by Lissie
Without the flour it has very low gluten. If you use a gluten-free baking powder, you will have a gluten free recipe cake. That's how I first made this recipe - I friend was gluten-intolerant for a while and made it for her. The trouble with the recipe though is that everyone will want to eat it - so the gluten-intolerant may have to be quick!
I usually serve with fresh berries and cream. Obvously for the dieter, skip the cream, or go easy on it!
I recently needed a nice desert for small family dinner. I knew I wouldn't have a huge amount of time to make it in advance. I also knew that I wasn't the only one in the group who was on a diet!
I'd used this recipe before, but I'd forgotten just how good it is. I served it covered with fresh raspberries and blackberries, dusted with icing sugar with cream on the side. It seemed to go down a treat - there wasn't any left over!
When I went to look for the recipe I couldn't find it - the recipe book had hidden it under "Cold Puddings" rather than "cakes"! It is really a cake - you could either ice it or dust it with icing sugar and serve as is.
Flourless cakes don't rise, well not permanently - they will look impressive as you remove them from the oven, and then immediately collapse. Don't panic! That's just how they are, it certainly doesn't affect the taste though it may confuse your guests. Once guessed that it was a brownie!
Pre-Heat Oven and Prepare Tin
This makes a 20cm / 8" cake. I line the bottom of a spring form tin with baking (parchment) paper and spray the sides with oil.
Preheat oven to 180C / 350F
Melt chocolate and butter
You can use a double boiler, but I use the microwave, but be careful to avoid burning the chocolate. If you put the two together the butter will melt first - and stirring will be probably be enough to melt the chocolate
Beat the egg yolks with sugar
Separate the eggs and beat the yolks and sugar until they are thick and creamy
Beat egg whites
Beat until soft peaks form. Do this step last as its now important to work quickly to get the mixture in the oven
Combine and Bake.
Combine the melted chocolate, beaten yolks, and beaten egg whites, and baking powder. Pour into the prepared tin. The cake will puff up while baking and is cooked when a skewer comes out clean.
Present
Once the cake is done - leave in the tin to cool for about 10 minutes. The cake will collapse at this point - THIS IS NORMAL for flourless cakes. Turn out on a rack to cool.
To Serve
I serve with fresh berries piled on top and cream on the side. You could also use frozen berries if fresh are out of season. Strawberries, blackberries, cranberries and raspberries are all recommended as they go so well with dark chocolate.
The only ingredient in this chocolate cake that has gluten is some brands of baking powder. As the gluten is just used as an anti-caking agent, using a gluten-free baking powder will make no difference to the cake.
Well its not super-low calories, but compared to a traditional cake which would have at least a cup of flour (500cal) - its lot better than most! I also use a good quality, 85% chocolate, rather than milk or cooking chocolate. Dark chocolate is slightly lower in calories and much higher in anti-oxidants than milk chocolate. It also tastes a lot better!
If you are watching the waistline then I suggest that you serve with fresh berries and a very little sprinkle or icing sugar. I would also skip the cream, or go with a low-fat yoghurt or ice cream instead.
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Comments
This cake is absolutely delicious. At long last I've found a gluten-free chocolate cake that's not packed full of fat. Thanks for sharing.
This sounds absolutely delicious! I must give it a try.
Oops - first its a typo - should be Castor Sugar - its just white sugar that is finer ground than regular sugar - but not as fine as icing sugar ie its still grains not powder. You could probably just munch some regular sugar in a food processor to the same effect.
Or just use regular - it will taste the same but may be a little bit gritty in texture. May be the same as "super fine sugar" in the US
Okay Lissie, for the people in the U.S., what is caster sugar? I've got to make this, but I know I'll eat it in one day.
Anything with Chocolate has to be good.
O.O GLUTEN FREE CAKE!!!(<--is gluten intolerant) *bookmarks* thank you!
YUM. Chocolate cake is my fav. Nice article!!
Great recipe, Lissie! It's definitely making my list of recipes I've got to try. Thanks!
I've never eaten gluten free cake but this looks wonderful!
Brilliant. I might have a go at making this one for my mum who needs to eat gluten free.