Last week I was in charge of the dessert for the meal before my parents returned home to Sydney. To fulfil my recent attempt at wheat free living, I decided to make a flourless chocolate and hazelnut cake that I’ve made a couple of times out of an old Gourmet Traveller cookbook dedicated entirely to chocolate. I’ve always loved it; the hazelnut meal with the good quality chocolate makes it so decadent.
I started on a bad foot because I forgot to buy the hazelnut meal however I had almond meal in the cupboard, which is the perfect substitute. I combined all of what I thought were the ingredients, popped it all in the oven and then ten minutes later saw the melted butter sitting still in the saucepan on the stovetop. I was so annoyed with myself but with much kind reassurance from Mamie Annie and my step-mum, I decided to stick with it and see how it turned out. In the back of my mind I also knew that if needed we had the apricot compote that Mamie Annie had made earlier that I could dish up with the whipped cream that was supposed to accompany the cake.
Well, I can now say that I have accidently created my own delicious cake recipe! It was lighter than the intended recipe but equally delicious minus a bunch of calories with no butter or oil included, it seems that the almond meal and dark chocolate was enough to keep it lovely and moist.
So here it goes, the unexpected chocolate almond and orange cake. No butter or oil at all!!!
Ingredients
225g dark chocolate 70% refrigerated until cold then finely grated
200g almond meal
8 eggs, separated
250g caster sugar
Finely grated rind of 1 orange
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Cocoa, for dusting
Whipped cream to serve
Method
Combine grated chocolate and almond meal in a large bowl.
Using an electric mixer, whisk egg yolks and sugar until pale and thick, add orange rind and vanilla and whisk until just combined and then set aside.
Using an electric mixer, whisk egg whites and a pinch of salt until stiff peaks form.
Add egg yolk mixture and one-third of the whisked egg whites to the grated chocolate mixture and stir until just combined, then gently fold in the remaining egg whites until just incorporated (not too much or you’ll lose the height).
Spoon mixture into a greased or lined 24cm springform pan, level at top and bake at 180 °c for 20 minutes, then cover with baking paper and bake for another 25 minutes or until a cake tester withdraws clean. Stand for 15 minutes and then turn onto wire rack to cool.
Dust cooled cake with cocoa and serve with whipped cream. Voila, enjoy!
Mel xx
9 Comments
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Great outcome – well done!! It looks divine. Thanks for sharing the recipe. Definitely one to try! x
Hi Mel, I made this the other day and it turned out beautifully! In fact, 2 days later, it’s still great. I gave some to Jon to share at work and it got good feedback there too. Very yummy :)
Oh great Suzie, glad it turned out well! How amazing to make a cake without any oil or butter! M x
Dark chocolate and nuts-wonderful! xx
Wish I could have a slice now Caroline xx
So glad the cake worked out for you even though you forgot to add the butter Mel & everyone enjoyed it. I love the combination of 70% dark choc & hazelnuts, I made some cookies the other day with these two as the star ingredients which were a hit. Hope your getting used to the wheat free diet. xx
Thanks Catherine. It’s working out okay actually. I haven’t eliminated it 100%, I still leave room for the odd sneaky beer or a little slice cake that I’ll be presented with at someone’s home every couple of weeks, works out quite well. But really, I had no idea that a cake could be so good without any butter or oil! xx
it looks amazing Mel – bet it tasted great!!
Delish! thanks Anastasia xx