this protein cake with the Land O’ Lakes light butter, but I’ve seen readers replace it with real butter in tons of my other recipes. They’ve also used I Can’t Believer It’s Not Butter and other light butter replacements.
Is there a substitute for apple sauce?
If you’re concerned about flavor, I promise you’ll never know it’s there in such small quantities. That said, you could use other fat replacements like canned pumpkin, avocado, egg yolk, some fruit purées like cherries, and possibly fat free Greek yogurt.
Pumpkin is typically my go-to for chocolate recipes like my mug protein brownie.
Step 3: Protein Cake Decoration Funzies Time
Once the cakes are baked, all that’s left is mixing together fat free cream cheese and powdered erythritol, frosting, and covering the cake in crushed Oreo Thins.
Where do you find fat free cream cheese?
Depending on where you’re at in the US, this might be difficult to find. Walmart, Kroger, and HEB all carry options here in Texas.
If you have trouble tracking it down, you can use 1/3 fat cream cheese which is readily available just about anywhere. I’ve included the nutrition facts for a 1/3 fat version in the notes section of the recipe card below.
Can I use regular Oreos?
The recipe calls for Oreo Thins because I didn’t wanted more Oreo cookie than creme filling for the exterior. You could probably get away with regular Oreos, but Double Stuff Oreos may leave you with too little cookie.
Not to mention, those things are dangerous having around the house!
Okay, I think that’s it for recipe and ingredient notes. If you have a question about this Oreo protein cake recipe, leave a comment below or join my Facebook group with 14,000+ other healthy home cooks that would love to help you out!
Oreo Protein Cake
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 1 1/2 C 180g All Purpose Flour
- 3 scoops, 93g Vanilla Protein Powder (I used PEScience Select)
- 3/4 C 60g Black Cocoa Powder
- 1/2 C 96g Granulated Sugar Substitute, I used Swerve
- 1 Tbsp Baking Powder
Wet Ingredients
- 1 C 240g Unsweetened Cashew Milk (or any milk)
- 1/2 C 120g Unsweetened Apple Sauce
- 2 large Eggs
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1/2 C 112g Light Butter
- 2 Tbsp 28g Dark Chocolate Chips, melted
Frosting and Oreo Coating
- 16 oz Fat Free Cream Cheese, or 1/3 fat
- 1 C 144g Swerve Confectioners (or a powdered sugar substitute)
- 12 Oreo Thins, crushed
Instructions
For the Chocolate Protein Cake
- Preheat your oven to 350F and spray two 8" round cake pans with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
- Mix the dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Make sure there are no clumps of cocoa powder remaining.
- Whisk the eggs together in a separate bowl before adding the milk, vanilla extract, and apple sauce. Whisk everything until smooth.
- Microwave (about 60 seconds) or melt the chocolate chips in a bowl before adding the light butter and mixing together until smooth. The melted chocolate chips should melt the light butter but you can microwave a few seconds longer if needed.
- Add the egg mixture to the dry ingredients and stir until very little liquid remains. Add the butter and melted chocolate and stir until the cake batter is smooth.
- Transfer the cake batter to the cake pans. Each pan should have 525 grams in it unless you modified ingredients. Shake the cake pans and give them a good smack on the counter to remove any air bubbles and get an even bake.
- Bake for 26-30 minutes or until a knife comes out clean in both cakes. After the baked cakes have cooled briefly, transfer them to a cooling rack to completely cool before frosting.
For the Frosting and Oreo Coating
- Mix the cream cheese and powdered erythritol together until smooth. Make sure no lumps remain.
- Use a food processor or blender to finely crush the Oreos.
- Frost the top of one cake before placing the second cake on top and frosting the top and sides. Gently pat the sides with the crushed Oreos and sprinkle remaining crushed Oreos on top. Refrigerate the cake after serving.
Notes
Nutrition Facts Notes
- Each slice of Oreo protein cake has 7 Smart Points.
- 1 slice with 1/3 fat cream cheese has 290 calories, 13 grams of protein, 24 grams of carbs, 16 grams of fat, and 8 Smart Points.
- 1 slice of cake only (no frosting or crushed Oreos) has 160 calories, 10 grams of protein, 16 grams of carbs, 7 grams of fat, and 4 Smart Points.
Nutrition
More Protein Powder Recipes You Might Like
- Banana Bread Cake
- No Bake Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake
- High Protein Granola
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Protein Cookies
Absolutely the best “healthy cake”! My husband was recently diagnosed with diabetes. We are trying to cut back on sugar. I was excited to use the swerve as it is diabetic friendly. We also did smaller portion cuts.
This is so moist. My coworkers raved about this and it is now a requested cake for every birthday!!
This is a great dessert. The icing tasted like normal icing. So so so good. I don’t have a food processor so I just crumbled my Oreos in a freeze bag with my hands.
Made it last weekend and it is awesome! I used Lankato granulated in the cake , and half regular/half Lankato powdered sugar in the frosting (I was afraid of an aftertaste), and it worked great! No one could tell it was lower sugar. This is my first protein cake, and I will say it is SUPER filling, so I would recommend a 1/16 slice instead of 1/12, especially if you have it after a meal. I think with the half regular powdered sugar and 1/3 cream cheese it was 9 smartpoints for 1/12th. Thanks for all the awesome recipes!
I just got done eating a piece of this cake, for breakfast 😂 this is definitely one of my favorite sweet treats I’ve made so far! I forgot to add the baking powder so my texture was much more dense but the flavor is still right on! Trust me when I say this doesn’t taste like “diet food!” Thanks for another awesome recipe, Mason!
This recipe is incredible! I’ve made it both as written and with modifications. The texture of the cake and taste is perfection. I prefer it straight out of the fridge!
Some mods I’ve tried:
Using PB powder instead of cocoa powder, A+; using Heath crumbles instead of Oreos, A+; using chocolate protein powder instead of vanilla, A+
I look forward to modifying it into may other flavors! It can be so difficult to get the right texture baking with protein powder and this recipe nails it!
Made it last weekend and it is awesome! I used Lankato granulated in the cake , and half regular/half Lankato powdered sugar in the frosting (I was afraid of an aftertaste), and it worked great! No one could tell it was lower sugar. This is my first protein cake, and I will say it is SUPER filling, so I would recommend a 1/16 slice instead of 1/12, especially if you have it after a meal. I think with the half regular powdered sugar and 1/3 cream cheese it was 9 smartpoints for 1/12th. Thanks for all the awesome recipes!
I just got done eating a piece of this cake, for breakfast 😂 this is definitely one of my favorite sweet treats I’ve made so far! I forgot to add the baking powder so my texture was much more dense but the flavor is still right on! Trust me when I say this doesn’t taste like “diet food!” Thanks for another awesome recipe, Mason!
This recipe is incredible! I’ve made it both as written and with modifications. The texture of the cake and taste is perfection. I prefer it straight out of the fridge!
Some mods I’ve tried:
Using PB powder instead of cocoa powder, A+; using Heath crumbles instead of Oreos, A+; using chocolate protein powder instead of vanilla, A+
I look forward to modifying it into may other flavors! It can be so difficult to get the right texture baking with protein powder and this recipe nails it!
This is a winner, no subs needed. Pro tip, tell your significant other that this is a “typical dry protein dessert” and save it all for yourself 🙂