Flourless Chocolate Cake

Locale: USA

Source: Ruth Reichl, The Gourmet Cookbook [p. 739]

Serves: 10-12

Ingredients

  • 8 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
  • 1/2 lb unsalted butter (2 sticks)
  • 1.5 c sugar
  • 6 large eggs
  • 1 c unsweetened cocoa powder, plus extra for dusting

Steps

  1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line bottom of a 10-inch springform pan with parchment, and butter pan/parchment.

  2. Melt chocolate and butter in a double boiler (or metal bowl set over a pot of barely simmering water).

  3. Remove bowl from heat, whisk in sugar, then eggs one at a time, whisking well after each. Sift cocoa into bowl, and gently fold in until just combined. Scrape batter into pan, and bake 35-40 minutes at 350F, until a skewer inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs (i.e., not quite clean).

  4. Cook cake in pan on rack 10 minutes, then remove side of pan. Invert cake to remove bottom of pan, then reinvert onto rack to finish cooling.

  5. Dust with cocoa powder before serving.

Notes

  1. I use Hershey's Special Dark cocoa. I've found myself without bittersweet chocolate, so had to choose between semi-sweet and unsweetened. I chose semi-sweet and added 2 tbs extra cocoa (regular, not Special Dark). To use unsweetened I would have had to add more sugar.

  2. Since I use a double boiler, I usually mix the sugar and eggs in the mixer, then add the chocolate/butter, then the cocoa. I doubt the change of order makes any real difference.